Friday, October 26, 2007

Friday 10/26 A.M. Quickie:
BC is No. 1, BoSox are 2-0, NFL Picks, More!

Today's Names to Know: Boston College, Matt Ryan, Curt Schilling, Ohio State, London, Steven Jackson, Boston Celtics, The Starter Wife, UNC hoops, David Stern, "real" fans.

Boston College is No. 1! For the first time in perhaps the entire season, college football fans can go into Saturday with a sense of clarity over who should be No. 1 on Monday: Boston College.

Because no matter what Ohio State does on Saturday night at Penn State, the Eagles will have a stronger claim to No. 1 than the Buckeyes, after B.C. amazed in 14-10 win at Virginia Tech, which included a thrilling 14-point comeback in final minutes.

Both BC and OSU are unbeaten: It all comes down to strength of schedule and "quality" wins; B.C. has the edge, particularly after racking up the most impressive single win of any BCS contender: Winning AT Virginia Tech, one of the toughest places to play in the country.

The Eagles did it in the slop, a rainy mess, with the Hokies controlling the game – dominating – for 55 minutes before re-energized Heisman contender (dare I say "front-runner?") Matt Ryan engineered two TD drives, with a very effective/lucky onside kick in between.

It was one of those "miracle" wins where you begin to think that B.C. has a destiny this season to reach the national title game.

Come Sunday morning, B.C. will have a stronger claim to that national title game than any other team in the country. Their most impressive trick: Leap-frogging the Buckeyes before OSU even takes the field.

(The only question is whether I put LSU ahead of Ohio State at No. 2. Be honest: LSU's weekend opponent -- vaunted Idle -- seems as impressive as any previous opponent on Ohio State's soft schedule.)

World Series: Red Sox take 2-0 lead over Rockies after 2-1 win at Fenway in Game 2.

Curt Schilling pitched phenomenally, and the Red Sox tag-team bullpen of Okajima and Papelbon shut down any Rockies' mojo for a comeback in this game. It might be the last time Sox fans see Schilling pitch in a Boston uniform; if so, it's been quite a run for him with the team and the fans.

As for the Rockies, now, we're in territory that Colorado hasn't seen in a long time: Two losses in a row? They only had two losses total in their previous 23 games.

But this is the World Series, where being down 2-0 means that every single one of the three games in Denver is a must-win for the Rockies, if not technically then realistically.

CFB Preview and Picks: TWO unbeatens could go down. But which ones? I am projecting this weekend to be as crazy as the last four. Ohio State will either get its first moderately meaningful win of the season or get its first loss... Arizona State and Kansas face their first real tests of the season (and I project both will lose)... One-loss BCS contender Oregon has a make-or-break game to put a stake in the heart of USC... One-loss BCS contender West Virginia takes on a Rutgers team bent on revenge for last season... and all eyes in Jax on Heisman leader Tim Tebow's right (non-throwing) shoulder.

1 Ohio St over at 25 Penn St (OSU's first real win)
21 Cal over at 4 Arizona St (Another "And-Oh!" goes down!)
5 Oregon over 12 USC (Puts Oregon into the Top 3?)
At Rutgers over 7 West Virginia (KO's WVU's BCS hopes)
At Texas A&M over 9 Kansas (ANOTHER "And-Oh!" goes down!)
10 South Florida over at 21 UConn (USF: Another Top 25 W)
11 Florida over 18 Georgia (As usual, right?)
13 Missouri over Iowa State (Less trouble than Okla had)
14 Kentucky over Mississippi State
15 Virginia over at NC State (Hoos: BCS computer fave)
16 South Carolina over at Tennessee (Huge SEC East game)
17 Hawaii over New Mexico St (Unbeaten and... so?)
19 Texas over Nebraska (More bad news for Huskers)
20 Michigan over Minnesota (I have them much higher)
22 Auburn over Ole Miss (Tigers: CFB's best 3-loss team)

NFL Week 8 Preview and Picks: My Top 5 Most Intriguing Storylines.

1. NFL in London: Euros love footy!
2. Pats 8-0: And don't give a f***
3. Favre's MNF finale: Maybe, finally?
4. Steven Jackson returns: Rams need him.
5. 2-4 teams: On edge of playoff abyss

At Bears (3-4) over Detroit (4-2)
Steelers (4-2) over at Bengals (2-4)
At Titans (4-2) over Raiders (2-4)
At Rams (0-7) over Browns (3-3)
Giants (5-2) over Dolphins (0-7) (London!)
At Vikings (2-4) over Eagles (2-4)
Colts (6-0) over at Panthers (4-2)
At Jets (1-6) over Bills (2-4)
Chargers (3-3) over Texans (3-4)
At Bucs (4-3) over Jags (4-2)
At Pats (7-0) over Redskins (4-2)
Saints (2-4) over at 49ers (2-4)
At Broncos (3-3) over Packers (5-1) (MNF)

Today's Must-Read: The NFL is letting down its female fans. This is an example of a great post – passionate, interesting, exclusive, exhaustively researched. Kudos to The Starter Wife and the Ladies... on this terrific post.

(And TSW earns extra points from me because she emailed to say The Starter Boyfriend adopted her Steelers. Given the fact that I have my NFL allegiance from adopting the team for which I was assigned to write a Deadspin season preview, he's doing OK by me.)

NBA Preview: Top 5 Storylines
1. Celtics: After 20 years, a return to relevancy
2. Kobe Trade: Will we see a deadline deal?
3. Durant + Rookies: Big sleeper? Al Thornton.
4. Surprises: Who is this year's Warriors?
5. Refs: Fan Preview: "YOU ON THE TAKE, REF?!"

What's your top NBA storyline this season? And what's your top under-the-radar storyline this season? Coming Monday: Awards. Coming Tuesday: Playoff/Finals Picks.

College Hoops: UNC tops Coaches' preseason Top 25. UCLA, Memphis, Kansas and Georgetown round out the Top 5. This is basically what everyone thought at the end of last season.

More Top 25 notes: Two-time defending champ Florida isn't in the Top 25 (the Gators are ranked 35th)... The USC Mayos are ranked 18th, and the Kansas State Beasleys are ranked 26th... the highest-ranked mid-major is Southern Illinois at 23... Of the teams who finished unranked last season, Michigan State is the highest now (8th), followed by Indiana (9), Duke (11), Marquette (12) and Gonzaga (14)...

As a reminder, my first crack at the Final Four is: UCLA (champs), Georgetown, Tennessee (ranked 7th) and UNC. That isn't NEARLY unconventional enough, but give it time...

More NBA: David Stern won't punish all the refs – half the freaking group – who violated the league's ban on casino gambling. What was he going to do: Suspend half the league's refs?

I recognize that the rule was probably a little overwrought, except for two things: (1) The fact is, the refs DID break a rule, which is disconcerting, because it involves gambling, if legal.

(2) What's so unreasonable about asking pro sports officials to steer clear of casinos while they are employed by the NBA? Is their compulsion so great they can't put their incredibly exclusive job ahead of their need to gamble? Because if that's the case, aren't they at risk to fall into a trap where their gambling compromises their job?

(The same thing applies to players: Don't you think that Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley's severe gambling habits puts them in at least MILD risk of compromising games in the service of their psychological addiction? It's hardly a heretical point to raise.)

What makes a "real" fan: Huge thanks to all commenters who made yesterday's discussion of what makes a "real" fan one of our most interesting ever. And additional thanks to all readers who emailed me directly to share their own thoughts and stories. Enjoyed them all.

Find any blogger reaction to the post? Email the URL to me so I can link to it (whether they found the story compelling or not -- I welcome all discussion). For example, the highly esteemed Eric McErlain at Fanhouse put up this. It's a really phenomenal post by one of my favorite sports thinkers, and I really recommend you give it a read. (Here's another Fanhouse post from Josh Alper, on his brief fling with Michigan State.)

More Reactions (updating):
Sam Versus World.
FreeDarko. (Last link, with the phrasing I'd like to frame: "Shanoff's liberated fandom.")

(Ironically, the name of my first company, a start-up, was "Real Fans," an online-sports pioneer acquired by AOL. Were any of you out there AOL members back in mid-90s and remember the site? God, it was so fun. Sometime, I'll recount how crazy it was, as if anyone really cares.)

Wow, how about that: Two days this week of two-a-day posting? Could this be the start of a trend? Hmm...

-- D.S.

116 comments:

David Kippe said...

Dare you say? He is without a doubt the front runner right now for the Heisman. You can argue all you want about any other player (Tebow), but Matt Ryan is a freaking stud. Playing in horrendous conditions, in one of the most difficult places to play (especially on thursday nights)against the number 8 team in the country, down 10 in the 4th and he engineers two awesome drives. BC remains undefeated and by your own statement of them being No.1 no one can justify anyone else being the front runner for the Heisman. Matt Ryan for President! Wow, what a freaking performance. And I end my slurp.

Gonzo said...

Okay, so I'll give you credit. I was wrong about how (some) SEC fans would interpret BC's win. But please don't get on the bandwagon. It will kill us.

I think the real truth this season is that there is no point trying to figure out which team is "better." We'll just have to wait and see how everyone stacks up at the end of the year. Honestly, LSU is probably a better team than BC, but that doesn't meant they win on a neutral field. After all, USC is definitely a better team than Stanford, and we all know how that turned out.

It's all about results.

David Kippe said...

but they do not leap OSU if the buckeyes go into Happy Valley and win, not a chance.

CMFost said...

What an awesome night if you are a Boston Sports, and a shitty night if you are not. The Red Sox win in a nail biter, unreal performance not just the Red Sox Bullpens but both bullpens, BC makes an amazing comeback, and the throw for the game winning touchdown was unreal, and the Bruins won 3-1.


One Question for Rockies Fans: What the Hell was Matt holliday thinking?

CMFost said...

Did anyone here the quote from the Dolphins Channing Crowder?

Wow that University of Florida degree is really helping.

WVUsFinest said...

Thank you for finally NOT picking the mountaineers...

....dodges Daily Quickie Curse...

David Kippe said...

cmfost,
lol, i was thiking of posting that quote , but I held back.

David Kippe said...

did he really get a degree there?

WVUsFinest said...

So...here is the dilemma I was in last night as a WVU fan..

1) root for BC, because Mountaineers are never, under any circumstances to ever root for the hokies?

or

2)silently cheer so BC would go down, and thus my Mountaineers after hopefully defeating Rutgers would move further up the rankings..

For the first 55 minutes I would say I rolled with number one...but when Tech got scored on in the last 11 seconds, I felt a buzz/joy that came over me that reminded me, no matter what...that there is nothing in the world like watching VT, Pitt or Maryland lose on a national stage

*leaps off soapbox

Anonymous said...

omfg

I had a long rant and rave about Dan's ridiculous BC/LSU/OSU assertions...

and the comment wasn't accepted. So I won't repeat it.

Anyway, no. LSU isn't #2. If Ohio State wins at Penn State (a much tougher place than Lane Stadium..where...you know, the Hokies lose on an annual basis), it is as good a win as BCs.

CMFost said...

Here is the quote for anyone who did not see it:

""I couldn’t find London on a map if they didn’t have the names of the countries," he said. "I swear to God. I don’t know what nothing is. I know Italy looks like a boot. I know London Fletcher. We did a football camp together. So I know him. That’s the closest thing I know to London. He’s black, so I’m sure he’s not from London. I’m sure that’s a coincidental name."

CMFost said...

He did not graduate but he did attend the school/ It really shows what they teach at Florida.

RevScottDeMangeMD said...

Dan is just trying to be a rabble-rouser again. I think he enjoys getting under my (and all OSU fans') skin.

That being said, if Ohio State wins by 21+, they will still be #1. If they win in a tight one (that's what she said), then they will be #2.

P.S. I hate the Red Sox, the Office was fantastic last night, and I can't wait to see Saw IV tonight.

Anonymous said...

Okajima is a heck of pitcher. I like watching him.
Though I will say that Rockies batters are thinking too much. Too often they'd have the bat on their shoulder while a pitch right down the pipe would zoom by. Just swing the bat.
Hawpe has become one of my "batters who get what they deserve" in my book. A guy who stands 2 inches from the plate...so when he faces a pitcher that can put the ball on the inside corner of the plate (Okajima), he can't swing at it.

Still, Rockies fans should feel heartened that they DO have the pitching to keep Red Sox in check. The bats need to wake up though.

Anonymous said...

HOW ABOUT DEM' COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS!


(don't think we've had a hockey reference yet.)

David Kippe said...

you think he went to class? its quite unbelievable.
When at MSU I had a class with David Thomas, Mateen Cleaves backup. He showed up the first day of class, then never saw him until mid terms and final exams.

WVUsFinest said...

@ revscott...

Most of the OSU fans I know are real worried about saturday..

you share the same sentiment??

pv845 said...

I hear that Emmitt Smith and Channing are going to start up a news show. Just kidding.

Does it get any better for a town than Boston has it right now?

Even with this win, no way that BC jumps over OSU. Second, who has LSU beat? UF, wow a two-loss team. VT, we see that isn't special. SC, another two loss team. And they have lost a game. Now way that LSU is better than OSU.

Good to know that KU will win and stay undefeated. Thank Dan!

Gary said...

Here's something to chew on this morning. UConn controls their own destiny making a BCS bowl!

They have two HUGE home games this weekend and next, South Florida and Rutgers. Then they hit the road for two out of their last three games, at Cincy, vs. Syracuse and at WVU.

Just imagine if UConn/WVU ends up being the defacto Big East Championship game! Unbelievable.

Sorry, I had to get my UConn rant out of the way

WVUsFinest said...

@ Gary

trust me, it baffles my mind too...

Khalid el-amin at center..
Emeka Okafor at wideout
Rip Hamilton as dual threat QB
Jake Voskul..well...punter..

haha...they are having a crazy season

Anonymous said...

If LSU played OSU at a neutral site, LSU would be favored by at least 10

Ed Chavis said...

Wow... Channing Crowder and Miss Teen SC separated at birth?

"I personally believe that U.S. Americans are unable to do so because some people out there in our nation don't have maps and I believe that our education like such as in South Africa and the Iraq everywhere like such as and I believe that they should our education over here in the U.S. should help the U.S. or should help South Africa and should help the Iraq and the Asian countries so we will be able to build up our future for." - Miss Teen South Carolina

"I couldn’t find London on a map if they didn’t have the names of the countries," he said. "I swear to God. I don’t know what nothing is. I know Italy looks like a boot. I know London Fletcher. We did a football camp together. So I know him. That’s the closest thing I know to London. He’s black, so I’m sure he’s not from London. I’m sure that’s a coincidental name." - Channing Crowder

Anonymous said...

and i guess to comment on the rest

Oregon is an interesting team. If they soundly beat USC, is anyone else as comfortable as I am in putting Oregon ahead of LSU? Both had similarly close losses (one in OT, the other on that fluke fumble)

I think it's kinda silly to ban Refs from all gambling. Not even a card game?

RevScottDeMangeMD said...

@wvusfinest

At the beginning of the year (and Shanoff can attest to this) I said that Ohio State would probably lose 3 games, @Penn State (b/c they never play well at Happy Valley AND it's at night...that place will be rocking), Wisconsin (b/c Wisco owns them), and Michigan (b/c I thought Michigan was going to be #1 all year).

Yes, the Big 10 is a little down this year, but not as bad as people say. They beat up on each other and road games in the Big 10 are just as tough, if not tougher, than road games in the SEC, especially at night with a crazy crowd.

If Ohio State loses, obviously I will be disappointed. But it won't be the end of the world. I think they will win a close one, but if they don't, I won't be shocked.

Geoff said...

I don't get what is reasonable about asking NBA refs to stay clear of a casino, so long as they aren't betting on NBA games. Isn't it as arbitrary as asking them not to like go to a beach? Who cares how they spend their free time? If they have a gambling problem than banning them from a casino isn't going to help that. It'll just drive their addiction underground instead.

David Kippe said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
David Kippe said...

there should be no gambling in season at all, for playersn and refs. Why dangle the fruit of temptation. Just dumb what Stern wants to do now. You just had the biggest black mark on your sport since Kermit Washington drilled Rudy T and this is how you handle it, come on. Stupid, just stupid. You wanna place bets, do it out of season. Otherwise you are under the thumb of a professional sports league for 8 months out of the year. You get to travel the country, get paid reasonably well, and are on a national stage. NO GAMBLING!

David Kippe said...

but hey, lets enforce the players to wear suits on gamedays, thats so fucking dumb.

Geoff said...

So having a good job is a reason to exclude someone from doing something they might enjoy? Is it really a big deal if they play a few hands of cards or pull on a few slots? Not every person that gambles has a huge problem. Why not also make a rule that they can't have alcohol either?

"Hey, you can have this good job... but you are no longer around to watch Earl and The Office on Thursdays. Sorry."

David Kippe said...

anyone hear about how the Yanks released a statement to say they would not be announcing a new manager this week and probably next...? well in actuality they cannot. no moves can be made during the World Series. My guess is that they asked MLB for permission and they were politley told no.

The heroin sheik said...

channing crowder doesnt have a degree from florida. He left after his redshirt sophomore year if I am correct. Also his comments unfortunately don't show that he was being a bit sarcastic. At least I hope he was being sarcastic.

David Kippe said...

The league, regardless if it was an "isolated" case just got exposed for what everyone always cries, "It is Fixed!" why even put yourselves in a situation that could be shady. Again, do it all you want out of season, but until then find other hobbies to explore on your days off.

David Kippe said...

no one was talking about addiction either. but you are on a slippery slope when you start to gamble.

Ed Chavis said...

What troubles me is not so much the gambling thing, but the fact that David Stern seems willing to change whatever the rules are based on the fact that half the refs broke the existing rules. As of last season, there are only 61 pro refs in the NBA - a position more exclusive than, say, starting wide receivers in the NFL. They should shut up and accept whatever restrictions are necessary to maintain the integrity (or even the perceived integrity)of the game.

David Kippe said...

exactly Mr. Ed. and you know that if Goodell was running the show he would tighten up the restrictions. What the hell is happening to Sterns balls? I thought he was finally getting tough with the refs after Joey Crawford last season, but it looks like he continues to protect them, but treat the money makers (the players) like industry robots.

Matt said...

LSU losins to 2 2 loss teams and that makes them better than the buckeyes...

whatever dan and bc getting owned then coming back thanks largely to a lucky on side kick recovery.

they were getting fisted for 55 minutes and now they are the best team in the country?

i guess i am just sick of people hating on the buckeyes because of last years game. a once in a decade fluke performance by ohio state.

so whetever people can continue to hate OSU and we will continuew to win...dont give them any respect who cares the 2002 team sure loves their trophy

24-6 buckeyes

Ed Chavis said...

Not trying to make this racist, but to me, it looks like Stern is trying to control the hip-hop culture among players, while coddling the refs as if they were league office lackeys. If he's not careful, he's going to come off looking like a dumb, old white man... oh, wait......... never mind.

The heroin sheik said...

I think it is funny that the gators owe both of their natl championships in football to OSU. The gators were 3 in the pools until OSU beat ASU in the Rose bowl setting up a 1 vs 2 and then last year of course they just rolled over and played dead. So as much as I hate big ten football because it is boring in my opinion I have to give props to OSU.

Eric said...

VaTech,

How'd that prevent defense work out for you? Minus the holding call, Ryan found guys in the end zone twice in the last 30 seconds. If you dominate an offense all night, don't change a damn thing. A three man rush simply gave a great College QB too much time to shred you.

At least there's a chance you'll get to see them again this year.

David Kippe said...

@Matt,

but they came back and won even though they were dominated. though if Ryans receivers didn't keep falling down it may have been a different ending anyhow. but the resolve, thats the sign of a champion.

Matt said...

im not taking away from the win...great performance at the end. but you cant discount the rest of the game. it was a terrible game up until the last 5 or so minutes

TBender said...

What the Hell was Matt holliday thinking?
Did he or Hurdle have comments about that after the game? Was he sightseeing? The only thing you cannot do in that situation is get picked off, and Holliday just drifts out into space.

Ugh. Colorado's inexperience finally caught up with them. Hurdle looks like a guy who's just happen to be there.

Matt said...

if that was the buckeyes dan would have written how they barely squeaked by with the help of a lucky play and lsu would still win by 30

kway34 said...

No matter what Ohio State does? Say Ohio State goes in, wins 35-0 and domintes every phase of the game IN Happy Valley (thougher place to play than Lane)...that's not as impressive as playing 4 minutes of offense and getting a lucky onside recovery? Please...

Anonymous said...

Does anyone find it strange that the olny way the Rockies could get on the board last night was when a ground ball went off Lowell's glove into foul territory, Schilling didn't react quickly enough, Lowell made an error, and then they got an RBI groundout?

They are aware that to beat the Red Sox they may need to, on occasion, actually hit the ball. Right?

Anonymous said...

If a NBA ref is in a big gambling hole he can get out of it by altering the outcome of a game. That's why they aren't allowed to gamble, not really as arbitrary as going to the beach. You can't lose your life savings at the beach.

Natsfan74 said...

It's funny -- Ohio State has one loss in over two calendar years. IF they were any other team, Dan would be talking Dynasty. If they were an SEC Team, Dan would be talking about Best.Team.Ever. If they beaten Florida last year and were on a 30 game win streak, the world would be talking about them as possibly the best team ever.

Instead, they lose one game on a night where they played their worst football in the Tressel-Ball era, and now they are not even a legitimate #2 because LSU is so great? Show me LSU's big win now (someone else beat me to this already). When Florida loses again this week-end, it even discredits a big win a bit more.

I am quite scared about the game in Happy Valley tomorrow. That's a tough place to go in and win. And, Paterno seems to have Tressels' number (he even calls him "Little Jimmy" since he's known him since he was 9).

Now, Virginia has a chance to meet up with BC in the ACC title game. We have NC State this week-end (exactly the kind of trap game we lose in the Groh era), and then finish the season with Wake Forest, at Miami, and Virginia Tech. 7-1 now, and could finish 10-2..... Wow! I can't wait to go into Scott Stadium on Thanksgiving week-end with the division championship on the line.

Cody said...

On the ref situation. Remember Mr. Stern "a rule is a rule"?? This is what he said when he suspended Amare in the WCF for leaving the bench. Whether you agree with the rule or not, as of now it’s still a rule. That’s like getting pulled over for DUI and the cop saying “well, you blew over the legal limit but they are going to change that law next month so you can go”. Stern just doesn’t want to admit that the NBA has a problem and if he had to suspend over half the officials in a way he would be admitting that.

Last night was the first time that I’ve seen Matt Ryan play, and at first I was wondering how in the hell he was in contention for the Heisman. Then in the last 5 minutes, I was like, Oh that’s how.

RevScottDeMangeMD said...

@matt

"if that was the buckeyes dan would have written how they barely squeaked by with the help of a lucky play and lsu would still win by 30"

AMAZING!!! That is the best comment I have seen on this site in months. You couldn't have been more right. Touche my friend...touche!

verbal97 said...

Hey Dan, do you like barbecue sauce on your crow?

I wasn't going to care about OSU/Penn St this weekend until Matt opened his mouth. Have your problems with Dan all you want, but don't trash a great comeback win in the process. I'll now be rooting for Penn St and every other team OSU plays against this season. Thanks Matt!

Matt said...

natsfan hit it squarely on the head...

i mentioned the fact that lsu's best wins are over 2 teams that also have 2 losses...not that impressive.

but dan the media and all SEC fans seem to forget this fact.

and natsfan said it right. that game against floirda goes the other way and people are all on their nuts.

but because of an aberration of a game they are all of a sudden a team that shouldnt even show up against an sec or pac10 team? please

Geoff said...

Not every person that goes to gamble (cards, slots, tables, etc... not SPORTS betting) is going to lose everything they have. Why punish the 99% that might just do it for fun for the 1% that might have a problem.

Matt said...

i didnt trash the comeback, all i said was look at the game as a whole. The entire game BC played like garbage.

and like i give a shit if you root against OSU for this game or every game, just hop on the hater bandwagon

Natsfan74 said...

Well, when Ohio State has a 7 point lead in the 1st quarter, Verbal will jump back off of the PSU bandwagon and consider the game lost. When it's close in the 4th quarter, he'll jump back on just so he can say he wanted that to happen.

Matt said...

he reminds me of a friend i have..when we were watching the 2002 buckeye national championship game he shows up wearing miami gear....

all game he was saying how osu/um/osu/um would win that game

wost fan ever

Ed Chavis said...

@geoff

"Why punish the 99% that might just do it for fun for the 1% that might have a problem?"

Because the 1% cast a very bad light on the other 99%, that's why.....

Joseph Beck said...

There are 13 NFL games this weekend. 12 are broadcast in HD. The Cleveland Browns are not in HD.

This is not the first time that they are the only game not in HD.

As a fact, the Browns lead the league in non-HD games.

What is up with this? If they can broadcast 12 games in HD, why can't they do all 13? Why did I spend all this money on an HDTV only to have my team be the one that has the fewest HD games?

Maybe Dan has some connections at the NFL who can explain why 12 out of 13 games are HD, but they can't find a way to do that last game in HD.

Matt said...

im actually still trying to figure out why he has the rams beating the browns this weekend...


but i agree with the HD issue, has any game been broadcast in HD this season? WTF

Ed Chavis said...

Re: HD - do you actually WANT to be able to see bad football in HDTV? I don't need HD to know that the Falcons blew a lead and lost the game... now that I think about it, I don't actually even need a TV set to know that.

Never mind.

TBender said...

Joseph Beck:

If the Browns' game is on CBS, it's because CBS doesn't have enough HD control rooms to handle a full slate of AFC games (6? 7?).

And the Browns get the short end. I thought the Texans were the short end.

David Kippe said...

and who's to say the no one else in the 99% don't have an issue with gambling. They cannot monitor it on a case to case basis.

Geoff said...

Yep, and that is a great way to base rules. Punish the whole for the acts of the few. I guess Dan should ban commenting on this board since there are 2 or 3 jackholes that on occasion screw up the commenting threads. You know, punish us all since those 2 cast a bad light on the rest of us.

Dan Shanoff said...

Matt's post at 9:36 wins.

Gonzo said...

Gambling is no big deal, but the sports leagues are justifiably paranoid about gambling. If you want to be an NBA ref you can't go to a casino. It's not awesome, but it should have been a small sacrifice for the privilege of being highly paid to be on the floor of an NBA game.

It also fine to allow casino gambling, it's just incredibly weak and two-faced of Stern to change the rule when faced with the suspension of half his officiating crew. Given the state of NBA officiating though I think he missed a golden opportunity.

RevScottDeMangeMD said...

@EVERYONE:

Since you all are wise and ever-knowing, I need some help for a Halloween costume. In the past year's I've done the obvious pimp, OBGY-N, white trash, nudist on strike, etc.

What should I be this year? The party is tomorrow and I've struggled to find something fun. I have 3 choices in mind.

a.) Where a suit with glasses and wear a Superman shirt under and constantly keep ripping open my suit as if I am going to save the day.

b.) Where normal clothes with a nametag that says "Hello! My name is: GOD"

c.) Cover my self in wrapping paper, put a bow on my head, and have a sign that says, "To: Women, From: God"

Any other suggestions?

I wish I was still in college! OU Halloween > Any other party in the world.

Unknown said...

Dan,

I just read yesterdays post where you said "What if my blind date had been a FSU fan" like that was an insult. I am offended. I hope your second wife is a SMU fan.

Matt said...

halloween costume idea:

go as a streaker, wear a long khaki colored trench coat and make a huge(and im talking huge) dong to that it drags under the jacket...no undershirt to make it look like your naked underneath.

Matt said...

i didnt mean streaker, i meant a flasher

Ronnie Fitzpatrick said...

I prefer Dan picking against my Jayhawks. He has been wonderfully wrong before. Please keep picking against them Dan, just for good luck.

CMFost said...

rev how about you put on all types of Florida gear and go as Dan.

SF said...

Why is VT such a HUGE win??? They have played 2 good teams and lost to both of them???

Dan, please explain, or else your argument is hypocritical...

CMFost said...

sf it is a big win because when BC beat them they where the #8 team in the country and beating a top 10 team on the road is a big quality win.

DP said...

That final toss by Ryan made the game for me even though I was going for Tech. But honestly, i don't think either they or the Ohio State chokers should be in the top two. LSU and Florida are the two best teams but they don't have cupcake schedules. Sure BC beat Tech away, but against the shitshow of a QB Glennon.

Boston and Colorado pitched lights out last night. It was seriously one of my favorite baseball games in a long time. It was a struggle to keep switching back and forth to have something to write about today.

RevScottDeMangeMD said...

@cmfost:

If we had a "Daily Quickie (That's what she said)" party, then that would be a great costume idea. Except I would carry around a Northwestern Diploma and a New York driver's license.

Gonzo said...

I hope all these SEC fans realize they are coming perilously close to sounding like Michigan/Big Ten folks last year who were claiming that Michigan and OSU should play again from the national title. If you want to play for the NC stop losing games

And @ferocious bluebird - BC and OSU may not have tough schedules, but in light of the fact that they are undefeated you can hardly call them chokers.

CMFost said...

rev - I think we all hope that we get a "daily quickie"

Matt said...

@gonzo

i think he was referring to OSU losing both the football and basketball championships

who knows what the hell he was talking about.

just another SEC fan with blinders that says his conference is the best in the history of the world because he says so

The heroin sheik said...

A couple of years ago I went to walmart and bought a fsu shirt and hat. Then at mirnight I took them off doused them in gas and pissed on it. No matter how trashed I got though would I do the tomahawk chop.

Cody said...

@ Gonzo
I agree, it is very two-faced of Stern to hold the players to the letter of the rule (ie suspending Amare for leaving the bench) and not holding the officials to the same standard. Sterns own comments after the Amare suspension was "a rule is a rule and he broke the rule". With the officials he is not holding them to the rules as they are in place now. Reguardless if he changes the rule, the refs in question broke a rule that is currently in place.

Anonymous said...

Everyone covered most of the topics I was going to. So instead, I will write about my son's tryouts for the CYO 7th grade travel team. There are two travel teams, an A and a B team with about 10 kids on each. About 45-50 kids showed up to try out. The randomly played a 5 on 5 game for 5 minutes, then they brought out the next group of kids. All the kids got in two of the games and they switched the teams up a little the second game. Then they also played one 3 minute matchup.

There were 5 fathers selecting the kids. The problem is that the 5 fathers' kids were all on the travel team last year. So basically, any kid who was on the travel team last year pretty much made it before walking in the door. In effect, if none of the fathers knew your kid and your kid wasn't one of the top two or three kids there, they had no chance.

Is my son the best kid there - no. Was he one of the top 20 - I think so. He didn't try out for the travel team last year since we were away. He made the all star team in the regular league. At one point, he made 3 consecutive shots from close range and didn't miss any. He got a few rebounds and played good defense. I don't think there is any way they can really choose the best players just by watching a short game. At least have them shoot some balls, look at specific dribbling, passing and rebounding skills. First lesson in politics for the kid.

I saw a similar article about walk ons at Syracuse. They pretty much had the team set before tryouts. They had the walk ons play a scrimmage and none made the team. Boeheim walked in for 2 minutes and walked out. The valid comments were that if they weren't even going to choose anyone then why even waste their time. I agree.

Well for my son there is the much more extensive tryouts for the middle school team. The grade has 700 kids and 13 make the team. Probably about 60 try out.

In a way, you don't want your kid to go in with a defeatist attitude but you also don't want them to be crushed if they don't make it.

Emma Brand said...

As a Jayhawk fan, I didn't feel very good about the game until I saw that you've picked against them...AGAIN. Now, I am gonna bet the house on the 'Hawks tomorrow. Thanks, Dan. You're like our very own Lee Corso.

verbal97 said...

Wanting OSU to lose because one of their fans heaped shit on my team's performance does not mean I'm on a PSU bandwagon!

Also, last I checked LSU and Florida lost to teams that weren't that great. So how in the world can any person with any intelligence say they DESERVE to be placed higher than BC or Ohio State. You may wax poetic that they may have better teams, but they lost actual games that are played on an actual field. And though people lose their shit when talking about the SEC's supposed superiority as a conference, it doesn't mean that it's actually true. And for those idiots out there that think there's a comparison between beating a team with a true freshman qb early in the season at home vs. beating that team with last night's conditions (weather, crowd, stage, etc.) need to catch a clue.

In the end it's very simple...either BC and/or OSU win their remaining games and thus deserve to be in the championship game or they lose and they're out of the running. And then all you SEC brown-nosers can have your farce of a championship game for LSU or whomever wins the conference. (I say farce, because if there aren't 2 teams with a clean resume then there's going to be a whole lot of bitching and griping amongst how this 1-loss team is better than that 1-loss team).

danwise1856 said...

Halloween Costume idea:

Grab a cardboard box and cut a whole in the center. Bend the ends up slightly. Then go to the store and by Chips, salsa and nacho cheese and go as a box of nachos.

I did this a few years ago at a party and it was a hit. Plus you get all the girls coming up to you all night to grab a nibble!

Ed Chavis said...

@geoff Re: Ref gambling

Yes, you do punish the 99% for the sake of the 1%, when it's a big enough issue. I have to give up my "fun" of taking someone's head off, because of the 1 % of the population that actually does it.

Matt said...

and dan i appreciate the endorsement


keep up the good work

Anonymous said...

Aw...I don't know what bluebird's teams are, but he is our resident angry poster. :)

verbal97 said...

cycledan, that sucks! I had a similar experience as a kid. It's an unfortunate and unfairly harsh lesson for a kid to learn at a young age. It doesn't matter if you're good enough to make the team if you don't know the right people.

Joseph Beck said...

CycleDan,

I know exactly where you're coming from. You are right when you say "First lesson in politics for the kid."

They can't possibly evaluate and choose the 20 best out of 50 in one tryout session. Several years ago my son performed well in tryouts but did not make the team, partly because his performance wasn't noticed, and partly because the coaches already knew who they wanted to have on the team - it was the same kids who had been on their rec league team, the same kids who played other sports with their kids, the same old gang.

As you suggest, there are many factors completely unrelated to athletic performance that determine who gets on the team.

My solution: I became the coach. Now I'm the one who picks the team.

I go watch the rec league games. I talk to the parents of the top players and ask them to bring their kids to tryouts. It allows me to make a better-informed decision truly based on the player's ability. Does this result in some "pre-ordained" picks for the team? Yes. But they make the team based on their ability, not because they are best friends with the coach's son.

Trey (formerly TF) said...

Cycle,

I had a similar story. When I was in 7th grade I moved to a new town and tried out at my Catholic school's basketball team, which had an A team and B team. A team was better, but both played in the same league.

Anyone familiar with Catholic schools will all tell you it is a tight group of super parents and their families that run the school. I was short but good, started for my team in the previous city I lived in. I didn't have a shot at makingthe team.

Later that season we played the A team in a regular season game. The A team was good, 1st in the league, etc. We were average, around .500.

Well we took them to overtime and they scored with about 3 seconds on the clock. I brought the ball up courtand nailed a 30 footer to win the game. My biggest FU to those A team parents and family.

The point of my rambling? It sucks yes, but your kid may be better for it. Hold tight he'll get his break.

Geoff said...

Horrible comparison. Equating murder with gambling. Awesome work there. Wow.

I guess no one should be allowed to drink ever since there are so many death related to drunk driving and liver disease. Ban alcohol! It's a big enough issue. You know, there are enough people that just can't control their habit so no one should get to enjoy it.

Luke Bell said...

I coached little league baseball in my small town. It was 5th & 6th graders. I told them flat out at the start of the year that everyone would be playing, and even the best players would have games where they didn't start. At that age, it is more important to learn to play and have fun, rather than be the kid who get stuck on the bench all the time. I had a few parents come up to gripe about their kid not starting, and I told them that complaining to me will make me bench their kids even more. That shut them up.

Kids just want to play. It was more rewarding for me to see them all enjoying themselves and getting better than it was to actually win games. There is plenty of time to hold tryouts and cut players when they get to high school. No need to do it so young.

CMFost said...

great when did this turn into varsity dad?

Trey (formerly TF) said...

About the same time we stopped making this the Patriots/Sox talk.

Ftrain said...

***Big News Flash***

Georgia's Supreme Court on Friday ordered the release of Genarlow Wilson.

Quick Reminder: Genarlow Wilson, a high school football star and honors student, was sentenced to 10 years in jail for having consensual oral sex with another teenager.

ToddTheJackass said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Matt said...

good for genarlow

cant believe the decision to let him free was 4-3

what a travesty that was

RevScottDeMangeMD said...

I am so glad Generalow was freed.

I am also so glad I do not live in Georgia. I would probably be serving 50 life sentences.

BANG!

The heroin sheik said...

so rev you like to videotape jailbait giving you head.

RevScottDeMangeMD said...

Didn't they say that there was never a videotape and that was him and older girls?

Regardless, she wasn't "jailbait." If he was over 18, then yes, it was.

CMFost said...

rev I think each state have different laws as to what is statutory rape. Some it 18, in Mass. it is 16

The heroin sheik said...

Im pretty sure there was video of it at least that was what they were saying on cnn this morning. Even though he was 17 at the time in GA I guess a 15 yo is jailbait unless it is your cousin.

The heroin sheik said...

In florida it is something like if you aren't more than five years older than them and they give consent it isn't statutory because they put a guy in jail who was 19 for knocking up his 16 yo wife. He knocked her up and then got married and one of her parents pressed charges. After that they changed the laws.

ToddTheJackass said...

5 Random Thoughts:

1. Life is great as a BC alum and a Red Sox fan. Sorry if you hate it, but it's great, let me tell you.

2. I still maintain that while Tebow is a more talented college football player, no one means more to his team's success than Matt Ryan. So if you view the Heisman as most valuable player and not most talented player (for a 2-loss team), then Matt Ryan should win the Heisman. Also, there's no way Tebow could've made that drive.

3. No way in hell that V-Tech TD should've counted. He clearly bobbled/adjusted the possession after he was out of bounds. Fortunately it didn't matter for BC, but yikes.

4. Colorado could have the advantage in games 3 and 4, but they definitely blew it last night, or more accurately, Okajima came up ridiculously huge, and Matt Holliday drifted way beyond the acceptable TBS stealing line I'm sure. Huge advantage Red Sox, but teams have come back from 2-0, and the 2-3-2 format of the playoffs definitely helps the Rockies' chances of making a comeback.

5. It would've been totally hypocritical for Stern to have the summer Rookie league and the All Star game in Vegas, then say, you can't gamble in Casinos.

pv845 said...

I fail to understand why having things in Vegas and why banning refs from gambling is wrong. To get a lot of jobs people have to make sacrifices and this is just one. If you don't like it get another job.

I wear a suit to work every day. I would much rather wear jeans, but I can't. The same is true of gambling and the NBA. The same is true of the apparel of the NBA players before games.

Anonymous said...

rev-

I don't remember the exact circumstances but it was something like oral sex was illegal for kids under 16 and even though they both participated and it was consensual it is still a crime for the guy. There was also some sort of thing about how it happens all the time but they decided only to follow through with this one kid.

I think there was something about it was a bunch of white people in the jury/judge/appeals court and the kid is black.

Not only was it like the only time out of a hundred that the prosecuted but they went for a really long sentence.

Tons of people wrote to try to get the kid released but they wouldn't for a while.

I guess they finally righted the wrong.

TBender said...

TtJA:
I miss the TBS stealing line.

Holliday did look like he was at least 11-12' off the bag.

Maybe he missed it too!

Anonymous said...

I appreciate all of your responses about similar situations with selection of kids teams.

Sorry for changing the subject CMFost. Then again, it is a sports comment section and it seems that the topic was poignant to some of the other people here.

The more general question in sports is how do you really judge talent. It is very difficult. How many guys toil in the minors before making it big and we ask where did they come from. Kurt Warner is a great example. Tom Brady is another. How many guys were just as good who never got a chance? I bet it is a large number.

Then again, we have a number of can't miss prospects every year who become the Ryan Leaf's of the world.

Anonymous said...

I appreciate all of your responses about similar situations with selection of kids teams.

Sorry for changing the subject CMFost. Then again, it is a sports comment section and it seems that the topic was poignant to some of the other people here.

The more general question in sports is how do you really judge talent. It is very difficult. How many guys toil in the minors before making it big and we ask where did they come from. Kurt Warner is a great example. Tom Brady is another. How many guys were just as good who never got a chance? I bet it is a large number.

Then again, we have a number of can't miss prospects every year who become the Ryan Leaf's of the world.

Natsfan74 said...

Better than two postings in one day is that Dan has responded to teh posts at least once in each of the past two days. I appreciate when he at least pretends to care what we say.

john (east lansing, mi) said...

Wowza. Evidently, Dan watched a completely different game than I did (or maybe just the last 10 minutes, I guess?). I stand by my statement late in yesterday's comments that Matt Ryan should have negative Heisman votes at this point.
< 45% passing, and 5 or 6 easy picks, and you're crowning this clown because Virginia Tech can't chase or tackle a quarterback in the last 40 seconds?

Fine. Crown it.

David Kippe said...

i feel like this is what i was writing this morning on this comment page...

http://msn.foxsports.com/nba/story/7377144

David Kippe said...

thank you dan for linking that painful reminder of us coming up short in the Final Four back in 2005. thanks a lot.

The heroin sheik said...

Did anyone see barcalona sporting orange and blue unis yesterday at rangers. It was almost as obnoxiously good as UF's orange on orange unis.

SDW said...

To prevent future occurrences such as the Genarlow Wilson case, I advise everyone to check out http://www.ageofconsent.com. Laws vary from state to state, country to country. The next ten years of your life may depend on it...

SF said...

cmfost,

i understand it is a big win to the computers, but dan was talking about how VT is such a good team and what not, and how OSU has played nobody...all i am saying is, if that is dan's logic, then VT is a nobody too, with theor only decent win against an under-achieving Clemson and 2 losses to top teams

Joey Kaufman said...

Relax, man. Virginia Tech handed the game to BC.