The VarsityDad in me can't help but comment on this front-page story in today's New York Times, about the scam artists -- sorry: "entrepreneurs" -- who are selling sports training for babies and toddlers.
Let me start with this: It is totally appropriate to expose your babies and toddlers to fun ways to move and discover their bodies.
It is totally inappropriate to enroll them in a class with the intention of giving them a "leg up" on participating in sports, with some kind of vision of them being super-athletes.
Parents who do this need to get a grip. (The classes are bad enough; even worse are the snake-oil salespeople who encourage you to plant your 18-month-old in front of a DVD on the TV.)
We enrolled my older kid in soccer classes when he was 3, not because I want him to be a soccer star, but because it was something to do and the classes seemed extremely benign.
Now he's 4. We put him in an even more benign soccer class this past fall -- the big difference being the new class was held outdoors, rather than in a gym (and it was cheaper).
When he was 3 and a half, we started him in swimming classes. My wife was an elite-level swimmer growing up, and the last thing either of us wanted was for this to be some entree to that.
Instead, we just wanted him to become comfortable in the water. If he does nothing but happily splash around in the pool or ocean for the rest of his life, that's good enough.
(And, yes, we put our 2-year-old into the toddler swim class, but that was mainly because he wanted to be like his older brother. The toddler class couldn't be more laid-back.)
Little gets on my nerves more than the selfishness of parents who either project their own athletic dreams on their child or push their child into competitive sports too early.
I am of the "let 'em play" school: I love the idea of exposing my kids to being active and playing games and "practice" as a life skill and being part of a team. But that's about it.
Do I harbor (crazy) dreams that my kids will be superstar athletes? No sports fan in their right mind can resist. But it's a huge difference between your fantasies and your kid's reality.
The whole idea behind the "Varsity Dad" initiative was developing a healthy relationship between your kids and sports -- and, if nothing else, teaching them how to be great sports fans.
That's why I read today's article as a mockery of the industry -- while the column I wrote for the Times a year ago about taking my son to his first college basketball game was age-appropriate.
I'm not even sure it WAS age-appropriate: He was clearly too young to go -- perhaps not to a St. Francis game, but certainly to a Knicks game -- but I was so eager to take him.
Again, this very real issue with parenting: Projecting your own interests on your kid. I would say that "Be a great sports fan!" is way more benign than "Be an all-star athlete!"
But when it comes to babies and toddlers -- and even 3- or 4- or 5-year-olds -- there's something to be said for moderation and a healthy sense of perspective.
-- D.S.
Wednesday, December 01, 2010
12/01 Quickie: Gruden to the U,
NU, Duke, Grizz, Tulo, Hanukkah
Today's Names to Know: Jon Gruden, The U, Illinois, Northwestern, Duke-Michigan State, Mike Conley and the Grizzlies, Troy Tulowitzki, Derek Jeter, Miguel Tejada, Tiger, LeBron, Marko Jaric and More.
Jon Gruden to coach The U? Really? Um...why?
Start with this: I don't think Gruden will be a very effective college football coach. Elite college football coaches are college football "types" or lifers (with the rare exception of a savant like Saban), who are recruiting machines.
Gruden is an NFL coaching lifer; does he know that you spend, like, 10 months of the year in heavy recruiting mode? And won't he have an eye on the NFL job openings every fall? (Or won't opposing coaches use that against him when recruiting?) I think his inexperience in college football -- particularly recruiting -- is an NCAA violation waiting to happen.
Then there's this: Miami? Let's say Gruden really did have the college football itch. Why would he go to Miami, a second-tier program (if not lower) in a 3rd-tier conference. Great history, great recruiting base...but hardly lustrous anymore. If he wants to coach college football, isn't he better off at, say, Michigan? (Maybe not. And maybe that's not an option.)
Here's a better idea for Gruden, if he wants to give it the ol' college try -- but still leave a glidepath to the NFL job of his choice in, say, 2012: Join good friend Urban Meyer in Florida as Meyer's new offensive coordinator. (Gruden already had reportedly expressed interest in being OC for a year at Oregon; his wife reminded him of the insane time commitment.)
Gruden can experiment with college tactics and gain experience in recruiting from the master, all while leaving the door open for the NFL offer you know he really wants. Florida gets a clean break from the lamentable Steve Addazio Era.
But the point is this: Gruden as a college football head coach? At a program like Miami's? It just doesn't make any sense.
CBB: Yes, we could talk about Illinois beating UNC or we could talk about the Big Ten's overall dominance of the ACC last night. But how about we talk about mighty Northwestern?
NU put up its biggest non-conference win in years: A throttling of a "name" opponent that the 'Cats normally lose (and certainly needed, given their iffy non-conf schedule and their tenuous path to their first-ever NCAA invite: Run the non-conf table, then find .500 in the B10.)
Tonight: Michigan State at Duke, arguably the best non-conference game of the year. (Given that the game is at Cameron, I expect a Duke blow-out W.)
More: Big, March-quality win for Georgetown over Mizzou. (One of those you file away, use to help you pick your brackets...and ultimately end up regretting relying on, of course.)
NFL: Is it really news that the league will refund your ticket money if it turns out games are cancelled because of a lockout or strike? Were they considering NOT making refunds?
MLB: Tulowitzki gets his mega-deal. I don't think it's unreasonable to give a star SS about to enter his prime $134M; I do think it's unreasonable to give $20M a year to a 37-year-old.
(I wonder what the Yankees talked about when they reportedly met with Jeter's agent? How about this: "He was already paid a hefty 'icon' bonus in the last contract, and let's not overstate his impact on the Yankees' 'brand.' So we'll give you an extra million or so a year, but that's it.")
Hey, a Miguel Tejada sighting!
Tiger on Twitter: Did you catch Tiger's flurry of Tweets yesterday afternoon? They weren't particularly interesting, but they were humanizing -- which was the entire point.
NBA: The Lakers lose their 3rd straight. And yet unlike the Heat, I don't expect panicky coverage about the coach's tenuous hold on his job, the grumbling of the stars, etc.
(Why is former NBA journeyman Marko Jaric a hot topic on the Web this morning? Because he is more famous for having a wife who is a Victoria's Secret model than being an NBA player.)
One more day until LeBron returns to Cleveland: It is the most must-see game of the NBA regular season. Much, much more on this tomorrow.
Happy Hanukkah (which starts tonight). Mmm...frozen latkes.
-- D.S.
Jon Gruden to coach The U? Really? Um...why?
Start with this: I don't think Gruden will be a very effective college football coach. Elite college football coaches are college football "types" or lifers (with the rare exception of a savant like Saban), who are recruiting machines.
Gruden is an NFL coaching lifer; does he know that you spend, like, 10 months of the year in heavy recruiting mode? And won't he have an eye on the NFL job openings every fall? (Or won't opposing coaches use that against him when recruiting?) I think his inexperience in college football -- particularly recruiting -- is an NCAA violation waiting to happen.
Then there's this: Miami? Let's say Gruden really did have the college football itch. Why would he go to Miami, a second-tier program (if not lower) in a 3rd-tier conference. Great history, great recruiting base...but hardly lustrous anymore. If he wants to coach college football, isn't he better off at, say, Michigan? (Maybe not. And maybe that's not an option.)
Here's a better idea for Gruden, if he wants to give it the ol' college try -- but still leave a glidepath to the NFL job of his choice in, say, 2012: Join good friend Urban Meyer in Florida as Meyer's new offensive coordinator. (Gruden already had reportedly expressed interest in being OC for a year at Oregon; his wife reminded him of the insane time commitment.)
Gruden can experiment with college tactics and gain experience in recruiting from the master, all while leaving the door open for the NFL offer you know he really wants. Florida gets a clean break from the lamentable Steve Addazio Era.
But the point is this: Gruden as a college football head coach? At a program like Miami's? It just doesn't make any sense.
CBB: Yes, we could talk about Illinois beating UNC or we could talk about the Big Ten's overall dominance of the ACC last night. But how about we talk about mighty Northwestern?
NU put up its biggest non-conference win in years: A throttling of a "name" opponent that the 'Cats normally lose (and certainly needed, given their iffy non-conf schedule and their tenuous path to their first-ever NCAA invite: Run the non-conf table, then find .500 in the B10.)
Tonight: Michigan State at Duke, arguably the best non-conference game of the year. (Given that the game is at Cameron, I expect a Duke blow-out W.)
More: Big, March-quality win for Georgetown over Mizzou. (One of those you file away, use to help you pick your brackets...and ultimately end up regretting relying on, of course.)
NFL: Is it really news that the league will refund your ticket money if it turns out games are cancelled because of a lockout or strike? Were they considering NOT making refunds?
MLB: Tulowitzki gets his mega-deal. I don't think it's unreasonable to give a star SS about to enter his prime $134M; I do think it's unreasonable to give $20M a year to a 37-year-old.
(I wonder what the Yankees talked about when they reportedly met with Jeter's agent? How about this: "He was already paid a hefty 'icon' bonus in the last contract, and let's not overstate his impact on the Yankees' 'brand.' So we'll give you an extra million or so a year, but that's it.")
Hey, a Miguel Tejada sighting!
Tiger on Twitter: Did you catch Tiger's flurry of Tweets yesterday afternoon? They weren't particularly interesting, but they were humanizing -- which was the entire point.
NBA: The Lakers lose their 3rd straight. And yet unlike the Heat, I don't expect panicky coverage about the coach's tenuous hold on his job, the grumbling of the stars, etc.
(Why is former NBA journeyman Marko Jaric a hot topic on the Web this morning? Because he is more famous for having a wife who is a Victoria's Secret model than being an NBA player.)
One more day until LeBron returns to Cleveland: It is the most must-see game of the NBA regular season. Much, much more on this tomorrow.
Happy Hanukkah (which starts tonight). Mmm...frozen latkes.
-- D.S.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
11/30 Quickie: Sportsman, Heat,
Westbrook, TCU, ACC, More
Today's Names to Know: Drew Brees, Eric Spoelstra, Brian Westbrook, Derek Anderson, TCU, Andre Johnson, Virginia hoops, Derek Jeter, Troy Tulowitzki, Rafael Palmeiro, Rich Rodriguez and More.
Saints as 2010's Top Sportsmen: There is nothing more appropriate to capture 2010 than SI naming Drew Brees and the Saints as their Sportsman of the Year. And not, say, LeBron.
(In the absence of a Saints SB win, I think you could have made a good case for LeBron, but I wouldn't exactly call his story "heartwarming," like the Saints were.)
Heat rout Wiz: Meh. Miami's problem has never been beating the dregs; it's been beating the GOOD teams. And until that happens with more regularity, the fracturing will continue.
49ers rout Cards: Brian Westbrook! Last night totally would have helped your fantasy team... in 2008. I can't believe that SF is only a game out of 1st place in the NFC West.
YouTube Clip of the Day: Derek Anderson going off on a reporter, in response to Jon Gruden going off on Derek Anderson for seeming to laugh on the sidelines during the loss.
Money quote: "You think this is funny, I take this s--t serious. Real serious. I put my heart and soul into this s--t every single week... I don’t go out there and laugh... Nothing’s funny to me."
Next up: Coors Light endorsement deal! Honestly, watch this end up as the big story of the day. About 10 seconds after I wrote this, I flipped on "Morning Joe" and they were playing the clip.
TCU to Big East: Talked about this yesterday, but it's a total win-win. TCU gets the BCS legitimacy; the Big East gets a perennial national power. TCU will win the league every year.
Andre Johnson & Cortland Finnegan can agree on at least one thing: Their $25K fines were a slap on the wrist, compared to the threat of a game suspension or something harsher.
Big Ten/ACC Challenge: Watch for Ohio State to throttle Florida State tonight. (I'll have my eye on Northwestern-Georgia Tech.)
The ACC is off to a good start with UVA's upset of Minnesota last night; things should be equalized when UNC loses at Illinois tonight. (UVA > Minnesota > UNC? Really?)
Yankees vs. Derek Jeter: "Reality potion" is right. NY's offer is more than fair. At what point does this storyline become: "Why doesn't Jeter just take the deal?"
Troy Tulowitzki to get mega-deal: Like Jeter 10 years ago, Tulo is a player who deserves a mega-contract. Ironically, this one will pay Tulo less in his prime than Jeter wants now.
Baseball Hall: Rafael Palmeiro is on the ballot for the first time, and it is a litmus test for voters who have already rejected Mark McGwire. Like Mac, Raffy is -- on paper -- a HOF lock.
CFB Coaching Carousel: No word on Rich Rodriguez... yet. You have to believe the Michigan AD is busy figuring out if Jim Harbaugh would take the job (and he should).
In case you missed it yesterday: A bonus post on Kyle Brotzman, Steve Johnson and failure. It was a good day for Facebook and Twitter.
Speaking of Facebook and Twitter, if you want to keep up with the latest on my new company, Quickish, please "like" the Facebook page and follow the Twitter feed.
-- D.S.
Saints as 2010's Top Sportsmen: There is nothing more appropriate to capture 2010 than SI naming Drew Brees and the Saints as their Sportsman of the Year. And not, say, LeBron.
(In the absence of a Saints SB win, I think you could have made a good case for LeBron, but I wouldn't exactly call his story "heartwarming," like the Saints were.)
Heat rout Wiz: Meh. Miami's problem has never been beating the dregs; it's been beating the GOOD teams. And until that happens with more regularity, the fracturing will continue.
49ers rout Cards: Brian Westbrook! Last night totally would have helped your fantasy team... in 2008. I can't believe that SF is only a game out of 1st place in the NFC West.
YouTube Clip of the Day: Derek Anderson going off on a reporter, in response to Jon Gruden going off on Derek Anderson for seeming to laugh on the sidelines during the loss.
Money quote: "You think this is funny, I take this s--t serious. Real serious. I put my heart and soul into this s--t every single week... I don’t go out there and laugh... Nothing’s funny to me."
Next up: Coors Light endorsement deal! Honestly, watch this end up as the big story of the day. About 10 seconds after I wrote this, I flipped on "Morning Joe" and they were playing the clip.
TCU to Big East: Talked about this yesterday, but it's a total win-win. TCU gets the BCS legitimacy; the Big East gets a perennial national power. TCU will win the league every year.
Andre Johnson & Cortland Finnegan can agree on at least one thing: Their $25K fines were a slap on the wrist, compared to the threat of a game suspension or something harsher.
Big Ten/ACC Challenge: Watch for Ohio State to throttle Florida State tonight. (I'll have my eye on Northwestern-Georgia Tech.)
The ACC is off to a good start with UVA's upset of Minnesota last night; things should be equalized when UNC loses at Illinois tonight. (UVA > Minnesota > UNC? Really?)
Yankees vs. Derek Jeter: "Reality potion" is right. NY's offer is more than fair. At what point does this storyline become: "Why doesn't Jeter just take the deal?"
Troy Tulowitzki to get mega-deal: Like Jeter 10 years ago, Tulo is a player who deserves a mega-contract. Ironically, this one will pay Tulo less in his prime than Jeter wants now.
Baseball Hall: Rafael Palmeiro is on the ballot for the first time, and it is a litmus test for voters who have already rejected Mark McGwire. Like Mac, Raffy is -- on paper -- a HOF lock.
CFB Coaching Carousel: No word on Rich Rodriguez... yet. You have to believe the Michigan AD is busy figuring out if Jim Harbaugh would take the job (and he should).
In case you missed it yesterday: A bonus post on Kyle Brotzman, Steve Johnson and failure. It was a good day for Facebook and Twitter.
Speaking of Facebook and Twitter, if you want to keep up with the latest on my new company, Quickish, please "like" the Facebook page and follow the Twitter feed.
-- D.S.
Monday, November 29, 2010
Kyle Brotzman, Steve Johnson and Failure
Two instances over the weekend of epic failure:
*Friday night, Boise State kicker Kyle Brotzman went through, arguably, the biggest failure in the history of college football: He missed the relatively simple game-winning kick (following a Play-of-the-Year-this-must-be-fated Hail Mary) that would have won the game and secured Boise State not just its undefeated season, but perhaps the kind of mojo to have given it a chance with voters. Then, adding insult to injury, he missed another relatively simple kick that would have given Boise 3 points to start overtime; Nevada promptly kicked a FG to win -- Boise's undefeated season was over.
I imagine Brotzman is inconsolable. Hopefully, he has some level of family, friends or faith that can help him deal with what will likely be a lifelong regret of unmeasurable proportions. What was phenomenal to see was that Facebook page that sprang up among Boise fans -- and frankly non-Boise fans, too -- to support Brotzman. Stuff happens. Sometimes it is epic. Sometimes it seems REALLY bad. Relative to college football, it might be. Relative to everything else in the world, to say it "hardly qualifies" is, itself, qualifying it as too big of a deal. All the folks who liked the Facebook page get that.
*Then yesterday, Bills WR Steve Johnson missed an easy TD catch -- considering he is a near-elite professional WR, a lot easier than Brotzman's FG attempt -- that cost the hard-luck Bills a win over the conference powerhouse Steelers. Johnson was inconsolable, in a far more public way. He took to Twitter with what was arguably the Tweet of the Year in sports (perhaps nudging out Simmons' "moss vikings" tweet). Here it is, in all its all-CAPS glory:
I PRAISE YOU 24/7!!!!!! AND THIS HOW YOU DO ME!!!!! YOU EXPECT ME TO LEARN FROM THIS??? HOW???!!! ILL NEVER FORGET THIS!! EVER!!! THX THO...
There is almost too much to unpack here, nearly Talmudic in its density: The direct address to God, through Twitter. The all-caps. The exclamation points. The utterly existential question ("HOW???!!!") that could launch a thousand sermons next Sunday. The threat... then the kicker: Not just "Thanks," but the casual, Tweet-shortened "THX."
Johnson did not post to Twitter actually thinking it was a line to God; he posted to Twitter because it was the most public way he knew to express the overwhelming emotions he felt following the game. He could share with everyone how he was feeling -- how conflicted he felt, not just about his actions, but about his faith. I don't see him as "blaming" God for the missed catch, as some have said. I see it as much bigger: Johnson questioning, if not even within the brevity of 140 characters, his own faith. That's some heady stuff.
In its own way, it is one of the most profound statements ever uttered by an athlete.
*****
Two examples: In Brotzman's case, the community of fans is rallying, through Facebook, to support him. In Johnson's case, the individual is taking to a platform reaching tens of millions to try to create his own support. It is fascinating.
Failure happens. It happens in these epic ways (epic, relative to sports). In launching my own company, I am entirely aware of the chance -- even statistical probability -- of failure. I have such a different perspective on it than I did, say, when the Quickie launched 8 years ago; in this case, it is unlikely I will feel a sense of failure, even if the company doesn't succeed. ("You miss 100 percent of the shots you don't take," and all those "hang-in-there"-kitten-on-ledge posters.)
But, these days, I have an acute antennae for failure and appreciation for those who fail. And I found Brotzman and Johnson's failures -- and, more, the reaction to those failures -- to be remarkable.
If you want to keep up with my successes and failures in the new company, please "like" the Facebook page if you are on Facebook and/or follow the Twitter feed.
-- D.S.
BlogPoll Monday: Auburn, Oregon, TCU
Latest BlogPoll ballot: Auburn has earned the No. 1 spot (although I think they will lose to South Carolina). Stanford > Wisco. Nevada jumps to 6. (Boise at 7.) SEC > Big 12. Entire thing here.
SI Picks Saints as Sportsmen of Year?
UPDATE (11/30): Drew Brees is your SI Sportsman of the Year. Great pick, which I will assume is a proxy for the entire team. Brees, after all, wasn't responsible for The Onside Kick (which I will argue is the single greatest play in the history of the NFL). But if you're looking for a representative of the entire "Who Dat?" phenomenon of January and February, Brees is the ideal choice. (I also love Brees because he doesn't fit the physical mold of the "prototype" NFL QB of Peyton Manning or Tom Brady. That makes Brees all the more spectacular.
*****
Did Peter King scoop his own magazine this morning that SI was picking the Saints as its Sportsmen of the Year?
This little tidbit in his "Fine Fifteen" team rankings in this week's MMQB: "This is going to be a very good week if you're a fan of the Saints. Trust me on that one."
There is only one reasonable interpretation of that, given the Sportsman issue comes out this week: The Saints as Sportsmen of the Year.
Let's not lose sight of the bigger point: It's a great pick. The only pick, really. (What: Like they were going to pick LeBron? You could make an awesome case, but no way.)
-- D.S.
*****
Did Peter King scoop his own magazine this morning that SI was picking the Saints as its Sportsmen of the Year?
This little tidbit in his "Fine Fifteen" team rankings in this week's MMQB: "This is going to be a very good week if you're a fan of the Saints. Trust me on that one."
There is only one reasonable interpretation of that, given the Sportsman issue comes out this week: The Saints as Sportsmen of the Year.
Let's not lose sight of the bigger point: It's a great pick. The only pick, really. (What: Like they were going to pick LeBron? You could make an awesome case, but no way.)
-- D.S.
11/29 Quickie: NFL Week 12, BCS, Nielsen
Today's Names to Know: Leslie Nielsen vs. Leslie Frazier, Matt Ryan vs. Aaron Rodgers, Andre Johnson vs. Cortland Finnegan, Josh McDaniels vs. Sam Bradford, Peyton Hillis vs. Chris Johnson, Dwayne Bowe vs. Steve Johnson, Auburn vs. Oregon, Pacers vs. Lakers, LeBron vs. Eric Spolestra, Naked Gun's Detective Drebin vs. Airplane's Doctor Rumack and More.
NFL Talking Points: "...And don't call me Shirley."
*And the best team in the NFC is... the Falcons? (Meanwhile: How are the Bears suddenly alone in 1st place in the NFC North this late in the season?)
*Chargers roll along: Yeah, yeah -- they are a Top 5 team in the NFL right now, record notwithstanding. But it's the same old pattern: Start slow, finish hot, flame out in playoffs.
*Leslie Frazier: 1-0. Part of it is a team inspired by having shed a dispiriting coach. Part of it is getting to play the Redskins. Either way: Midseason coaching changes are good for good teams.
(How about that Brett Favre 10-yard scramble on 3rd-and-8 late to seal the win? Just when you think you're out, he sucks you back in.)
*Andre Johnson vs. Cortland Finnegan: It added even more insult to the Titans' suddenly tanking season, to see their DB get his head throttled by an irate Johnson.
*Steelers survive the Bills: Steve Johnson has the Drop of the Year. (And, perhaps, the Tweet of the Year, too.)
*SpyGate 2: Josh McDaniels probably has to worry about being fired for performance before he worries about being fired for cheating. (Who tapes an opponent... and loses?)
Meanwhile, how about Sam Bradford and the Rams? While McDaniels leaves Tebow on the bench, Bradford had his first 300-yard game -- and his best game as a pro, by far -- and seems to have NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year locked up. (Next stop: Playoffs?!?) I'll say it again: I was so wrong about Bradford back before (and after) the draft.
*Fantasy Stud: Peyton Hillis. Hillis won't earn many votes for league MVP, but he has had a sick enough year that he should run away with Fantasy MVP. (Runner-up? Dwayne Bowe).
*Fantasy Dud: Titans QB Rusty Smith -- or should I say Titans RB Chris Johnson, who had a career-low 5 yards rushing after Houston's D put, like, 11 in the box.
*MNF Tonight: 49ers-Cards. A true test whether the NFL's TV ratings can withstand anything. Absurdly, these are the two sub-.500 teams in the NFC West NOT leading the division.
*****
BCS: Clarity, for now. Appropriately, Auburn is No. 1. (It is the definition of pollster inertia that the AP and Coaches kept Oregon at No. 1, just because they were No. 1 last week and won.)
Oregon is No. 2. If both win next week -- and that is no given -- then they will meet for the national title, with little fuss made about it.
If either lose, TCU will crash the party -- and give either a hell of a game.
And if both lose, then we will have TCU and... insanity. Which 1-loss team would deserve it most: Stanford? Wisconsin? Auburn or Oregon getting another chance? That's a mess.
(I haven't heard from the BCS experts, but I presume that Auburn's superior strength of schedule -- only better for having played South Carolina -- would leave it tops among 1-loss teams.)
Prelim BlogPoll ballot: (1) Auburn, (2) Oregon, (3) TCU, (4) Stanford, (5) Wisconsin, (6) Nevada, (7) Boise, (8) Ohio State, (9) Arkansas, (10) South Carolina.
UPDATE: TCU to Big East in 2012. Great move for both. TCU gets the automatic BCS bowl entry; the league gets a national-level contender (with the awesome Texas footprint). TCU will win the league every year, from 2012 until forever.
BTW: It would behoove the Big East to claim TCU's BCS-worthiness THIS season as its own, particularly given that its own champ is such a dud.
*****
NBA Weekend: The Shoulder Bump Heard 'Round the World. Did LeBron knock into Coach Spo intentionally, in some sort of power move? From watching the replays, I don't buy it -- then again, I don't put it past LeBron to do it. (If your team was as mediocre as his was, wouldn't you be a little frustrated and wanting to take it out on the coach?) If nothing else, it made the coach LOOK like a chump.
Wow, how in the world did the Pacers beat the Lakers in LA? Did the Lakers forget there was a game? It was Indiana's first-ever win against the Lakers at Staples Center -- and their second world-beating road W in a week (this was way more impressive than beating the Heat).
Meanwhile, the Spurs roll on: They beat the Hornets in NOLA.
*****
Pro Football HOF semifinalists: How big can a HOF class be? Because the first-time nominees are strong: Deion is a lock, as Marshall Faulk, Curtis Martin and Jerome Bettis all should be. (What a class for RBs it could be if Terrell Davis is added to the group.)
RIP, Leslie Nielsen: His role as Detective Frank Drebin included a classic sports-movie scene, when he took over as an ump in Naked Gun. (I'll always be partial to Nielsen as Dr. Rumack in "Airplane." The phrase of the day: "And don't call me Shirley." Oh, and I had the lasagna.)
More coming later today.
-- D.S.
NFL Talking Points: "...And don't call me Shirley."
*And the best team in the NFC is... the Falcons? (Meanwhile: How are the Bears suddenly alone in 1st place in the NFC North this late in the season?)
*Chargers roll along: Yeah, yeah -- they are a Top 5 team in the NFL right now, record notwithstanding. But it's the same old pattern: Start slow, finish hot, flame out in playoffs.
*Leslie Frazier: 1-0. Part of it is a team inspired by having shed a dispiriting coach. Part of it is getting to play the Redskins. Either way: Midseason coaching changes are good for good teams.
(How about that Brett Favre 10-yard scramble on 3rd-and-8 late to seal the win? Just when you think you're out, he sucks you back in.)
*Andre Johnson vs. Cortland Finnegan: It added even more insult to the Titans' suddenly tanking season, to see their DB get his head throttled by an irate Johnson.
*Steelers survive the Bills: Steve Johnson has the Drop of the Year. (And, perhaps, the Tweet of the Year, too.)
*SpyGate 2: Josh McDaniels probably has to worry about being fired for performance before he worries about being fired for cheating. (Who tapes an opponent... and loses?)
Meanwhile, how about Sam Bradford and the Rams? While McDaniels leaves Tebow on the bench, Bradford had his first 300-yard game -- and his best game as a pro, by far -- and seems to have NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year locked up. (Next stop: Playoffs?!?) I'll say it again: I was so wrong about Bradford back before (and after) the draft.
*Fantasy Stud: Peyton Hillis. Hillis won't earn many votes for league MVP, but he has had a sick enough year that he should run away with Fantasy MVP. (Runner-up? Dwayne Bowe).
*Fantasy Dud: Titans QB Rusty Smith -- or should I say Titans RB Chris Johnson, who had a career-low 5 yards rushing after Houston's D put, like, 11 in the box.
*MNF Tonight: 49ers-Cards. A true test whether the NFL's TV ratings can withstand anything. Absurdly, these are the two sub-.500 teams in the NFC West NOT leading the division.
*****
BCS: Clarity, for now. Appropriately, Auburn is No. 1. (It is the definition of pollster inertia that the AP and Coaches kept Oregon at No. 1, just because they were No. 1 last week and won.)
Oregon is No. 2. If both win next week -- and that is no given -- then they will meet for the national title, with little fuss made about it.
If either lose, TCU will crash the party -- and give either a hell of a game.
And if both lose, then we will have TCU and... insanity. Which 1-loss team would deserve it most: Stanford? Wisconsin? Auburn or Oregon getting another chance? That's a mess.
(I haven't heard from the BCS experts, but I presume that Auburn's superior strength of schedule -- only better for having played South Carolina -- would leave it tops among 1-loss teams.)
Prelim BlogPoll ballot: (1) Auburn, (2) Oregon, (3) TCU, (4) Stanford, (5) Wisconsin, (6) Nevada, (7) Boise, (8) Ohio State, (9) Arkansas, (10) South Carolina.
UPDATE: TCU to Big East in 2012. Great move for both. TCU gets the automatic BCS bowl entry; the league gets a national-level contender (with the awesome Texas footprint). TCU will win the league every year, from 2012 until forever.
BTW: It would behoove the Big East to claim TCU's BCS-worthiness THIS season as its own, particularly given that its own champ is such a dud.
*****
NBA Weekend: The Shoulder Bump Heard 'Round the World. Did LeBron knock into Coach Spo intentionally, in some sort of power move? From watching the replays, I don't buy it -- then again, I don't put it past LeBron to do it. (If your team was as mediocre as his was, wouldn't you be a little frustrated and wanting to take it out on the coach?) If nothing else, it made the coach LOOK like a chump.
Wow, how in the world did the Pacers beat the Lakers in LA? Did the Lakers forget there was a game? It was Indiana's first-ever win against the Lakers at Staples Center -- and their second world-beating road W in a week (this was way more impressive than beating the Heat).
Meanwhile, the Spurs roll on: They beat the Hornets in NOLA.
*****
Pro Football HOF semifinalists: How big can a HOF class be? Because the first-time nominees are strong: Deion is a lock, as Marshall Faulk, Curtis Martin and Jerome Bettis all should be. (What a class for RBs it could be if Terrell Davis is added to the group.)
RIP, Leslie Nielsen: His role as Detective Frank Drebin included a classic sports-movie scene, when he took over as an ump in Naked Gun. (I'll always be partial to Nielsen as Dr. Rumack in "Airplane." The phrase of the day: "And don't call me Shirley." Oh, and I had the lasagna.)
More coming later today.
-- D.S.
Saturday, November 27, 2010
Saturday (BOISE! OHMYGOD!) Quickie
Boise. Oh my god.
No way. No effing way. No way that game finished the way it did: With Boise getting... well, out-Boise'd.
Losing a big lead? Missing a chip-shot FG to win in regulation? (Or another in OT, setting up the loss?)
When Boise, after losing their huge lead, hit that bomb with less than 10 seconds left on the clock setting up an easy FG, you were just like "Of COURSE they just did that."
Then, the miss.
Hol-eeee shhhhh....
I don't believe in this at all, but gosh did it feel like fate/karma/whatever were conspiring against them to say: No, this isn't your year.
And so there will be no BCS debate about Boise State. There might not even be a New Year's Day bowl, given that they won't even win the WAC.
I'm sorry, but this is why college football's regular season matters. That game totally undercut the "Death to the BCS" argument that CFB's regular season isn't as great as fans think it is.
It IS that great.
Boise's consolation -- although no Boise fan will care -- is that they were involved in the best game of the year... one of the most memorable games in recent college football history.
And, as much as anything, it is a great reminder that no game should be taken for granted: Not Oregon's season-finale against Oregon State... not Auburn's season-finale against South Carolina. I could see both teams losing. In fact, I think both teams WILL lose.
If Boise State can lose -- check that: if Boise State can lose in the way that they did last night -- then Oregon can lose on the road to its biggest rival or Auburn can lose on a neutral field to a team that nearly beat it in September, beat Alabama thoroughly and has been playing as well as any team in the country for the last few weeks.
This game should have restored -- or affirmed -- your faith that anything can happen in college football. And that college football's regular season remains supreme in sports.
Auburn stakes its claim: Auburn had no business winning that game. Down huge to rival and defending national champ Alabama. At Alabama. In front of a frenzied crowd, smelling Auburn blood. Cam Newton totally shut down -- seemingly solved.
Then... the comeback. TD after TD. Defensive stand after stand. It was as impressive of a win as we have seen in college football this season -- more than enough to justify ranking Auburn No. 1. Cripes, it was almost as jaw-dropping as Nevada's win over Boise. And that's saying something.
All that said: Given how well South Carolina is playing -- they throttled Alabama and nearly beat Auburn at Auburn back in September -- it is entirely possible that Auburn could win the rivalry war, yet lose the BCS battle.
-- D.S.
PS: Just realized I didn't hit "Publish Post" on yesterday's post. So I just did. Please read the post directly below, if you want to see it. Sorry about any confusion.
Friday, November 26, 2010
Friday 11/26 (Very) Quickie
The Friday after Thanksgiving reminds me of nothing if not the first inklings of the Tiger Woods scandal. Remember when we all thought it was just a benign car accident involving Tiger?
It's the Day of the Year in college football: Auburn-Alabama, Oregon-Arizona and, arguably, the late-night headliner, Boise State at Nevada. Everything (or nothing) could change. Must-watch.
(Speaking of college football, Texas's Worst. Year. Ever. -- and I'm talking about worse than anything in the pathetic Mackovic Era -- was completed with the team 5-7 and ineligible for a bowl. My question: How many bowls would take a sub-.500 Texas -- and their massive, if disappointed, fan base -- if they had the choice? I'd bet 80 percent.)
Thanksgiving NFL: Tom Brady rules. Not much more to say about it than that. His performance on the early-afternoon Thanksgiving stage might be the indelible image that voters remember in a month when they are filling out their MVP ballots.
*Moral victory for the Cowboys? If you only looked at Dallas' season in the context of the last two weeks (The Garrett Era), yesterday's loss to the Saints was a disappointment. If you see it as part of a larger terrible season, having a competitive game against the defending league champs on the team's biggest tradition game, keeping it close is a pretty good result.
*Jets win again: In case it wasn't obvious, every team needs its "Brad Smith," the do-it-all former QB who can catch, run, return kicks, take snaps under center, whatever. His shoeless romp was the highlight of the day.
NBA Last Night: John Wall was stymied in Atlanta (the Wiz seem set on only beating the league's dregs, while always losing to all teams that are any good), but in the late game, Blake Griffin and Eric Gordon showed that the Clippers have a hell of a good young combo to build the franchise on.
How many of you hit up the stores today? Good luck.
-- D.S.
Thursday, November 25, 2010
11/25 Thanksgiving Quickie
Happy Thanksgiving!... Per yesterday's discussion: So thankful when the Heat lose (again x3)... BTW: The Bulls are the anti-Heat... Wow, the preseason experts really slept on UConn, didn't they?... How many bowls would happily take a sub-.500 Texas?... Ever tried to apologize for a huge screw-up by text message? It's just not the same, VY... Boise State would beat any team in the country in a one-off game, yet it's not inconsistent to be willing to admit Boise might not go undefeated if they had to play in the SEC, week in and week out... NFL Picks: Pats in a rout, Saints in a rout, Jets in a rout... Don't forget to set your fantasy rosters... Best Thanksgiving dinner food: Stuffing, and I'll take mine from the ol' classic plain Pepperidge Farm jumbo bag...
-- D.S.
-- D.S.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
11/24 Quickie: Thanks, NFL Week 12,
Jeter, P-Jax, UConn, CFB, JoePa, More
Today's Names to Know: Thanksgiving, Auburn vs. Alabama, Kellen Moore vs. Colin Kaepernick, Hal Steinbrenner vs. Derek Jeter, Phil Jackson vs. Pat Riley, Duke vs. Miami Heat, Kemba Walker vs. Brandon Knight, Josh Hamilton vs. Miguel Cabrera, Joe Paterno vs. 2011 and More.
Thanks. It is one of the most enjoyable days of the year: The day before Thanksgiving, when everyone says what they are thankful for -- in sports and otherwise.
Let's start with sports: I'm thankful for -- among other things...
*The Saints' onside kick in the Super Bowl.
*The feeling I had when Gordon Hayward put up his OHITSGOINGIN! shot at the buzzer in the national-title game.
*Tim Tebow being a 1st-round NFL draft pick and sticking it to the draftniks.
*The Wizards winning the John Wall lottery.
*College football Saturdays with Mrs. Quickie and my kids.
*Every time the Heat lose.
Would love to hear the sports things you are thankful for. I'll try to update the comments as much as possible during the day.
And then I'm thankful, as always, for every single visit each of you has made here over the past year. It has been a great year in sports, and I sincerely appreciate that you make the time to commiserate about it here. We are into the 5th year of this blog, and just like the Daily Quickie years ago, I find the renewed enthusiasm every day to keep it going because of you.
Heading into the new year -- and this exciting new venture of mine -- I am hoping to have built a product you love to use. Thanks in advance for your support... and for your patience as I promote it like I have never promoted anything in my life. (Speaking of which: Have you liked the Facebook page or followed the Twitter feed yet?)
Thanks again, and here's to a Happy Thanksgiving for you and your families.
*****
NFL Week 12: My Favorite Storylines
1. Thanksgiving football: My favorite tradition.
2. Vick Watch: At Chicago, not easy.
3. GOTW: Packers-Falcons
4. Leslie Frazier's coaching debut: In DC.
5. Titans without VY: Rally or fold?
*****
CFB Weekend Preview: HUGE. And it comes on Friday, not Saturday: Auburn at Alabama, then Oregon hosts Arizona, then Boise plays its toughest game of the year, at Nevada.
We could enter Saturday with a totally shook-up BCS outlook... or it could simply be one more week of "Oh, sure: Oregon and Auburn"... although both could lose NEXT week, too.
Picks: Alabama. Oregon. Boise. (Remember, if you truly hate the BCS, you should be rooting for Auburn to lose, but still jump unbeaten Boise in the final BCS standings, even with 1-loss.)
*****
Yankees play hardball with Jeter: I completely agree with the way the Yankees are handling the Derek Jeter negotiation, and yesterday's public comments from the team were the best yet:
Says GM Brian Cashman: "We've encouraged him to test the market and see if there's something he would prefer other than this. If he can, fine. That's the way it works."
Says owner Hal Steinbrenner: "As much as we want to keep everybody, we've already made these guys very, very rich, and I don't feel we owe anybody anything monetarily."
Their offer to Jeter is MORE than fair, considering both Jeter's value to the franchise historically and his value relative to his age, skills and comparables around the league.
And they are spot-on to call Jeter's bluff: Derek Jeter knows that on the Yankees, he's "DEREK JETER... THE CAPTAIN!" On any other team, he's an overpaid, underskilled shortstop.
I hope the team holds its position. Jeter will take their deal. (And if he doesn't? The fans will be sad, but it's not like they're going to stop rooting for the team because of it.)
*****
Heat Watch: Phil Jackson plays the Riley card. I love how Phil Jackson has dipped into the Heat's business by playing the "Riley" card. Jackson is more than likely not going to have to face the Heat in the Finals, and yet he is still playing mind games with them, just in case:
"The scenario that sits kind of behind the scene, is that eventually these guys that were recruited -- Bosh and James -- by Pat Riley and Micky Arison, the owner, are going to come in and say, 'We feel you [Riley] can do a better job coaching the team. We came here on the hopes that this would work,' and whatever, I don't know." Oh, Phil, but you DO know.
*****
CBB Last Night: Duke rolled over Kansas State, as expected. Here is the best way to put this: Duke is what everyone thought the Miami Heat would be. (So where's the Duke Index?)
More: OK, so UConn is much, much better than people have given them credit for. If the season ended today (ha!), Kemba Walker would be 1st-team All-American.
(Really looking forward to UConn-Kentucky tonight in the finals in Maui. Really looking forward to the Walker head-to-head with UK's awesome frosh PG Brandon Knight.)
*****
MLB Awards: Josh Hamilton wins AL MVP. Along with Votto in the NL, a terrific story of redemption -- one of the best in recent MLB history.
Hot Stove: Victor Martinez went to the Tigers. I still won't draft him in my fantasy league, after the way he has historically hurt my teams when I have had him, with his injuries, etc. (Meanwhile, Aubrey Huff re-signed with the Giants. And why wouldn't he? World champs!)
*****
NBA Last Night: John Wall is back. And even if he was held scoreless in the 1st half, he came back in the 2nd and scored 25 points, including 3 points coming on 3-of-3 FTs when he astutely put up an absurd-looking 3 while Jrue Holiday was fouling him with just seconds to play in regulation, allowing the Wiz to tie the score and win the game.
(Tonight: Heat at Magic. Think the Magic want some payback for that early-season drubbing?)
*****
Joe Paterno to coach in 2011: Is it a net-positive for the program, relative to him retiring? Probably not. Has Paterno reached the point where he can do whatever he wants? Absolutely. (Reached that point? He's been at that point for 20+ years.)
Skidmore hoops wins in 7 OTs: Division III rules!
Catch you tomorrow and/or have a great Thanksgiving.
-- D.S.
Thanks. It is one of the most enjoyable days of the year: The day before Thanksgiving, when everyone says what they are thankful for -- in sports and otherwise.
Let's start with sports: I'm thankful for -- among other things...
*The Saints' onside kick in the Super Bowl.
*The feeling I had when Gordon Hayward put up his OHITSGOINGIN! shot at the buzzer in the national-title game.
*Tim Tebow being a 1st-round NFL draft pick and sticking it to the draftniks.
*The Wizards winning the John Wall lottery.
*College football Saturdays with Mrs. Quickie and my kids.
*Every time the Heat lose.
Would love to hear the sports things you are thankful for. I'll try to update the comments as much as possible during the day.
And then I'm thankful, as always, for every single visit each of you has made here over the past year. It has been a great year in sports, and I sincerely appreciate that you make the time to commiserate about it here. We are into the 5th year of this blog, and just like the Daily Quickie years ago, I find the renewed enthusiasm every day to keep it going because of you.
Heading into the new year -- and this exciting new venture of mine -- I am hoping to have built a product you love to use. Thanks in advance for your support... and for your patience as I promote it like I have never promoted anything in my life. (Speaking of which: Have you liked the Facebook page or followed the Twitter feed yet?)
Thanks again, and here's to a Happy Thanksgiving for you and your families.
*****
NFL Week 12: My Favorite Storylines
1. Thanksgiving football: My favorite tradition.
2. Vick Watch: At Chicago, not easy.
3. GOTW: Packers-Falcons
4. Leslie Frazier's coaching debut: In DC.
5. Titans without VY: Rally or fold?
*****
CFB Weekend Preview: HUGE. And it comes on Friday, not Saturday: Auburn at Alabama, then Oregon hosts Arizona, then Boise plays its toughest game of the year, at Nevada.
We could enter Saturday with a totally shook-up BCS outlook... or it could simply be one more week of "Oh, sure: Oregon and Auburn"... although both could lose NEXT week, too.
Picks: Alabama. Oregon. Boise. (Remember, if you truly hate the BCS, you should be rooting for Auburn to lose, but still jump unbeaten Boise in the final BCS standings, even with 1-loss.)
*****
Yankees play hardball with Jeter: I completely agree with the way the Yankees are handling the Derek Jeter negotiation, and yesterday's public comments from the team were the best yet:
Says GM Brian Cashman: "We've encouraged him to test the market and see if there's something he would prefer other than this. If he can, fine. That's the way it works."
Says owner Hal Steinbrenner: "As much as we want to keep everybody, we've already made these guys very, very rich, and I don't feel we owe anybody anything monetarily."
Their offer to Jeter is MORE than fair, considering both Jeter's value to the franchise historically and his value relative to his age, skills and comparables around the league.
And they are spot-on to call Jeter's bluff: Derek Jeter knows that on the Yankees, he's "DEREK JETER... THE CAPTAIN!" On any other team, he's an overpaid, underskilled shortstop.
I hope the team holds its position. Jeter will take their deal. (And if he doesn't? The fans will be sad, but it's not like they're going to stop rooting for the team because of it.)
*****
Heat Watch: Phil Jackson plays the Riley card. I love how Phil Jackson has dipped into the Heat's business by playing the "Riley" card. Jackson is more than likely not going to have to face the Heat in the Finals, and yet he is still playing mind games with them, just in case:
"The scenario that sits kind of behind the scene, is that eventually these guys that were recruited -- Bosh and James -- by Pat Riley and Micky Arison, the owner, are going to come in and say, 'We feel you [Riley] can do a better job coaching the team. We came here on the hopes that this would work,' and whatever, I don't know." Oh, Phil, but you DO know.
*****
CBB Last Night: Duke rolled over Kansas State, as expected. Here is the best way to put this: Duke is what everyone thought the Miami Heat would be. (So where's the Duke Index?)
More: OK, so UConn is much, much better than people have given them credit for. If the season ended today (ha!), Kemba Walker would be 1st-team All-American.
(Really looking forward to UConn-Kentucky tonight in the finals in Maui. Really looking forward to the Walker head-to-head with UK's awesome frosh PG Brandon Knight.)
*****
MLB Awards: Josh Hamilton wins AL MVP. Along with Votto in the NL, a terrific story of redemption -- one of the best in recent MLB history.
Hot Stove: Victor Martinez went to the Tigers. I still won't draft him in my fantasy league, after the way he has historically hurt my teams when I have had him, with his injuries, etc. (Meanwhile, Aubrey Huff re-signed with the Giants. And why wouldn't he? World champs!)
*****
NBA Last Night: John Wall is back. And even if he was held scoreless in the 1st half, he came back in the 2nd and scored 25 points, including 3 points coming on 3-of-3 FTs when he astutely put up an absurd-looking 3 while Jrue Holiday was fouling him with just seconds to play in regulation, allowing the Wiz to tie the score and win the game.
(Tonight: Heat at Magic. Think the Magic want some payback for that early-season drubbing?)
*****
Joe Paterno to coach in 2011: Is it a net-positive for the program, relative to him retiring? Probably not. Has Paterno reached the point where he can do whatever he wants? Absolutely. (Reached that point? He's been at that point for 20+ years.)
Skidmore hoops wins in 7 OTs: Division III rules!
Catch you tomorrow and/or have a great Thanksgiving.
-- D.S.
Sponsored Post: Rolling Along
Your weekly update on my travails in the Blogger Football League, sponsored by Procter & Gamble. For background, see this intro post.
Two wins in a row has me back on top of my division. After I eked out a win over KSK's Josh Zerkle in our KSK keeper league two weeks ago, last week I throttled him in this league, and that was while starting a DNP Antonio Gates. Even though he only had 8 points, I am still going to believe in my rookie RB LeGarrette Blount, to go with Chris Johnson in my backfield.
This week: I play Will Brinson's last-place Fuzzy Gullets, but he has won 2 straight -- he is prime to pull another upset. He has the MJD-Dwayne Bowe two-fisted KO talent. I am hoping that Antonio Gates can go. Three more weeks until the playoffs.
Here is this week's league recap, from Diana of the National Football Post.
Check out P&G's Take It To The House page on Facebook. Be sure to look for the new contest where you predict the players who will have the top 5 rushing or receiving plays from scrimmage, and if you get them all, you win some insanely good prizes.
The P&G Blogger Fantasy League (BFL) is a group of 12 online sports folks competing on the NFL.com fantasy platform for the chance to win a donation for a local charity, furnished by P&G. The NFL Entities have not offered or sponsored the sweepstakes in anyway.
Two wins in a row has me back on top of my division. After I eked out a win over KSK's Josh Zerkle in our KSK keeper league two weeks ago, last week I throttled him in this league, and that was while starting a DNP Antonio Gates. Even though he only had 8 points, I am still going to believe in my rookie RB LeGarrette Blount, to go with Chris Johnson in my backfield.
This week: I play Will Brinson's last-place Fuzzy Gullets, but he has won 2 straight -- he is prime to pull another upset. He has the MJD-Dwayne Bowe two-fisted KO talent. I am hoping that Antonio Gates can go. Three more weeks until the playoffs.
Here is this week's league recap, from Diana of the National Football Post.
Check out P&G's Take It To The House page on Facebook. Be sure to look for the new contest where you predict the players who will have the top 5 rushing or receiving plays from scrimmage, and if you get them all, you win some insanely good prizes.
The P&G Blogger Fantasy League (BFL) is a group of 12 online sports folks competing on the NFL.com fantasy platform for the chance to win a donation for a local charity, furnished by P&G. The NFL Entities have not offered or sponsored the sweepstakes in anyway.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
11/23 Quickie: Chilly, Rivers, Heat, Duke
Today's Names to Know: Brad Childress, Leslie Frazier, Philip Rivers, Vince Young, Rusty Smith, Dwyane Wade, Clippers, Spurs, Duke (Mason Plumlee!) vs. Kansas State (Jacob Pullen!), Terrence Jones, Joey Votto, Josh Hamilton, Derek Jeter, Billy Hunter, Herschel Sims and More.
Vikings fire Brad Childress, promote Leslie Frazier: I think that Childress had created such a toxic atmosphere (between his off-putting personality and his off-base play-calling) that the Vikings are primed for a turnaround under Frazier.
It's a scenario not unlike what the Cowboys have done the past two weeks under Jason Garrett. The same team that was a few Favrian miscues from going to the Super Bowl less than a year ago can play the spoiler -- if not the playoff entrant -- in the NFC.
Chargers crush Broncos: San Diego only just now hit .500, tied with the Raiders and a game behind the Chiefs in the AFC West. And yet the Bolts feel in complete control of the division. If they can sustain the special teams not sucking, they will run away with the West (before falling short in the playoffs, as usual). Phil Rivers looked every bit like the MVP contender he is: 4 TD passes (on a season-low 233 yards from 15 completions). And, yes, I'm a bit bitter that TT didn't get any PT.
Vince Young's season is over: He's on the IR. The only question is whether his Titans career is over. Jeff Fisher obviously doesn't want him, but owner Bud Adams does. It will be fascinating to see who wins that argument. For now, though: "Rusty" (Smith) is the new "VY."
The Heat hit a new low: They got crushed, at home, by the mediocre Pacers, in Dwyane Wade's worst game ever. (Is that enough for you?)
For those of us rooting for Southbeachadenfreude (new Quickie vocab!), this is a phenomenal development. Yes, yes: It's a long season. But presuming that the Heat will do just fine in the playoffs (although clearly they won't end up doing fine enough), we'll take what we can get.
More NBA: So let me get this straight: Without Rajon Rondo, the Celtics lost to the lowly Raptors, then turned around and beat the Hawks?...
More eye-opening Ws: Hell of a win (just their 2nd) for the Clippers, beating the Hornets (finally regressing to the mean?)... Are the Spurs the best team in the league? (11 straight wins, including last night's over the Magic)
CBB: Duke-Kansas State is worth staying up for a 10 pm ET tip on ESPN2. (Although I suspect it's going to be a Duke rout.) Speaking of staying up, tune in early to ESPN at 9:30 to catch a glimpse of Kentucky super-frosh Terrence Jones, who destroyed Oklahoma last night. He looked really impressive.
MLB Awards: Joey Votto won the NL MVP -- I had Votto on my fantasy team two years ago, when he had his small nervous breakdown, so I am partial to him. But let's be clear: Albert Pujols was the best AND most valuable player in the NL. He is simply in that zone that Michael Jordan was in during the 1990s where voters give the award to the next best guy, or else they would have to give him the award every single year.
Today: AL MVP. All signs point to Josh Hamilton, who missed a (un)healthy chunk of the season but still put up monster stats. Between Votto's comeback from mental-health issues and Hamilton's comeback from drug problems, it's a hell of a year for MVP-level redemption stories.
Jeter-Yankees Stand-Off: Unless you are a Yankees fan blinded by loyalty to a single player over your team, it is hard to argue with the reasonability of Brian Cashman's position here: That Jeter's age and his on-field performance should factor into how much money the team gives him as he turns 37, 38, 39...even 40.
It is hard to buy Jeter's agent's position that the Yankees somehow "owe" Jeter even more than he is worth. What were all those mega-contracts of the past decade for? (I find the comps to players Jeter's age and who play his position -- which still shows the Yankees are paying well above market value for The Captain -- to be compelling.)
Lockout Watch: NBA union honcho Billy Hunter puts a lockout next summer at "99 percent." That doesn't mean the season will be cancelled, or even that it will have a delayed start. Plenty of wiggle room in the summer for the lockout to happen but still have the season get going by November. Most fans won't be paying attention to the NBA until then anyway.
Pop Culture: It is possible that Oklahoma State football commit Herschel Sims, a star RB from Abilene (TX) HS, may never reach career heights as a college football player as he did last night being featured on MTV's "World of Jenks."
The Death of 2-year-old Lucas Tang at Staples Center: This continues to be a horrible story.
-- D.S.
Vikings fire Brad Childress, promote Leslie Frazier: I think that Childress had created such a toxic atmosphere (between his off-putting personality and his off-base play-calling) that the Vikings are primed for a turnaround under Frazier.
It's a scenario not unlike what the Cowboys have done the past two weeks under Jason Garrett. The same team that was a few Favrian miscues from going to the Super Bowl less than a year ago can play the spoiler -- if not the playoff entrant -- in the NFC.
Chargers crush Broncos: San Diego only just now hit .500, tied with the Raiders and a game behind the Chiefs in the AFC West. And yet the Bolts feel in complete control of the division. If they can sustain the special teams not sucking, they will run away with the West (before falling short in the playoffs, as usual). Phil Rivers looked every bit like the MVP contender he is: 4 TD passes (on a season-low 233 yards from 15 completions). And, yes, I'm a bit bitter that TT didn't get any PT.
Vince Young's season is over: He's on the IR. The only question is whether his Titans career is over. Jeff Fisher obviously doesn't want him, but owner Bud Adams does. It will be fascinating to see who wins that argument. For now, though: "Rusty" (Smith) is the new "VY."
The Heat hit a new low: They got crushed, at home, by the mediocre Pacers, in Dwyane Wade's worst game ever. (Is that enough for you?)
For those of us rooting for Southbeachadenfreude (new Quickie vocab!), this is a phenomenal development. Yes, yes: It's a long season. But presuming that the Heat will do just fine in the playoffs (although clearly they won't end up doing fine enough), we'll take what we can get.
More NBA: So let me get this straight: Without Rajon Rondo, the Celtics lost to the lowly Raptors, then turned around and beat the Hawks?...
More eye-opening Ws: Hell of a win (just their 2nd) for the Clippers, beating the Hornets (finally regressing to the mean?)... Are the Spurs the best team in the league? (11 straight wins, including last night's over the Magic)
CBB: Duke-Kansas State is worth staying up for a 10 pm ET tip on ESPN2. (Although I suspect it's going to be a Duke rout.) Speaking of staying up, tune in early to ESPN at 9:30 to catch a glimpse of Kentucky super-frosh Terrence Jones, who destroyed Oklahoma last night. He looked really impressive.
MLB Awards: Joey Votto won the NL MVP -- I had Votto on my fantasy team two years ago, when he had his small nervous breakdown, so I am partial to him. But let's be clear: Albert Pujols was the best AND most valuable player in the NL. He is simply in that zone that Michael Jordan was in during the 1990s where voters give the award to the next best guy, or else they would have to give him the award every single year.
Today: AL MVP. All signs point to Josh Hamilton, who missed a (un)healthy chunk of the season but still put up monster stats. Between Votto's comeback from mental-health issues and Hamilton's comeback from drug problems, it's a hell of a year for MVP-level redemption stories.
Jeter-Yankees Stand-Off: Unless you are a Yankees fan blinded by loyalty to a single player over your team, it is hard to argue with the reasonability of Brian Cashman's position here: That Jeter's age and his on-field performance should factor into how much money the team gives him as he turns 37, 38, 39...even 40.
It is hard to buy Jeter's agent's position that the Yankees somehow "owe" Jeter even more than he is worth. What were all those mega-contracts of the past decade for? (I find the comps to players Jeter's age and who play his position -- which still shows the Yankees are paying well above market value for The Captain -- to be compelling.)
Lockout Watch: NBA union honcho Billy Hunter puts a lockout next summer at "99 percent." That doesn't mean the season will be cancelled, or even that it will have a delayed start. Plenty of wiggle room in the summer for the lockout to happen but still have the season get going by November. Most fans won't be paying attention to the NBA until then anyway.
Pop Culture: It is possible that Oklahoma State football commit Herschel Sims, a star RB from Abilene (TX) HS, may never reach career heights as a college football player as he did last night being featured on MTV's "World of Jenks."
The Death of 2-year-old Lucas Tang at Staples Center: This continues to be a horrible story.
-- D.S.
Monday, November 22, 2010
11/22 Quickie: Pats, Vick, Jets, VY, BCS,
Pelini, Jimmie, Jeter, UNC, MLS, More
Today's Names to Know: Tom Brady, Mike Vick, Ellis Hobbs, Brett Favre, Mark Sanchez, Vince Young, Jon Kitna, Steve Johnson, Oregon, Boise State, Taylor Martinez, Jimmie Johnson, Joey Votto, Derek Jeter, Terry Collins, Zombie James Naismith, UNC hoops, Udonis Haslem, Rajon Rondo, Colorado Rapids, Tim Tebow and More.
Don't forget: Quickish, my new company, is coming, and I want to keep you as informed about it as possible. Keep up by liking Quickish on Facebook and following it on Twitter.
In Memoriam: Lucas Anthony Tang. You don't have to be the parent of a 2-year-old boy to be decimated by this. Horrible beyond words.
(I had this as a stand-alone post, updated this morning, but I just couldn't look at it on the site without kind of freaking, so I moved it here. It is not meant to diminish it as a story.)
NFL Talking Points:
*Big win for the Pats. They keep pace with the Jets, yes, but also showcase a strong performance over a very good Colts team. Brady was awesome. Peyton pulled a Favre at the end (to cap a 3-pick day). I saw someone say that from a Pats fan's perspective, this was a good make-up for last season's "4th-and-2," and I can't disagree that it was Bill Belichick getting his karmic payback for doing the right thing last year but not having it work out.
*Favre humiliated by Packers: In case you're wondering if it could get worse for Brett Favre after the past few weeks, the answer is: YES. Against his old team -- perhaps for the last time -- Favre was impotent while his longtime understudy Aaron Rodgers was ascendant. The contrast was startling. I love how it's a story that Favre acknowledged that the Vikings' playoff hopes are over. Just now? Wasn't that the case weeks ago?
*Jets stunner: This was a "No. Freaking. Way." finish for the league's most mesmerizing team. They should have lost. You could argue they deserved to lose. But Mark Sanchez was brilliant on the final drive -- as was that GW catch by Santonio Holmes -- and... just wow.
*Vick rolls on: LeSean McCoy was the hero for Philly (getting 50 on 4th-and-1 is quite acceptable), but consider that Vick was two easy drops -- not his fault -- from an extra 2 TD passes and a blowout win.
(Here's to a full recovery for Ellis Hobbs. The initial news this morning is positive. Another injury to watch: Austin Collie.)
*Vince Young has lost his mind: Something's not right. I appreciate not liking being benched, but to sulk, to throw your jersey and pads into the crowd, to scurry out of the locker room after the game. And if Jeff Fisher would rather go with Rusty Smith -- or whoever -- than VY, you know it's even worse than it appears to be. We're back to the "Vince Young is a headcase" meme.
*Jon Kitna > Tony Romo. I'm not sure if I'm kidding or not. Obviously, Jason Garrett is a huge factor, but you can't argue that Kitna the journeyman is entirely effective in the Cowboys offense, in a way that Romo wasn't before he got hurt.
*Chiefs and Bucs roll on. After a couple games, we could joke that they were flukes. Just about 2/3 into the season, both have affirmed huge strides this season. If this keeps up, it's hard to figure out which coach -- Todd Haley or Raheem Morris -- deserves Coach of the Year. (Now, I wouldn't trust either of them in the playoffs against a decent team, but that's not the point.)
*Fantasy Studs: Ryan Fitzpatrick to Steve Johnson. Whoa. Down 21 before storming to a 42-point surge was like Montana-to-Rice out there for a little while. Plus, Johnson showed a little Ochocinco by lifting his jersey after a TD to reveal a phrase "Why so serious?"
Hot seats: Speaking of the Bills' comeback win over the Bengals, that might be Marvin Lewis's job (if not now, then certainly as Exhibit A if/when he is let go after the season ends.)
(Brian St. Pierre Watch: That 88-yard TD to David Gettis was fun to see, wasn't it? The back-to-back pick-6s? Not so much.)
*****
CFB BCS: It's still Oregon-Auburn 1-2 in the BCS, with the biggest weekend of the season approaching -- my top two contenders face their toughest games of the season:
*Auburn at Alabama
*Boise State at Nevada
And Oregon hosts Arizona before its own toughest game of the season, at Oregon State (which beat down USC in a much more decisive way than Oregon did... not unlike the way Stanford beat down Cal much more decisively than Oregon did.)
In my BlogPoll ballot, I'm sticking with Boise at No. 1, with Auburn at No. 2. I'll keep Oregon at No. 3, but only a smidgen ahead of Stanford, which leap-frogged poor TCU, who I am clearly over-compensating about, given that I had them at No. 1 just two weeks ago.
See yesterday's post for a whole lot of BCS talk, including why any BCS-hater who isn't rooting against Boise State is being disingenuous.
Taylor Martinez vs. Bo Pelini: Conflicting rumors of whether QB Taylor Martinez is or is not leaving Nebraska, but if you watched the video of him being inappropriately chewed out by coach Bo Pelini, you wouldn't blame him for getting the hell out of there as fast as possible.
Pelini embarrassed himself and the school, all while humiliating his QB. Given Martinez's potential, I wouldn't be surprised if 30 schools hadn't already reached out to him to say: "Why would you put up with THAT?"
*****
NASCAR: Jimmie Johnson -- winner of his 5th straight NASCAR title -- is the biggest dynasty in sports since... what? It's hard to compare to team sports, so since Federer? (But that ended, like, a year ago. Anyway: NASCAR is a little more boring for it. It is not good for the sport that the same guy has won the season championship for the last half-decade.)
*****
Don't forget: Quickish, my new company, is coming, and I want to keep you as informed about it as possible. Keep up by liking Quickish on Facebook and following it on Twitter.
In Memoriam: Lucas Anthony Tang. You don't have to be the parent of a 2-year-old boy to be decimated by this. Horrible beyond words.
(I had this as a stand-alone post, updated this morning, but I just couldn't look at it on the site without kind of freaking, so I moved it here. It is not meant to diminish it as a story.)
NFL Talking Points:
*Big win for the Pats. They keep pace with the Jets, yes, but also showcase a strong performance over a very good Colts team. Brady was awesome. Peyton pulled a Favre at the end (to cap a 3-pick day). I saw someone say that from a Pats fan's perspective, this was a good make-up for last season's "4th-and-2," and I can't disagree that it was Bill Belichick getting his karmic payback for doing the right thing last year but not having it work out.
*Favre humiliated by Packers: In case you're wondering if it could get worse for Brett Favre after the past few weeks, the answer is: YES. Against his old team -- perhaps for the last time -- Favre was impotent while his longtime understudy Aaron Rodgers was ascendant. The contrast was startling. I love how it's a story that Favre acknowledged that the Vikings' playoff hopes are over. Just now? Wasn't that the case weeks ago?
*Jets stunner: This was a "No. Freaking. Way." finish for the league's most mesmerizing team. They should have lost. You could argue they deserved to lose. But Mark Sanchez was brilliant on the final drive -- as was that GW catch by Santonio Holmes -- and... just wow.
*Vick rolls on: LeSean McCoy was the hero for Philly (getting 50 on 4th-and-1 is quite acceptable), but consider that Vick was two easy drops -- not his fault -- from an extra 2 TD passes and a blowout win.
(Here's to a full recovery for Ellis Hobbs. The initial news this morning is positive. Another injury to watch: Austin Collie.)
*Vince Young has lost his mind: Something's not right. I appreciate not liking being benched, but to sulk, to throw your jersey and pads into the crowd, to scurry out of the locker room after the game. And if Jeff Fisher would rather go with Rusty Smith -- or whoever -- than VY, you know it's even worse than it appears to be. We're back to the "Vince Young is a headcase" meme.
*Jon Kitna > Tony Romo. I'm not sure if I'm kidding or not. Obviously, Jason Garrett is a huge factor, but you can't argue that Kitna the journeyman is entirely effective in the Cowboys offense, in a way that Romo wasn't before he got hurt.
*Chiefs and Bucs roll on. After a couple games, we could joke that they were flukes. Just about 2/3 into the season, both have affirmed huge strides this season. If this keeps up, it's hard to figure out which coach -- Todd Haley or Raheem Morris -- deserves Coach of the Year. (Now, I wouldn't trust either of them in the playoffs against a decent team, but that's not the point.)
*Fantasy Studs: Ryan Fitzpatrick to Steve Johnson. Whoa. Down 21 before storming to a 42-point surge was like Montana-to-Rice out there for a little while. Plus, Johnson showed a little Ochocinco by lifting his jersey after a TD to reveal a phrase "Why so serious?"
Hot seats: Speaking of the Bills' comeback win over the Bengals, that might be Marvin Lewis's job (if not now, then certainly as Exhibit A if/when he is let go after the season ends.)
(Brian St. Pierre Watch: That 88-yard TD to David Gettis was fun to see, wasn't it? The back-to-back pick-6s? Not so much.)
*****
CFB BCS: It's still Oregon-Auburn 1-2 in the BCS, with the biggest weekend of the season approaching -- my top two contenders face their toughest games of the season:
*Auburn at Alabama
*Boise State at Nevada
And Oregon hosts Arizona before its own toughest game of the season, at Oregon State (which beat down USC in a much more decisive way than Oregon did... not unlike the way Stanford beat down Cal much more decisively than Oregon did.)
In my BlogPoll ballot, I'm sticking with Boise at No. 1, with Auburn at No. 2. I'll keep Oregon at No. 3, but only a smidgen ahead of Stanford, which leap-frogged poor TCU, who I am clearly over-compensating about, given that I had them at No. 1 just two weeks ago.
See yesterday's post for a whole lot of BCS talk, including why any BCS-hater who isn't rooting against Boise State is being disingenuous.
Taylor Martinez vs. Bo Pelini: Conflicting rumors of whether QB Taylor Martinez is or is not leaving Nebraska, but if you watched the video of him being inappropriately chewed out by coach Bo Pelini, you wouldn't blame him for getting the hell out of there as fast as possible.
Pelini embarrassed himself and the school, all while humiliating his QB. Given Martinez's potential, I wouldn't be surprised if 30 schools hadn't already reached out to him to say: "Why would you put up with THAT?"
*****
NASCAR: Jimmie Johnson -- winner of his 5th straight NASCAR title -- is the biggest dynasty in sports since... what? It's hard to compare to team sports, so since Federer? (But that ended, like, a year ago. Anyway: NASCAR is a little more boring for it. It is not good for the sport that the same guy has won the season championship for the last half-decade.)
*****
MLB Awards Season: Joey Votto is expected to win NL MVP, ahead of Albert Pujols, who is the victim of the "Michael Jordan Effect," in which voters assume away one player's brilliance to the point where they pick the next-best player as MVP, because otherwise the same guy would win MVP every. single. year.
MLB Hot Stove: The gamesmanship continues between the Yankees and Derek Jeter. Now, it's Jeter's agent calling the Yankees' negotiating tactics "baffling." I'll stand by my current analysis: The Yankees are being irrational, relative to Jeter's value, by paying him so much; Jeter is being irrational in thinking that the team would suffer any consequences for letting him walk. They'll meet in the middle, because the Yankees don't want the bad PR and Jeter knows he won't be as appreciated anywhere else.
Mets hire Terry Collins as manager: This felt like a done-deal for weeks. He has the faith of the new Mets brain trust.
*****
CBB: Wow, UNC had a terrible experience in Puerto Rico. First, they lost to Minnesota. Then they lost to Vanderbilt. They have the best player in the country -- and it's not a very good team. Welcome to UNC, Harrison Barnes: If you were going to be a one-and-done and play for a middling team, you might as well have stayed home and been a hero at Iowa State.
*****
Um, yes: BLAKE GRIFFIN.
Quote of the Weekend: "I don't care if James Naismith was guarding me, which would be scary because he's dead." -- Rudy Gay, after his jumper over LeBron to lead Memphis over Miami. The idea "Zombie Naismith" is not just awesome, but the basis for a hell of a sports movie.
(Meanwhile, the Heat have lost Udonis Haslem -- a huge cog, perhaps the most valuable player outside the Big Three... perhaps more valuable than Chris Bosh, even -- for a while. As long as he is back by the playoffs, this is kind of irrelevant. But it sets them back all the more from gelling as a complete group. They were already without Mike Miller.)
NBA: The Celtics losing to the Raptors was a clear indication of just how valuable -- as in "MVP"-level -- that Rajon Rondo is to Boston. Time to stop calling it a "Big Three" and just refer to "The One."
*****
Colorado Rapids win MLS Cup for the 1st time: They had a good-not-great (7th-best) regular season record -- this is becoming a fun trend among MLS champs -- and got their Cup-winning goal off a deflection off a Dallas defender's leg, but a title is a title. (The unexpectedness of the MLS champ is a refreshing change from the monotony of NASCAR's Jimmie Dynasty.)
*****
Tonight: Tim Tebow in his "Monday Night Football" debut. Given that he had two chances to score last week -- with two TDs to show for it -- expect Josh McDaniels to take advantage of the national platform to try to justify how smart he is for drafting Tebow by letting him have at least a few cracks at the end zone.
-- D.S.
MLB Hot Stove: The gamesmanship continues between the Yankees and Derek Jeter. Now, it's Jeter's agent calling the Yankees' negotiating tactics "baffling." I'll stand by my current analysis: The Yankees are being irrational, relative to Jeter's value, by paying him so much; Jeter is being irrational in thinking that the team would suffer any consequences for letting him walk. They'll meet in the middle, because the Yankees don't want the bad PR and Jeter knows he won't be as appreciated anywhere else.
Mets hire Terry Collins as manager: This felt like a done-deal for weeks. He has the faith of the new Mets brain trust.
*****
CBB: Wow, UNC had a terrible experience in Puerto Rico. First, they lost to Minnesota. Then they lost to Vanderbilt. They have the best player in the country -- and it's not a very good team. Welcome to UNC, Harrison Barnes: If you were going to be a one-and-done and play for a middling team, you might as well have stayed home and been a hero at Iowa State.
*****
Um, yes: BLAKE GRIFFIN.
Quote of the Weekend: "I don't care if James Naismith was guarding me, which would be scary because he's dead." -- Rudy Gay, after his jumper over LeBron to lead Memphis over Miami. The idea "Zombie Naismith" is not just awesome, but the basis for a hell of a sports movie.
(Meanwhile, the Heat have lost Udonis Haslem -- a huge cog, perhaps the most valuable player outside the Big Three... perhaps more valuable than Chris Bosh, even -- for a while. As long as he is back by the playoffs, this is kind of irrelevant. But it sets them back all the more from gelling as a complete group. They were already without Mike Miller.)
NBA: The Celtics losing to the Raptors was a clear indication of just how valuable -- as in "MVP"-level -- that Rajon Rondo is to Boston. Time to stop calling it a "Big Three" and just refer to "The One."
*****
Colorado Rapids win MLS Cup for the 1st time: They had a good-not-great (7th-best) regular season record -- this is becoming a fun trend among MLS champs -- and got their Cup-winning goal off a deflection off a Dallas defender's leg, but a title is a title. (The unexpectedness of the MLS champ is a refreshing change from the monotony of NASCAR's Jimmie Dynasty.)
*****
Tonight: Tim Tebow in his "Monday Night Football" debut. Given that he had two chances to score last week -- with two TDs to show for it -- expect Josh McDaniels to take advantage of the national platform to try to justify how smart he is for drafting Tebow by letting him have at least a few cracks at the end zone.
-- D.S.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Sunday CFB Hangover: BCS Talk
Here's a question I'm going to dig into more during the week:
If you hate -- I mean HATE -- the BCS, would you rather see Boise State crash the BCS title game (which would allow the institutional system to claim that the system "works") or see Boise State NOT make the BCS title game in some kind of egregious way, like if Auburn loses to Alabama next week but still makes the BCS title game with 1 loss.
I would argue that if you hate the BCS, you need to be rooting for Auburn to lose, but still to beat out unbeaten Boise State for a spot in the national title game.
In other words, Boise State making the BCS title game is arguably the worst thing that could happen for critics that would like to see the BCS implode.
Meanwhile: The Wrigley game WAS pretty funky to watch. As someone rooting for Northwestern, the actual game outcome was less fun.
I am so impressed with Stanford. How impressed? Well, for starters, I think if Stanford played Oregon on a neutral field (rather than in Eugene), I think Stanford wins. I think Stanford destroyed Cal, while Oregon damn nearly lost to them.
And I think that just two weeks after ranking TCU at No. 1, I am pushing Stanford to No. 4, ahead of TCU and just a smidgen behind Oregon, who I have at No. 3. (Man, it's kind of unfair and ridiculous how I'm penalizing TCU at this point.)
I will keep Boise at No. 1 -- I think they would beat any team in the country, head-to-head. Boise has its toughest game of the season -- including Virginia Tech -- next Friday vs. Nevada.
Auburn is No. 2 -- for now. Obviously, their game on Friday against Alabama is The Season. My gut says that Alabama, motivated to absolutely ruin their blood-rival's season, will win. My head says that, as predisposed as I am to be awed by Bama, Auburn is better this season.
Prelim BlogPoll ballot: (1) Boise, (2) Auburn, (3) Oregon, (4) Stanford, (5) TCU, (6) LSU, (7) Wisconsin, (8) Alabama, (9) Ohio State, (10) Oklahoma State, (11) Arkansas, (12) Michigan State, (13) Oklahoma, (14) South Carolina, (15) Virginia Tech.
(I will say this: If Auburn does beat Alabama, it would be awfully hard not to slot Auburn at No. 1 in the country -- their schedule will have been more merciless than any, and that's not even including the following week's SEC title game against surging South Carolina, who Auburn barely beat at home back in September. The irony is if Auburn beats Alabama, only to lose a week later in the rematch with the Gamecocks, which could totally happen.)
The ultimate scenario is this:
*Oregon loses at Oregon State -- and, given the way OSU beat USC way more comprehensively than Oregon did, could totally happen.
*Auburn loses to either Alabama or South Carolina.
*Boise loses to Nevada.
Then what? I think we'd get unbeaten TCU vs. 1-loss Oregon in the national-title game, because I can't see pollsters putting a non-SEC-champ Auburn in the national title game.
(Of course, the more likely scenario is that Oregon and Auburn both win out, and the title-game pairing is devoid of much controversy, beyond a basic claim that Boise and TCU got screwed.)
If you hate -- I mean HATE -- the BCS, would you rather see Boise State crash the BCS title game (which would allow the institutional system to claim that the system "works") or see Boise State NOT make the BCS title game in some kind of egregious way, like if Auburn loses to Alabama next week but still makes the BCS title game with 1 loss.
I would argue that if you hate the BCS, you need to be rooting for Auburn to lose, but still to beat out unbeaten Boise State for a spot in the national title game.
In other words, Boise State making the BCS title game is arguably the worst thing that could happen for critics that would like to see the BCS implode.
Meanwhile: The Wrigley game WAS pretty funky to watch. As someone rooting for Northwestern, the actual game outcome was less fun.
I am so impressed with Stanford. How impressed? Well, for starters, I think if Stanford played Oregon on a neutral field (rather than in Eugene), I think Stanford wins. I think Stanford destroyed Cal, while Oregon damn nearly lost to them.
And I think that just two weeks after ranking TCU at No. 1, I am pushing Stanford to No. 4, ahead of TCU and just a smidgen behind Oregon, who I have at No. 3. (Man, it's kind of unfair and ridiculous how I'm penalizing TCU at this point.)
I will keep Boise at No. 1 -- I think they would beat any team in the country, head-to-head. Boise has its toughest game of the season -- including Virginia Tech -- next Friday vs. Nevada.
Auburn is No. 2 -- for now. Obviously, their game on Friday against Alabama is The Season. My gut says that Alabama, motivated to absolutely ruin their blood-rival's season, will win. My head says that, as predisposed as I am to be awed by Bama, Auburn is better this season.
Prelim BlogPoll ballot: (1) Boise, (2) Auburn, (3) Oregon, (4) Stanford, (5) TCU, (6) LSU, (7) Wisconsin, (8) Alabama, (9) Ohio State, (10) Oklahoma State, (11) Arkansas, (12) Michigan State, (13) Oklahoma, (14) South Carolina, (15) Virginia Tech.
(I will say this: If Auburn does beat Alabama, it would be awfully hard not to slot Auburn at No. 1 in the country -- their schedule will have been more merciless than any, and that's not even including the following week's SEC title game against surging South Carolina, who Auburn barely beat at home back in September. The irony is if Auburn beats Alabama, only to lose a week later in the rematch with the Gamecocks, which could totally happen.)
The ultimate scenario is this:
*Oregon loses at Oregon State -- and, given the way OSU beat USC way more comprehensively than Oregon did, could totally happen.
*Auburn loses to either Alabama or South Carolina.
*Boise loses to Nevada.
Then what? I think we'd get unbeaten TCU vs. 1-loss Oregon in the national-title game, because I can't see pollsters putting a non-SEC-champ Auburn in the national title game.
(Of course, the more likely scenario is that Oregon and Auburn both win out, and the title-game pairing is devoid of much controversy, beyond a basic claim that Boise and TCU got screwed.)
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Saturday (Wrigley) Quickie
For starters, let's just say that the modified rules for the Wrigley game today -- only one end zone in use -- takes a game that was already going to be fun to watch for its overall aesthetics... and turns it into one of the most one-of-a-kind football games ever played. It's a must-see.
(Go back to Twitter and look up the hashtag #wrigleypickuprules, which turns the rule-change into a turn-back-the-clock nostalgia-fest for the backyard football games of our childhood.)
Boise rolls: Speaking of must-see, I tuned in to the Boise-Fresno game last night for the 1st quarter and was actually kind of excited to see Fresno hold Boise to 3 points. Then I wake up, check the score and... it's 51-0. Now, remember, this Fresno team gave up 55 to Ole Miss. Then again, they nearly beat Nevada last week. Still: It's a big statement.
Otherwise, it's a relatively quiet day in college football: Oregon and Auburn aren't going to lose -- because they aren't playing. Ohio State-Iowa is mildly interesting (but not nearly as interesting as the Wrigley game, which deserves OSU-IA's spot on ABC).
Bruce Pearl suspended: 8 conference games -- nearly half the league season -- gives you an indication of just how serious his problems were. It's a good thing for him that he has so much job security that they'd rather lose him for half a season than fire him outright.
More CBB: Minnesota stuns UNC. Welcome to college basketball, Harrison Barnes. You might be the most talented player in the country, but your team is still only just OK. This might have been the biggest win of Tubby Smith's Minnesota stint. Expectations are now MUCH higher.
Pitt wins CvC: Between beating Texas last night and beating Maryland the other night, a pretty good trip to NYC for Pitt. (Still can't buy Pitt as a Final Four contender. They always seem to fall short in March when it matters.)
NBA: Tim Duncan has become the Spurs' all-time leading scorer. That just feels right... wow: playing without Kevin Durant, the Thunder beat the Celtics...
Astros for sale: Will Mark Cuban make a play? He should.
Colt Brennan hurt in car crash: Here's hoping he and his co-passengers have a full recovery. His girlfriend, Shakti Stream, is currently the No. 2 most-searched topic on the Web.
-- D.S.
(Go back to Twitter and look up the hashtag #wrigleypickuprules, which turns the rule-change into a turn-back-the-clock nostalgia-fest for the backyard football games of our childhood.)
Boise rolls: Speaking of must-see, I tuned in to the Boise-Fresno game last night for the 1st quarter and was actually kind of excited to see Fresno hold Boise to 3 points. Then I wake up, check the score and... it's 51-0. Now, remember, this Fresno team gave up 55 to Ole Miss. Then again, they nearly beat Nevada last week. Still: It's a big statement.
Otherwise, it's a relatively quiet day in college football: Oregon and Auburn aren't going to lose -- because they aren't playing. Ohio State-Iowa is mildly interesting (but not nearly as interesting as the Wrigley game, which deserves OSU-IA's spot on ABC).
Bruce Pearl suspended: 8 conference games -- nearly half the league season -- gives you an indication of just how serious his problems were. It's a good thing for him that he has so much job security that they'd rather lose him for half a season than fire him outright.
More CBB: Minnesota stuns UNC. Welcome to college basketball, Harrison Barnes. You might be the most talented player in the country, but your team is still only just OK. This might have been the biggest win of Tubby Smith's Minnesota stint. Expectations are now MUCH higher.
Pitt wins CvC: Between beating Texas last night and beating Maryland the other night, a pretty good trip to NYC for Pitt. (Still can't buy Pitt as a Final Four contender. They always seem to fall short in March when it matters.)
NBA: Tim Duncan has become the Spurs' all-time leading scorer. That just feels right... wow: playing without Kevin Durant, the Thunder beat the Celtics...
Astros for sale: Will Mark Cuban make a play? He should.
Colt Brennan hurt in car crash: Here's hoping he and his co-passengers have a full recovery. His girlfriend, Shakti Stream, is currently the No. 2 most-searched topic on the Web.
-- D.S.
Thursday, November 18, 2010
11/19 Quickie: Felix, Vick, Wrigley, Tiger,
NASCAR, St. Pierre, Newton, Much More
In case you missed it yesterday: For updates on my new venture, Quickish, please like the Facebook page (facebook.com/quickish) and/or follow the Twitter feed (@quickish). Love seeing who is following along! Your support is hugely appreciated. (As a bonus, I included a sneak-peek of the Quickish logo in both places.)
Today's Names to Know: Felix Hernandez, Mike Vick, Brian St. Pierre, Brett Favre, Tyler Thigpen, Brandon Marshall, Cam Newton, Wrigley Field, Tiger Woods, Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson, Steve Nash, Texas hoops and More.
It's a crazy-full post today, by the way. I even dip into NASCAR; if you're ever going to write about (or read about... or care about) NASCAR, this is the weekend. Thanks for reading:
Felix Hernandez wins the AL Cy Young: The most groundbreaking and important baseball award in a half-century (let's show some restraint, in homage to Jackie Robinson winning NL ROY).
There are two lessons: (1) A pitcher's wins and losses have historically been highly overvalued, and this helps drive that home for fans. (2) The BBWAA were swayed by sabermetrically based arguments. I don't think Felix wins this last year, let alone 5 or -- god forbid -- 10 years ago.
NFL Week 11: Didn't think anything could eclipse Pats-Colts, but Mike Vick has done it -- by himself, he has made Eagles-Giants the most must-see game of the weekend -- if only to watch how he follows up this past Monday night, against another division rival.
Beyond those two games? The schedule feels full of dogs and duds -- which inevitably means we'll see upsets and close games. The Packers and the Vikings always make for good theater -- Favre may be limping off the stage, but you know he would love a win over Green Bay.
Brian St. Pierre Watch: I can tell you my favorite storyline of the weekend: The Panthers starting 30-year-old Brian St. Pierre, who has thrown about a dozen pro passes since being drafted in 2003, and who was most recently -- like last week -- a stay-at-home dad. It's like Kurt Warner 2.0, only without the stats or the winning. I am a bit obsessed with Brian St. Pierre.
Bears smother the Dolphins: Yikes, things look bleak in Miami. Hope you didn't pick up Tyler Thigpen for your fantasy team, hoping you found a hidden gem. (Meanwhile, Brandon Marshall is a dope: His attempt at insulting Cutler backfired, and his hamstring injury made him look feeble.)
Cam Newton, Cont'd: I know that based on NCAA rules, it doesn't matter if Cam Newton didn't know what his dad was doing on his behalf during his recruitment; it's all fruit of the poisonous tree.
But as it relates to public perception -- and, ultimately, how the NCAA feels compelled to proceed on the Newton investigation -- it is very smart of his lawyer to stake out some very clear, simple ground: Cam knew nothing. He didn't ask for any money. He didn't take any money. And if any money was asked for or did change hands, Cam knew nothing about it.
This gibes with the SI account of Cam's recruitment, in which he pliantly left the decision entirely up to his dad, who dictated to Cam where he would go.
We can all find the actions of the adults to be unseemly, and positioning Cam as the innocent victim of adults trying to make a buck off of him makes Cam much more sympathetic... and makes it much tougher to create any sort of pressure to make him ineligible.
(It is classic jury nullification: Yes, the rules were broken, but the rules are wrong. So send a message the rules are wrong by not punishing him. It's not that scheming-for-money shouldn't be against the rules, but if a parent does it without the player's knowledge -- and I think there is a strong anecdotal and intuitive case to be made that Cam had no idea -- then it seems wrong to punish the player with ineligiblity.)
CFB Weekend: Game of the Week? In the absence of a tough game for a Top 4 contender -- although tonight's Boise-Fresno game should be a good one -- I'm going to go with Northwestern vs. Illinois at Wrigley Field, which is to college football what the NHL's Winter Classic is to hockey. The visuals are simply too awesome to not watch, no matter who is playing. Too bad it's shunted off to ESPNU, while ABC shows Ohio State-Iowa, ostensibly thinking that one of them has a chance at a Big Ten title that Wisconsin will not be relinquishing.
Other games of intrigue:
*Stanford at Cal
*Nebraska at Texas A&M
*VA Tech at Miami
*Arkansas at Mississippi State
More: Love this ad campaign with Allstate sponsoring Spencer Hall of SBNation, taking a college football road trip.
Last night: As expected, Alabama rolled over Georgia State. But GSU will take something out of this, and when they eventually move up to D-1A, they will probably point to this game as a key part of the process.
Tiger Watch: The biggest sign yet that Tiger's power and authority have atrophied? His attempt at a p.r. maneuver this week -- the Twitter feed, the Newsweek essay and, most recently, the radio interview on ESPN -- were considered duds:
The same old hollow-sounding talking points that don't get into any details or showcase real emotion. The solution (aside from, y'know, winning tournaments) is the same as it has been since the day after the accident: Open up, provide some details, answer anything/everything.
Things had calcified over the past 10 months -- Team Tiger's attempt to thaw his reputation didn't have nearly enough to it.
NASCAR's "Game 7" moment: Up until now, NASCAR's "Chase" series -- an attempt at "playoffs" -- has been pretty weak. That this season's Chase comes down to a final race -- between Hamlin (in the lead), Johnson (multiple-time defending champ) and Harvick (still in it) -- actually creates dramatic, winner-take-all stakes for the season's final race on Sunday.
Here's my question: What happens with the rest of the field? Do they help their friends? Do they largely stay out of the way? Do they try to influence the outcome? This is an extreme example, but what if a driver, partial to Johnson, crashes into Hamlin?
Is there an etiquette? How can there be -- this is a first-time situation. And the stakes are pretty high: Money (particularly sponsorship money) for the champ, along with a place in the sport's history. Why wouldn't a racer with no stakes beyond a personal or economic relationship with one of the three leaders try to help a friend/teammate?
NBA Last Night: As if you didn't already know, when Steve Nash doesn't play, the Suns are not very good. I would love to see Nash get moved to a contender; he's too good -- too much of an all-timer -- to whittle away his remaining career years on a Lottery team.
CBB Last Night: Texas got the "prove-it" win of the night, beating Illinois at Madison Square Garden, and setting up another "prove-it" game tonight, against Pitt (who beat Maryland).
Sidebar: I remember going to the CvC in 2006 to watch a then-unknown Florida team, and saying to my wife, "Ugh, why is Joakim Noah playing? He's terrible!" (This was the start of Noah's sophomore year, after he played about 3 minutes as a freshman.) And her saying, "You're totally wrong. He is going to be really good. Look at the energy." Of course, she was right.
Enjoy your weekend everyone.
-- D.S.
Today's Names to Know: Felix Hernandez, Mike Vick, Brian St. Pierre, Brett Favre, Tyler Thigpen, Brandon Marshall, Cam Newton, Wrigley Field, Tiger Woods, Denny Hamlin, Jimmie Johnson, Steve Nash, Texas hoops and More.
It's a crazy-full post today, by the way. I even dip into NASCAR; if you're ever going to write about (or read about... or care about) NASCAR, this is the weekend. Thanks for reading:
Felix Hernandez wins the AL Cy Young: The most groundbreaking and important baseball award in a half-century (let's show some restraint, in homage to Jackie Robinson winning NL ROY).
There are two lessons: (1) A pitcher's wins and losses have historically been highly overvalued, and this helps drive that home for fans. (2) The BBWAA were swayed by sabermetrically based arguments. I don't think Felix wins this last year, let alone 5 or -- god forbid -- 10 years ago.
NFL Week 11: Didn't think anything could eclipse Pats-Colts, but Mike Vick has done it -- by himself, he has made Eagles-Giants the most must-see game of the weekend -- if only to watch how he follows up this past Monday night, against another division rival.
Beyond those two games? The schedule feels full of dogs and duds -- which inevitably means we'll see upsets and close games. The Packers and the Vikings always make for good theater -- Favre may be limping off the stage, but you know he would love a win over Green Bay.
Brian St. Pierre Watch: I can tell you my favorite storyline of the weekend: The Panthers starting 30-year-old Brian St. Pierre, who has thrown about a dozen pro passes since being drafted in 2003, and who was most recently -- like last week -- a stay-at-home dad. It's like Kurt Warner 2.0, only without the stats or the winning. I am a bit obsessed with Brian St. Pierre.
Bears smother the Dolphins: Yikes, things look bleak in Miami. Hope you didn't pick up Tyler Thigpen for your fantasy team, hoping you found a hidden gem. (Meanwhile, Brandon Marshall is a dope: His attempt at insulting Cutler backfired, and his hamstring injury made him look feeble.)
Cam Newton, Cont'd: I know that based on NCAA rules, it doesn't matter if Cam Newton didn't know what his dad was doing on his behalf during his recruitment; it's all fruit of the poisonous tree.
But as it relates to public perception -- and, ultimately, how the NCAA feels compelled to proceed on the Newton investigation -- it is very smart of his lawyer to stake out some very clear, simple ground: Cam knew nothing. He didn't ask for any money. He didn't take any money. And if any money was asked for or did change hands, Cam knew nothing about it.
This gibes with the SI account of Cam's recruitment, in which he pliantly left the decision entirely up to his dad, who dictated to Cam where he would go.
We can all find the actions of the adults to be unseemly, and positioning Cam as the innocent victim of adults trying to make a buck off of him makes Cam much more sympathetic... and makes it much tougher to create any sort of pressure to make him ineligible.
(It is classic jury nullification: Yes, the rules were broken, but the rules are wrong. So send a message the rules are wrong by not punishing him. It's not that scheming-for-money shouldn't be against the rules, but if a parent does it without the player's knowledge -- and I think there is a strong anecdotal and intuitive case to be made that Cam had no idea -- then it seems wrong to punish the player with ineligiblity.)
CFB Weekend: Game of the Week? In the absence of a tough game for a Top 4 contender -- although tonight's Boise-Fresno game should be a good one -- I'm going to go with Northwestern vs. Illinois at Wrigley Field, which is to college football what the NHL's Winter Classic is to hockey. The visuals are simply too awesome to not watch, no matter who is playing. Too bad it's shunted off to ESPNU, while ABC shows Ohio State-Iowa, ostensibly thinking that one of them has a chance at a Big Ten title that Wisconsin will not be relinquishing.
Other games of intrigue:
*Stanford at Cal
*Nebraska at Texas A&M
*VA Tech at Miami
*Arkansas at Mississippi State
More: Love this ad campaign with Allstate sponsoring Spencer Hall of SBNation, taking a college football road trip.
Last night: As expected, Alabama rolled over Georgia State. But GSU will take something out of this, and when they eventually move up to D-1A, they will probably point to this game as a key part of the process.
Tiger Watch: The biggest sign yet that Tiger's power and authority have atrophied? His attempt at a p.r. maneuver this week -- the Twitter feed, the Newsweek essay and, most recently, the radio interview on ESPN -- were considered duds:
The same old hollow-sounding talking points that don't get into any details or showcase real emotion. The solution (aside from, y'know, winning tournaments) is the same as it has been since the day after the accident: Open up, provide some details, answer anything/everything.
Things had calcified over the past 10 months -- Team Tiger's attempt to thaw his reputation didn't have nearly enough to it.
NASCAR's "Game 7" moment: Up until now, NASCAR's "Chase" series -- an attempt at "playoffs" -- has been pretty weak. That this season's Chase comes down to a final race -- between Hamlin (in the lead), Johnson (multiple-time defending champ) and Harvick (still in it) -- actually creates dramatic, winner-take-all stakes for the season's final race on Sunday.
Here's my question: What happens with the rest of the field? Do they help their friends? Do they largely stay out of the way? Do they try to influence the outcome? This is an extreme example, but what if a driver, partial to Johnson, crashes into Hamlin?
Is there an etiquette? How can there be -- this is a first-time situation. And the stakes are pretty high: Money (particularly sponsorship money) for the champ, along with a place in the sport's history. Why wouldn't a racer with no stakes beyond a personal or economic relationship with one of the three leaders try to help a friend/teammate?
NBA Last Night: As if you didn't already know, when Steve Nash doesn't play, the Suns are not very good. I would love to see Nash get moved to a contender; he's too good -- too much of an all-timer -- to whittle away his remaining career years on a Lottery team.
CBB Last Night: Texas got the "prove-it" win of the night, beating Illinois at Madison Square Garden, and setting up another "prove-it" game tonight, against Pitt (who beat Maryland).
Sidebar: I remember going to the CvC in 2006 to watch a then-unknown Florida team, and saying to my wife, "Ugh, why is Joakim Noah playing? He's terrible!" (This was the start of Noah's sophomore year, after he played about 3 minutes as a freshman.) And her saying, "You're totally wrong. He is going to be really good. Look at the energy." Of course, she was right.
Enjoy your weekend everyone.
-- D.S.
Sponsored Post: Not Vick, But Not Bad
Your weekly update on my travails in the Blogger Football League, sponsored by Procter & Gamble. For background, see this intro post.
Back on the right side of goodness: I destroyed Dan Levy last week. The offense was clicking, despite starting a bye-week kicker and having a 2-point defense. I'm feeling the mojo again.
I'll need it: This week, I play KSK's Punter. He is the No. 2-ranked team in the league. I have risen to No. 3. Serious playoff implications in this one. I'm sticking with CJ and gem Blount in the backfield with Brady, then hoping Floyd and Gates return to form, with Miles Austin and Michael Crabtree swapped in for Kevin Walter and Pierre Garcon. We'll see.
(Ironically, I played Punter head-to-head in Week 10 in our KSK keeper league, and I came from behind on Monday night -- thanks to David Akers -- to beat him by less than a point. It's kind of cool to get a rematch right away, in an entirely different league.)
Ironically, he wrote this week's league fantasy football recap post for the league. Not nearly enough gnashing over his loss to me.
Check out P&G's Take It To The House page on Facebook. Be sure to look for the new contest where you predict the players who will have the top 5 rushing or receiving plays from scrimmage, and if you get them all, you win some insanely good prizes.
The P&G Blogger Fantasy League (BFL) is a group of 12 online sports folks competing on the NFL.com fantasy platform for the chance to win a donation for a local charity, furnished by P&G. The NFL Entities have not offered or sponsored the sweepstakes in anyway.
Back on the right side of goodness: I destroyed Dan Levy last week. The offense was clicking, despite starting a bye-week kicker and having a 2-point defense. I'm feeling the mojo again.
I'll need it: This week, I play KSK's Punter. He is the No. 2-ranked team in the league. I have risen to No. 3. Serious playoff implications in this one. I'm sticking with CJ and gem Blount in the backfield with Brady, then hoping Floyd and Gates return to form, with Miles Austin and Michael Crabtree swapped in for Kevin Walter and Pierre Garcon. We'll see.
(Ironically, I played Punter head-to-head in Week 10 in our KSK keeper league, and I came from behind on Monday night -- thanks to David Akers -- to beat him by less than a point. It's kind of cool to get a rematch right away, in an entirely different league.)
Ironically, he wrote this week's league fantasy football recap post for the league. Not nearly enough gnashing over his loss to me.
Check out P&G's Take It To The House page on Facebook. Be sure to look for the new contest where you predict the players who will have the top 5 rushing or receiving plays from scrimmage, and if you get them all, you win some insanely good prizes.
The P&G Blogger Fantasy League (BFL) is a group of 12 online sports folks competing on the NFL.com fantasy platform for the chance to win a donation for a local charity, furnished by P&G. The NFL Entities have not offered or sponsored the sweepstakes in anyway.
Conference Wrap and a Sneak Peek
As you know, I attended a conference the past two days around "Sports Media and Technology." The panels weren't particularly inspiring -- check that: They were plenty inspiring for a founder of a start-up that wants to out-hustle (no, wait: complement!) the incumbents lounging on the stage.
As usual, it was more interesting to connect with folks one-on-one. I've been in online sports since 1995 -- I have known a lot of these people, for a long time. (It was particularly awesome to see my very first boss, Hank Adams, now CEO of SportVision.) But some of the best conversations I had were with folks trying to build something new.
To say that this is a moment of disruption in sports media (or all media) discounts too much the larger trend of disruption that has been moving in fits and starts since the mid-90s. But this feels like a particularly good moment to stake out something new.
Folks following me on Twitter and seen that bio already know that the new company I'm building is called Quickish Media, but you can call it simply Quickish. For those hearing it for the first time, what do you think? It should feel familiar, yet fresh.
Anyway, as a sneak-peek for you, I just posted the logo -- for the very first time -- to the Quickish Facebook page and the Quickish Twitter account. I love the logo. Love it. (Thrilled to attribute it to my truly awesome design team.)
I'd be excited if you would like the Facebook page and/or follow the Twitter account. Much more about the company will be coming through those channels.
More about all of it soon, including -- well -- what it is. And how you can help out as a beta tester.
-- D.S.
As usual, it was more interesting to connect with folks one-on-one. I've been in online sports since 1995 -- I have known a lot of these people, for a long time. (It was particularly awesome to see my very first boss, Hank Adams, now CEO of SportVision.) But some of the best conversations I had were with folks trying to build something new.
To say that this is a moment of disruption in sports media (or all media) discounts too much the larger trend of disruption that has been moving in fits and starts since the mid-90s. But this feels like a particularly good moment to stake out something new.
Folks following me on Twitter and seen that bio already know that the new company I'm building is called Quickish Media, but you can call it simply Quickish. For those hearing it for the first time, what do you think? It should feel familiar, yet fresh.
Anyway, as a sneak-peek for you, I just posted the logo -- for the very first time -- to the Quickish Facebook page and the Quickish Twitter account. I love the logo. Love it. (Thrilled to attribute it to my truly awesome design team.)
I'd be excited if you would like the Facebook page and/or follow the Twitter account. Much more about the company will be coming through those channels.
More about all of it soon, including -- well -- what it is. And how you can help out as a beta tester.
-- D.S.
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