College Football Bowl Breakdown

Let me start off by saying that I am extremely disgusted with the entire college football postseason setup. To begin with, 64 teams will participate in 32 bowl games. That means if you are a Division 1-A football team, you have better than a 50% chance of making it to a bowl game. No longer is it a true honor to participate in a bowl game, and you will never convince me that Marshall and Ohio are giddy over participating in the Little Caesars Bowl.

That being said, here is what I propose should happen to the layout of bowl games: Lets just do away with about 20 of the less popular bowls (i.e. the Eaglebank Bowl, Texas Bowl, ect) and replace them with 10 bowls in honor of someone or something. For example...

1. Billy Mays Bowl presented by OxyClean (or Mighty Putty, or Orange Glo, or the

Gopher...)

- I'm sure Billy Mays had at least some interest in college football, and what better way to remember him than by playing a game in his honor. 25% of all ticket sales could go to charity, and the winner would get a giant bronze trophy displaying Billy Mays and his glorious facial hair.

2. VH1 Bowl

- If this cable TV station has enough money to fund multiple seasons of "For the love of Ray J" and "Rock of Love," they can certainly put up the cash to sponsor a bowl game. Think about the amount of young, brainless adolescents that would tune in to see Bret Michaels and Flavor Flav perform at halftime...

3. Donald Bowl

- Donald Trump once tried his hand at football by throwing his money into the USFL, and we all know how that ended. Here is his chance at redemption: establish a bowl game that will be played at the new Meadowlands stadium and invite all of your celebrity friends. Then get Carrie Underwood, Jay-Z, Janet Jackson, Alicia Keys, Jessica Simpson, and Kanye West to perform at halftime. Try and convince me that people wouldn't watch that.

- Alright, on a more serious note...here are some non-BCS bowls that I may take the time to watch...

Emerald Bowl - USC vs. Boston College

- Simply put, Pete Carroll is a terrible coach in "non" big games. This is not a big game by USC's standards, which is why B.C. wins easily.

Meineke Car Care Bowl - UNC vs. Pitt

- Pitt wins because of Dion Lewis, who I'm convinced is the second coming of Adrian Peterson.

Sun Bowl - Oklahoma vs. Stanford

- Both teams wanted more this season, so it will be interesting to see which team (if either) shows up to play.

Capital One Bowl - Penn State vs. LSU

- This is a statement game for the Big Ten. If the Nittany Lions can defeat an SEC team in a bowl game, people will take notice, and give the Big Ten some credit it has been lacking in recent years (but if you ask me, LSU wins).

Chick-fil-A Bowl - Virginia Tech vs. Tennessee

- Should be a very interesting matchup, but the Hokies will prevail behind the dynamic play of Tyrod Taylor.

Outback Bowl - Northwestern vs. Auburn

- Another statement game for the Big Ten. If Northwestern's uptempo, pass-happy offense can keep Auburn off balance, then the Wildcats have a shot.

Gator Bowl - West Virginia vs. Florida State

- Bobby Bowden's last game will be a win for Florida State. The Seminoles will play inspired football, and erase some of the disappointment from this season.

I'll be back soon with my take on the BCS bowl games, and who I think will take home the National Championship...

My 2009 Naughty/Nice List

BCS, Heisman breakdown

(3)Cincinnati
	winner
(6)Boise St.
	(1)Alabama
		national championship matchup
	(2) Texas
(4)TCU
	winner
(5)Florida

^^This is how I (along with many others) feel the National Championship in college football should be decided. These are the top six teams in the BCS rankings (the number next to each team indicates their ranking). In a perfect world where championships are decided by performance and not money, this is how a national champion would be crowned. Texas and Alabama would automatically receive byes into the semi-finals, and the mid-majors (TCU and Boise State) would have an equal shot at the title by facing Florida and Cincinnati in the first round.

Unfortunately, the BCS has yet again left me displeased. TCU, Boise State, and Cincinnati are being punished and not given a shot at the title, despite the fact that all three finished the regular season unbeaten. It just doesn't make sense to me, and I'm hoping that the controversy and chaos resulting from this bowl season are enough to evoke changes for next year.

- Alright, so enough with the crappy BCS system. Let's talk about the Heisman Trophy, and who should win it this year:

1. Toby Gerhart, Stanford RB

- "White Thunder" has amassed some crazy stats this season - 1,736 yards rushing, 26 TD's, and a rushing average of better than five yards per carry. Gerhart has been consistent all season long, and thats what separates him from McCoy in my book. His bruising running style is awesome to watch, and he shined in Stanford's biggest games this season. If it were up to me, I'd hand the Heisman to Gerhart.

2. Colt McCoy, Texas QB

- McCoy had a sub-par Big-12 title game, but he has still amassed impressive stats this season (70% completion percentage, 3500 passing yards, 27 TD's). His performance two weeks ago against rival Texas A&M was sensational (479 total yards, 5 TD's) and made him the frontrunner in my mind. However, his inconsistency this season and clunker in the Big-12 title game leaves him at #2 on my list.

3. Ndamukong Suh, Nebraska DT

- Here's why Suh is in my top three: In Nebraska's biggest game of the year, Suh registered 4.5 sacks, and tallied 7 tackles for loss. Yeah, those are really good numbers, but what makes them more insane is the fact that they were against Texas, one of the top two teams in the nation. Texas had time to gameplan for Suh, they had time to watch tape, they had time to figure out how to double and triple team the man listed #1 on Mel Kiper's NFL Draft Big Board, and they still couldn't stop him. But make no mistake, Suh has been a beast all season, tallying 82 tackles and 12.5 sacks.

Five Absurd Statements

'Cuse basketball, MVP discussion, and some props to Albany lax

I'll start off today by touching on something that has made me extremely giddy over the past week or so, and that is the start of the college basketball season. This has coincided with the early season domination of the Syracuse men's basketball team.

Coming into this season, I was expecting somewhat of a rebuilding campaign for the Orange. Jonny Flynn, Paul Harris, and Eric Devendorf saw big minutes last season and were key components of a very good Sweet Sixteen team (although Devendorf was highly overrated in the opinions of many). So the big question was how Syracuse would fill in the holes left by these key departures. A big answer so far this season has been Wesley Johnson.

Johnson is averaging 16 points and 8 rebounds so far this season, and has provided a much needed scoring punch given the departure of Flynn. Standing at 6'7'', his length has also been a welcome addition on the defensive side of the ball, making the trademark 2-3 zone defense virtually impenetrable.

A big reason for Johnson's early season success is because of his role last season. Due to transfer rules, Johnson was not allowed to participate in any games for the Orange. However, he could participate in practice. This practice experience and familiarity with Jim Boeheim's offensive and defensive schemes is certainly paying dividends so far this season.

Before I get off the topic of 'Cuse basketball, I gotta give some love to Andy Rautins. Sure, Syracuse's success has been due to a great team effort, but Rautins and Johnson have been the key cogs in the Orange attack. Against North Carolina last week, Rautins tallied 11 points, seven rebounds, seven steals, and seven assists, which is an absolutely SICK stat line - especially for a kid once regarded as nothing more than a pure catch-and-shoot threat.

- With his ridiculous performances over the past couple of weeks, the name Brett Favre and MVP are now being thrown around in the same sentence. And I can't really argue against those

in favor of a 40-year old MVP.

Favre has been GREAT so far this season, and his numbers last week were absolutely staggering - 22 of 25 passes completed with four touchdowns. He's only thrown three interceptions all season, which is staggering by Brett Favre standards

(hey Jay Cutler, remember way back...less than one whole game into the season..when you had less than three INT's?)

For everyone out there saying that Favre should be crowned, let me just remind you of three things:

1. Favre sputtered down the stretch with the Jets last season, and although that may have been because of injury, he is still 40-years old, and not many 40-year old bodies can last a 17 week season.

2. Peyton Manning.

3. Drew Brees.

- Continuing with some MVP talk, I wanna touch on the greatness that is Albert Pujols. He very well may end up being the best baseball player of all-time, and I don't think that I'm going out on a limb by saying that.

Pujols just won his second straight National League MVP award, and now has three total. In eight of his nine years in the league, he has finished in the top five in MVP voting. His stats over the past eight seasons are staggering, and I'm not gonna try to list them all - check out this site if you really want to be blown away by all of Pujols's accomplishments to date.

Bottom line: When his career is over (barring injury), Albert Pujols will be looked at as one of the top three baseball players of all-time.

- Finally, I wanna give some props to the Albany lacrosse program. Last week, the Great Danes tallied two GIANT recruiting victories by getting a National Letter of Intent (NLI) from Lafayette attackman Miles Thompson, and a verbal commitment from his younger brother,

Lyle. Lyle is regarded by InsideLacrosse as the best 11th grade lacrosse player in the country, while Miles is labeled as the #5 senior. Here's why this is a huge deal for the collegiate lacrosse landscape:

1. Powerhouse programs such as Syracuse, Johns Hopkins, Virgina, Maryland, and Princeton have dominated college lacrosse over the past decade. With Albany making a major recruiting splash, this threatens the typical balance of power, and offers hope that a non-tradition power may be closer to taking home a title on Memorial Day weekend.

2. Miles and Lyle Thompson are both members of the Onondaga Nation just outside of Syracuse. Historically, the best Native American lacrosse players have attended college at Syracuse University (see Marshall Abrams, Brett Bucktooth, Sid Smith, and Cody Jameison). Thus, what the Thompson brothers are doing is somewhat unheard of. They want to make a name for themselves, and are looking to help put Albany lacrosse on the map. With Mike Banks anchoring the defense and sophomore Joe Resetarits looking to add to his success as a freshman, the Albany lacrosse program is certainly headed in the right direction.

Five Absurd Statements

Bud Adams salutes the Bills sideline

The Tennessee Titans defeated the Buffalo Bills by a score of 41-17 yesterday. The Titans owner, 86 year old Bud Adams, was happy about the outcome. Apparently his fit of joy was not complete without a nice gesture to the Bills' sideline. So here's to you, Bud Adams, for placing yourself alongside the many other senile, old fart NFL franchise owners.

I guess I should probably be politically correct and say something like "If you don't like looking at the middle finger, you shouldn't watch the video below."

Rise of the Bearcats, and a solid Week 9 lineup

By now, everyone knows that the University of Cincinnati Bearcats football team is legit. Brian Kelly's bunch is ranked #5 in the current BCS standings, and have put together three straight wins since losing starting quarterback and Heisman hopeful Tony Pike to injury.

Historically, losing your starting quarterback results in a loss (see RICKY STANZI) or a significant dip in the performance of your offense. But apparently someone forgot to tell that to Cincinnati. The Bearcats have yet to lose, and if anything, their offense is performing BETTER now than it was three weeks ago.

Why? Zach Collaros.

Collaros came into the season as the Bearcats backup QB, but has emerged as a legitimate threat both running and passing in the absence of Tony Pike. The redshirt sophomore took over for Pike on October 15th at South Florida, and immediately turned heads with his 75-yard touchdown run in third quarter. People began to think "OK, this kid can really run the ball, Cincinnati might be alright without Pike."

A week later against Louisville, Collaros not only ran for 58 yards, but he also threw for 253 and three touchdowns with no interceptions. Oh yeah, and he completed 15 out of 17 passes. People began to say "ehhhh Louisville is having an off year, everyone is shredding their secondary."

The next week, against lowly Syracuse, Collaros completed 22 of 28 passes for 295 yards and four touchdowns. People said "ehhhh Syracuse stinks, he's supposed to do that against them."

Last week, facing a good Connecticut team on national television, Collaros ran for 79 yards and two touchdowns. He also completed 27 of 39 passes for 480 yards, and had over 300 yards passing in the first half. People are now saying "WOW, this kid can play...will Tony Pike get his job back?"

That is the big question facing Bearcats head coach Brian Kelly. Tony Pike is a senior and hot NFL prospect. But Collaros is just flat out HOT right now, with an passing efficiency rating of 210 in his three starts. Pike is expected to be healthy enough to play this week, and Coach Kelly has a decision to make.

Kelly has already said that Collaros will start this week against West Virginia, but also that he hopes to get Tony Pike some snaps during the game. Kelly has also said that when Pike is fully recovered, the starting job will once again be his.

All I know is that I would hate to have to make this decision. If the Bearcats lose one of their final three games, Brian Kelly is gonna be under an intense amount of heat. If he leaves Collaros in and they lose, everyone will say "why didn't you put Pike back in?" But if he puts Tony Pike in and the Bearcats lose, everyone will say "why did you take Collaros out?"

Ultimately, I think I would leave Collaros in until he screws up. Watching the game against UCONN on Saturday night, I had this sense of confidence anytime Collaros dropped back to pass. It was as if I KNEW he was going to complete the pass, or at least make something positive happen. Its that sense of confidence that comes around when Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, or Tom Brady drop back to pass - you know something good is going to happen (I had this same confidence watching Oregon's Jeremiah Masoli last weekend, even though his defense let him down).

Bottom line: If Cincinnati keeps winning, regardless of his decision, Brian Kelly has nothing to worry about.

- Week 9 of the NFL season has some juicy matchups that I gotta talk about. First, the Cincinnati Bengals travel to Pittsburgh for a battle for first place in the AFC North. Anyone who knows me personally knows that I'm a huge Steelers fan, so it's really no secret who I'll be rooting for. But this game will be entertaining for everyone to watch, mainly because it has all the makings of a bloodbath.

The Steelers hate the Bengals, and the Bengals hate the Steelers. Cedric Benson has been running wild so far this season, but the Steelers have one of (if not THE) best run defenses in the league. Everyone on the Bengals defense will be looking to decapitate Hines Ward for what he did to Keith Rivers last season. The Bengals beat the Steelers in Cincinnati earlier this year. Oh yeah, and both teams are 6 - 2 sitting tied for first place in the AFC North.

How about that for headlines leading up to a game?

The other big matchup this week is between the New England Patriots and Indianapolis Colts. Once again, this will be another installment of "who would you rather have as your QB - Peyton or Tom?" There really is no right answer to the question. However, this game WILL answer another prominent question - just how good are the Colts?

Indianapolis is sitting atop the AFC with a perfect 8 - 0 record. Peyton Manning is the frontrunner for MVP of the league, going toe-to-toe with Drew Brees. The Colts are also coming off a dramatic last second win over their division rival Houston Texans.

But questions still remain. Can Indy's defense survive without Bob Sanders? Can the Colts effectively run the ball? Peyton had nearly 40 passing attempts in the first half of last week's game, which is a recipe for disaster against any legit defense.

Bottom line: I'm watching to see if Peyton Manning can effectively lead his team to victory over a proven team with a winning pedigree, and if the Colts defense can slow down Tom Brady. My personal belief is that whichever team can run the ball more effectively will win the game (running the ball = less pressure on the quarterback = more play-action pass opportunities = more big plays in the passing game = more points on the board)

World Series Recap

Five Absurd Statements

*Quick note, the #4 statement involves a Niklas Lidstrom for Alexander Edler swap - the volume kinda tails off at the end of the clip, so I figured I'd clarify.

MLS playoffs, the MLB instant replay debate, and the curious case of Jake Delhomme

Something miraculous happened to me last night.

I was flipping through the typical late night TV lineup, trying to forget the fact that my free trial of NHL Center Ice expired earlier in the week, when all of a sudden I saw that the Seattle Sounders and Houston Dynamo were playing the first leg of their first round MLS playoff matchup. So I decided to watch a few minutes of the game.

AND I ACTUALLY ENJOYED IT.

Crazy, right? I mean, what casual soccer fan (such as myself) actually enjoys watching a MLS playoff game? It's a sub-par league with very few big names (aside from Beckham and Donovan), and is microscopic when compared to the Italian Serie A or the English Premier League.

But the atmosphere in Seattle last night was electric. The Sounders lime green uniforms flooded the stadium, and over 36,000 fans kept the energy level intense. Scoring chances were few and far between (the game ended in a 0-0 draw), which makes the fans passion even more admirable. Drew Carey, a minority owner of the Sounders franchise, was in attendance. Heck, I even surprised myself by watching more than five minutes of the game.

This is what the MLS is missing - passionate fans and an energetic atmosphere at each game. America doesn't have the kind of die-hard soccer fans that England or Italy has, so the MLS has to focus on attracting those casual fans who may watch a game or two every once in a while. And if the atmosphere at a game is fun, entertaining, energetic, ect., then the league should have no problem gaining viewership and increasing ticket sales. If other cities and venues are able to follow Seattle's lead, there may be hope for professional soccer in the United States.

- The big debate surrounding the World Series right now is the use of instant replay to correct umpire mistakes. Many are asking the question "if football, basketball, and hockey can use it, why can't baseball?" Well, here's why:

Baseball is a game entirely determined by umpires and the judgment of one human being. The "human factor" is an essential part of baseball. A strike is not a strike until the umpire confirms it as such, and the same goes for a ball. Other sports may use referees, but they do not directly influence the outcome of a game the way umpires do in baseball.

Many are arguing that umpires are no longer necessary, and technology can now do their job for them. This new "K-Zone" or whatever its called (the thing that shows whether or not a pitch was in the strike zone or not) is damaging some umpires reputations. "Bang bang" plays are becoming the worst enemy of the men in blue.

Here's my argument against instant replay: back when I played little league baseball, I was told that the strike zone was different for every player. If one guy is nearly 6 feet tall, then his strike zone is bigger than the guy who is barely 5 feet tall (I have yet to see or hear about the "K-Zone" technology adapting to the height of the batter). If instant replay is used in the field to determine if a player did or did not catch a line drive, the issue becomes even bigger.

Say there's a runner on second, and the batter hits a line drive to right field that is caught. The runner stays at second base, and the batter is out. But after looking at instant replay, it is determined that the right fielder did not actually catch the ball. What do you then do with the runner on second base? Do you make him stay at second? Or do you allow him to go to third base? Chances are he would have been on third if he had known that the ball was going to hit the ground, so do you allow him to advance?

Alright, so say you just read that last paragraph and have come up with a solution. Good job. Now figure out what to do in that same situation if there's a runner on first base, or better yet if the bases are loaded. What would you do then?

Bottom line: this whole instant replay thing is giving many people headaches, and I doubt that a solution will be surmised anytime soon.

- I'm gonna take a minute now to defend my man Jake Delhomme. No doubt, he has been awful so far this year, and leads the league with 13 interceptions. So why should he still be the starter in Carolina? Here's why:

Reason #1: Carolina has two backup QB's that are terrible - Matt Moore (career QB rating of 64.0) and A.J Feeley (career QB rating 69.6). Sure, you're probably thinking about that one time seven years ago when Feeley filled in for an injured Donovan McNabb and played decent (keyword here being "decent"), but his QB rating was only 75.4 in six games, and he threw only one more touchdown pass than INT (6 TD's, 5 INT's).

Reason #2: John Fox, Carolina's head coach, has been to the Super Bowl before. He knows what he's doing. He's out there watching practice each week, and he knows what QB gives the Panthers the best chance to win. According to him, that QB is Jake Delhomme.

Reason #3: The Panthers are 16th in the NFL in rushing attempts. John Fox undoubtedly knows that he has two stud running backs in Jonathan Stewart and DeAngelo Williams, and he knows that he has to give them more carries. If Fox somehow doesn't pound the rock this week against Arizona, then I might have to stop defending him and his quarterback...

Stan Van Gundy at his finest

Stan Van Gundy is slowly becoming my second favorite head coach in the world of sports (#1 obviously being Mike Leach), and this clip further cements his #2 ranking. This video is from last night (10/29) during Orlando's home opener; during the pre-game festivities, the Magic's Eastern Conference Champions banner from last year was raised to the rafters. I guess that sort of stuff doesn't really get "Stan Van" excited...ALSO, as a newly crowned Brockport alum, I gotta give props to the Magic for including the SUNY shoutout...

Mike Leach and the "fat little girlfriends"

Ok, I swear I'm coming back soon with a legit written post. But until then, here's some new Mike Leach footage...apparently Coach Leach wasn't too happy after Texas Tech's loss last week...

Five Absurd Statements

So it has been a while since I last updated...however, I am back to introduce what will hopefully be a new weekly segment entitled "Five Absurd Statements." Each week I'll explore five statements, and you get to decide whether or not they are feasible, or just plain absurd...

2009-2010 NHL Preview, Predictions

The return of Mike Leach!

It's been too long since I have dedicated a post to the "Madman of West Texas." So without further ado, enjoy these tidbits of the genius that is Mike Leach..

Now that the summer movie season is over, let Mike Leach get you up-to-date on what movies were hits, and which ones failed to live up to the hype...

Coach Leach fills us in on the boyhood game thats fun for everyone, Pine Cone Wars..

Having trouble managing your finances? Not sure what it means to have a check bounce? Well, let Mike Leach give you some advice!

Little bit of this, a little bit of that...

A lot of stuff is going on around the sporting world, and I'm back to give my thoughts on a few topics that are floating around inside my brain...

- I'll start by following up on Greg Paulus's progress to date. If I were to give him a grade, it would be an A-. Why? Because he has proved to be an adequate game-manager, and he has also shown the ability to push the ball downfield. In last week's game against Northwestern, Paulus went over 300 yards passing with a pair of touchdowns to lead the 'Cuse to their first win of theDoug Marrone era. Aiding Paulus's development has been receiver Mike Williams, who is proving to be a one of the Big East's elite receivers (over 200 yards receiving last week). If Paulus can limit some bad decision making, I'll drop that minus sign next to the A.

Staying on the topic of Orange football, let me give mad props to Doug Marrone (mad props is my slang term for tons and tons of credit). This guy has already completely changed the atmosphere surrounding Syracuse football. I think I speak for most Orange fans when I say that watching a game no longer feels like pulling teeth; instead, it actually feels like Syracuse has a legit chance at winning each time they take the field.

- After two weeks of regular season NFL action, I have drawn two conclusions: Rex Ryan knows how to run a defense, and the San Francisco 49ers are sitting pretty.

Let's start with the 2-0 49ers. Look at who they have beaten in the first two weeks: Arizona AT Arizona, and Seattle at home. San Francisco is already a leg up on the two teams thought to be the best in the west. All the 49ers have to do now is take care of business against the lowly Rams, and the division looks to be theirs. Here are some of the remaining games on their schedule: at Philadelphia, at Minnesota, at Indianapolis, at Houston (which now seems like no gimme), and at Green Bay. Assuming they can take care of business at home and steal two of these tough road games, the 49ers will surely be a lock for one of the top playoff seeds. Give Mike Singletary a lot of credit for turning this team around.

How about Rex Ryan? This guy is money, and he's making the Jets look like serious playoff contenders. Their defensive motto has to be something like "we don't give a rat's behind what you think you're gonna do against us, we're gonna come after you play after play until that clock says 0:00" (only I'm sure the actual motto contains a couple dozen expletives, none of that "rat's behind" nonsense). Seriously, the Jets defense has been in non-stop attack mode for the first two weeks, and it has them sitting at 2-0 and atop the AFC East. Marky Mark Sanchez has also looked better than average, sending a message to Pete Carroll (check my archived post on the Carroll/Sanchez disagreement when Sanchez left school early).

- Speaking of Pete Carroll, how about the goose egg his Trojans' laid this past weekend at Washington? Alright, so they didn't get shut out, but they definitely looked horrible. Aaron Corp looked like a high school JV quarterback, and their defense couldn't stop the Huskies when it counted. Could the Pac-10 race be a two team race between Oregon and Cal? It certainly looks that way now.

- My quote of the week goes to ESPN's Mike Sando, who said this regarding the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ranking of 28th in ESPN's weekly power rankings:

"The Bucs have allowed 900 yards in their first two games. They even made the Bills look good."

Ahh, Mr. Sando, how right you are. Giving up 33 points to the Bills offense is no easy task. Thank you for providing me with a dose of weekly humor.

2009 NFL Preview

The National Football League's regular season kicks off tonight, as the Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers begin their quest for a repeat against the Tennessee Titans. Without further ado, here is my division by division breakdown:

AFC East Champion: New England Patriots

- As much as I hate to predict success for that bozo named Belichick, the Patriots will come out on top of a very lack luster division for two reasons: Tom Brady, and Dean Pees. Pees has been the defensive coordinator with the Patriots since 2006, and he will have that unit playing well week in and week out. Sure, Richard Semour, Tedy Bruschi, Mike Vrabel, and Rodney Harrison are all gone, but the Patriots know how to reload instead of rebuild. Plus, they have an extremely potent offense to lean back on.

AFC North Champion: Pittsburgh Steelers

- The Steelers are the trendy pick to repeat as Super Bowl champs. I'm not ready to make that prediction just yet, but I am confident that they'll come out on top of the AFC North. Baltimore will be strong again this year (I'll give them a Wild Card playoff berth), and don't be surprised if Cincinnati turns some heads, but the Steelers are definitely the cream of the crop. If Willie Parker and Rashard Mendenhall can stay healthy throughout the regular season, look for the Steelers to lock down the #1 seed and home field advantage heading into the playoffs.

AFC South Champion: Houston Texans

- Right about now, you all probably think I'm nuts. The Texans have never made the playoffs, and here I am picking them ahead of the Colts and Titans. I started thinking about this prediction a while back, and more and more it seems like the Texans have a legit shot at stealing the division. Think about this: In Indianapolis, Tony Dungy and Marvin Harrison are gone. In Tennessee, Albert Haynesworth is gone. In Jacksonville, David Garrard and Maurice Jones-Drew are expected to carry the load (no more Fred Taylor). In Houston, Matt Schaub is healthy, they have an up-and-coming running back in Steve Slaton, arguably the best wide receiver in the game in Andre Johnson, and two difference-makers on defense in Mario Williams and DeMeco Ryans. I gotta believe that if the Texans are gonna make a move, it's gonna happen this year.

AFC West Champion: San Diego Chargers

- The Chargers win the West by default. The Chiefs are in rebuild mode, the Raiders are well...the Raiders, and the Broncos are still learning how to deal with life in the post-Shanahan era. Here are the only two ways the Chargers fall short of a division championship this year: Phillip Rivers turns the ball over more than he should, and/or Shawn Merriman beats up a couple more bisexuals.

NFC East Champion: Philadelphia Eagles

- Arguably the best and most competitive division in football. The Eagles lost a lot in the offseason with Brian Dawkins headlining the list of departures, and the injury to Stewart Bradley leaves their linebacking corp somewhat thin. But, as is the case with many teams, if the Eagles can stay healthy, they can win the division. I don't see Michael Vick having that big of an impact this season, but Philly can win without him. The Giants will be the biggest test for the Eagles, with a solid running game and an emerging deep threat at receiver in Hakeem Nicks (plus a healthy Osi Umenyora and Justin Tuck on defense).

NFC North Champion: Green Bay Packers

- While everyone is busy talking about #4 in Minnesota, Stafford in Detroit, and Cutler in Chicago, the Packers are steadily flying under the radar as a very good looking team. Aaron Rodgers impressed last year, and looks to improve this year with Greg Jennings and Donald Driver as his go-to receivers. If Ryan Grant can step his game up and give the Pack a legit running attack, look for the offense to put up elite numbers. In their first three preseason games, Green Bay's defense posted 11 interceptions, eight sacks, and eight forced fumbles. Sure, it's only preseason, but if the D can put up numbers close to that in the regular season, the Packers have a very good shot at the #1 seed heading into the playoffs.

NFC South Champion: Atlanta Falcons

- The big question for the Falcons will be on defense. Can their defense stop Drew Brees and the air attack of New Orleans? Can they slow down DeAngelo Williams and the ground-and-pound of Carolina? The defense may not have to put up shutouts week in and week out, with Matt Ryan under center and Roddy White at receiver (not to mention Tony Gonzalez at tight end). Oh yeah, and they have some guy named Michael Turner who led the NFL last year with 17 rushing touchdowns. The Falcons surprised everyone by making the playoffs last year - this year, their appearance will fool no one.

NFC West Champion: Arizona Cardinals

- The NFC Champs from a year ago will win their division in '09 because of two things: Warner to Fitzgerald, and Warner to Boldin. Pretty much all Kurt has to do is put the ball anywhere near those two, and let them make big plays. When the Cards aren't airing it out, they have Tim Hightower in their backfield. You're probably thinking "who the heck cares about Tim Hightower?" Well I, for one, care about Tim Hightower, and whenever I saw him play last year it always seemed as if he was pounding the ball down some poor defenseless defense's throat. If Arizona can make enough plays on defense, they can make another deep run in the playoffs.

Randy Couture is the coolest badass I know

I stumbled across this UFC 102 pre-fight blog and have now decided that Randy Couture is undoubtedly the coolest dude in the UFC.

September ALREADY?!

Well my summer has officially flown by, and here I am pondering the MLB playoff race, the college football season which officially kicks off tomorrow, and of course the NFL.

- First, I gotta mention my experience in Rochester this past weekend. I was fortunate enough to witness my first roller derby "bout" between the Roc City Roller Girls and the Tri City Rollers. I was skeptical at first, thinking this would just be some kind of lame exhibition featuring women on roller skates. But let me be the first to tell you that it's alot more than just women on skates.

There is strategy and scoring (which I'm not going to attempt to explain) and a ton of wipeouts and hard hitting. It's also somewhat of a freak show, with crazy nicknames (such as Resident Eva and Lippy Wrongstockings) and uniforms to enhance the show. The cool thing is that players, fans, and coaches all accept this borderline freak show status, acknowledging that this uniqueness is what sets roller derby apart from other sports. So if you ever feel like watching a bunch of women bang into each other and slam onto a concrete rink, check out the Roc City Roller Derby.

- Alright, so I said way back when that the Giants would turn heads in the second half of the Major League Baseball season. And wouldn't you know it, here they are one game behind the Rockies for the NL Wild Card lead (they were tied yesterday, but San Fran ran into a buzzsaw named Cole Hamels last night).

I was watching Baseball Tonight the other night and Dave Winfield picked the Rockies to win the Wild Card because their top three starting pitchers are ridiculously good. When I heard that, I said out loud "wow Dave, are you on drugs?" Think about this for a minute - the Giants have what many consider to be the top two starting pitchers in the game (Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain - check them out in the upper right corner) and Barry Zito has been lights out since the All-Star game. In his last nine starts, Zito has only given up 12 total runs, and gone at least 6 IP in seven of those nine starts (and 5.2 IP in one of the other two). ALSO the Giants just swept the Rockies in a three game series by sending Lincecum, Zito, and Cain to the hill on successive days in San Fran. I'll acknowledge that I'm a little biased in favor of the Giants, but you can't argue with the series sweep. So listen Mr. Winfield, don't feed me a bunch of crap when I'm just trying to catch up on baseball scores and standings, OK?

- The college football season starts tomorrow, and I'm looking forward to the top-20 matchup between Boise State and Oregon (however, I'm not looking forward to being blinded by the "smurf-turf" of Bronco Stadium). I'm also looking forward to "Da-U" (Miami) facing off against Florida State on Monday night - nothing like a traditional inter-state rivalry to kick off the season.

- I'm planning a quality NFL preview for later this week/early next week. Got any predictions? Sleeper teams? Stat lines for Tom Brady/Michael Vick/Adrian Peterson/Brett Favre/Mark Sanchez? Lemme know what you think.

College Football Preview: Tebow, Tebow, and more Tebow!

Coming into this college football season, it seems like the name 'Tim Tebow' is included in any sort of Heisman, SEC, or National Championship conversation. And rightfully so. Tebow is poised to cap off his career at Florida and become one of the best players in college football history (not to mention he has the best William Wallace impression in college football).

Think about it: If Tebow's Gators win the National Championship this year, he'll leave school with three national titles and a Heisman trophy. If the Gators somehow don't win it all, but Tebow takes home the Heisman, he'll have two national titles and two Heisman trophies. And apparently winning college football hardware has its perks...

NO ONE has those kind of college football credentials. Archie Griffin is the only player to win the Heisman Trophy twice, but he never won a National Championship. Red Grange, listed by

ESPN as the best college football player of all-time, won a National Title for Illinois in 1923, but didn't have a trophy case close to that of Tebow's.

Arguments can be made as to whether Tim Tebow will end up as "The best college football player to ever live." But after this season, Tim Tebow very well may end up as "The most decorated college football player to ever live."

Here's a conference-by-conference breakdown the 2009 college football landscape:

SEC Champion: Florida Gators.

- The Southeastern Conference is the best in college football. The Gators return Tebow and a host of others, with the only major loss being that of Brandon Spikes on defense. If the Gators can survive a road trip to LSU (Oct. 10), I see them going undefeated.

Big 12 Champion: Texas Longhorns

- The 'Horns got screwed over last year, with a couple ridiculous tie-breakers leaving them out of the Big 12 championship game. Colt McCoy returns after bulking up in the off-season (I hear he's added 10-15 pounds) and looks to take Texas back to the promised land. The loss of Brian Orakpo on defense hurts, but if the Longhorns can take care of Sam Bradford and Oklahoma on October 17th, look for them to run the table.

Big Ten Champion: Penn State

- The Big Ten is a two team race this year between Ohio State and the Nittany Lions. The return of Terrell Pryor makes the Buckeyes dangerous, but with the loss of Beanie Wells and Michael Jenkins, I gotta give the nod to Penn State (It's not like this conference has any clout, however, losing their last four trips to the Rose Bowl and Ohio State losing twice in National Title games).

Big East Champion: South Florida

- In a mediocre conference, I gotta go with the team with the two biggest names - Matt Grothe and George Selvie. West Virginia and Cincinnati may challenge the Bulls, but look for South Florida to end up on top (unlike the Big Ten, the Big East has won three of its last four BCS bowl games).

PAC 10 Champion: Oregon

- Somewhat going out on a limb here and picking against USC, mainly because of the QB issues in Southern Cal. Oregon has

an X-factor under center in Jeremiah Masoli, which could be the difference between the Ducks and Trojans this year.

BCS Buster: TCU

- The Horned Frogs are ranked in the top-20 of both major polls. They have two tough games on their schedule - September 12th at Virginia, and October 24th at BYU. If they can win both of those games, look for Texas Christian to break into the BCS bowl party.

Greg Paulus - Orange Savior?

By now, everyone knows the story of Greg Paulus. The multitalented Syracuse native is now the starting quarterback for his hometown Orange, and in charge of leading the "Cuse back to the promised land of college football.

The big question lingering now is this - how high should we set the bar for Paulus? What are reasonable expectations for him this season?

After playing basketball for four years at Duke, it is fair to assume that some rust had gathered on that cannon of a right arm that slung 152 touchdown passes during his high school career. Cuse fans have to hope that the rust is all but gone after the past couple weeks of practice. So, then, what exactly is Paulus? A legit QB threat? Or essentially a freshman who is still learning the "ins and outs" of college football?

I believe the big question for Paulus will be his mentality. Sure, his college football experience is zero, but he HAS been a college athlete for four years. The guy played in one of the toughest venues of college basketball (Cameron Indoor) and held his own (and he's also put up with some of the craziest fans in college basketball). So it's not totally fair to label him as a freshman - but yet, he still has no experience under center at the college level. If Paulus's maturity can quickly reduce the QB learning curve, then I believe the Orange can realistically look at five or six wins this season.

Regardless of what happens this season, I think the "Paulus effect" has already been positive for everyone associated with the Orange, including the fans. Think about this for a moment: The

Syracuse Orange football team has been absolutely DISMAL for the better part of a decade now. Long gone are the days of Paul Pasqualoni, Donovan McNabb, Marvin Harrison, and Dwight Freeney. Fans have been searching for positives over the past half dozen years, and they certainly have been hard to come by (the Orange's 24-23 victory over Notre Dame last year is probably the highest note of the past six years). Greg Paulus has brought to the Orange nation what has been missing for so many years: HOPE. Fans look at Paulus as someone who could POTENTIALLY bring the program back. The key word here is POTENTIALLY - but even potential is something that has been missing for the Orange in recent years, which is why the Greg Paulus experiment is a good thing for Syracuse.

No one knows for sure how Syracuse will perform this season with Paulus under center. All I know for sure is that I'll be tuning in on September 5th when the Orange open their season at home against Minnesota.

Brett Queener living the life

Brett Queener (Penn Yan/Albany lax alum) pretty much has what I would consider THE dream job - go around to different lacrosse camps during the summer and teach kids the game, and occasionally video tape random stuff from the camps. Oh yeah, and when he's not at camp, he plays professionally for the Toronto Nationals. Here's another installment of his famed "Queener Cam" from his time at UAlbany's "Top Dog" Lacrosse Camp.

Fantasy Football sleepers

Denis Leary on "Mike and Mike in the Morning"

For all of you who missed it, Denis Leary filled in for Mike Golic this morning on "Mike and Mike in the Morning." Not only was he funny, but his thoughts on Brett Favre couldn't be more accurate...

Vick becomes an Eagle

The Philadelphia Eagles have signed Michael Vick to a 1-year contract with an option for a second year. As I sit here typing, I'm still not sure how I feel about the move...

So I'm just going to forego any journalistic style or manners and straight up tell you all what I'm feeling. Hopefully some of it will make coherent sense:

Donovan McNabb has been dealing with unfair questions for the majority of his career. Whether it be injury issues, Rush Limbaugh, the drafting of Kevin Kolb, or the whole T.O. ordeal, McNabb has faced his fair share of scrutiny. And he has persevered through it all. Because of this, I'm not sure what the Vick signing will do to McNabb mentally. McNabb apparently lobbied in favor of the Eagles signing Vick, so that makes me believe that this won't be that big of a deal. But once the questions start coming about Vick getting reps at QB (and they will certainly come at some point), what is McNabb's answer going to be? Will he get sick of dealing with all of the hoopla and media attention being paid to his relationship with the convicted felon? Or will he be able to brush it aside and continue being one of the elite quarterbacks in the NFL?

On the field, this signing could make the Eagles one of the most dangerous teams in the league. Imagine this sort of play for a moment:

"McNabb drops back...pitches the ball to Vick on an end-around...now Vick throws back across field to McNabb...now McNabb looks deep downfield, (DeSean) Jackson is all alone in the end zone...TOUCHDOWN PHILADELPHIA."

Keep in mind that the Eagles still have Brian Westbrook, LeSean McCoy, and Jeremy Maclin to add into the mix. Once upon a time, Philadelphia's playoff chances were dependent on the health of McNabb and Westbrook. I'm not debating the importance of a healthy number 5 and 36, but I am saying that with the signing of Michael Vick, the Eagles are now deeper and full of more offensive threats than they have been in years.

So there are my two main thoughts on the signing of Michael Vick. I guess I'll label my mindset as "cautiously optimistic" - the on-field results could be huge, but I'm still waiting to see how Vick will be used in the offense, and what his impact on McNabb will be. Vick's first practice with Philly is today at 1:30, so I'm anxious to see how that goes.

-I'd like to write more about Tiger and the PGA Championship, but I gotta run. Check back in Monday or Tuesday for a full recap/reaction.

MLB news and notes; Crabtree has no brain

It has been far too long since I have updated, mainly thanks to an incredibly busy and eventful week. But I'm back to discuss some baseball news and some noise out of Michael Crabtree.

- I'll start by looking at some of the MLB trade deadline moves that are paying HUGE dividends. Cliff Lee has bee spectacular in two starts for the Phillies, winning both decisions while pitching 16 out of 18 possible innings and surrendering only two earned runs. I'm looking forward to the battle between the Phillies and Dodgers for National League supremacy down the stretch.

The second biggest addition has to be Freddy Sanchez heading from Pittsburgh to San Francisco. Sanchez has already produced for the Giants, hitting .388 since the trade and has also scored a run in each of his first four games with the Giants.

If Sanchez is the second biggest addition, Ryan Garko has to be 2a. The first basemen is 6 for 14 at the plate since moving from Cleveland to San Francisco, and has helped the Giants win 8 out of their last 10 games (hmm...I'm pretty sure someone predicted that the G-men would make waves in the second half of the season...).

I'll put Victor Martinez at number three, only because the Giants have been extremely hot lately and the Red Sox were beaten badly last night by the Yankees. Martinez is hitting just under .500 with five RBI's since joining the Sox, and drew three walks in last night's contest. Sick numbers, but with the Red Sox 3.5 games back of the Yanks, I gotta limit him to number three.

To wrap up my MLB thoughts, I'll take a second to discuss Jason Giambi, who was released today by Oakland. Giambi has been injured for most of this season, and his production has been way off compared to previous years. This could potentially be the end of his career, and I gotta say that I give the (to quote John Sterling) "Giam-bino" alot of credit for the things he has accomplished in his career. Many will say that his numbers will be tainted due to his admission of steroid use, but I give the guy props for coming out and admitting what he did, and that he was wrong.

- Michael Crabtree is not at San Francisco 49ers training camp. In fact, he most likely will not be there anytime soon. He may even possibly miss the entire regular season. Here's what I have to say to that: Michael, get your head out of your butt.

Sure, maybe this is a case of someone around Crabtree (in this case, his cousin) saying something ridiculous that doesn't really reflect the mindset of Michael himself. But what I'm arguing is that Michael has to realize that this is only killing his reputation, putting him on a one-way train toward the title of first-round BUST.

If Crabtree was smart, he would come out HIMSELF and publicly deny these comments. Better yet, he could put his ego aside, sign a contract, and then report to camp. Maybe then he could prove himself on the field, and maybe then people would start to think "holy smokes, maybe this guy really IS worth a crapload of money."

But that's not what the NFL is about anymore. The NFL is about money, being paid, and generating revenue. I just wish Crabtree would take the opportunity to prove me wrong.

Training Camp preview #1

Favre stays out; MLB trades heat up; RIP Jim Johnson

I'll start off today by touching on the Brett Favre news, and I'm not gonna beat around the bush. I'm glad he is staying retired - I don't wanna hear anymore about him. He was a great quarterback in his day, one of the best ever. But at this point, I'm sick of the drama, I'm sick of all the speculation, and I hope his diva personality stays out of the media for a long time (and I'm sure the Minnesota Vikings feel the same way).

-I originally was going to put up some of my thoughts on the MLB trades to date, but I figure it'll be better to wait until after tomorrow at 4pm to do that. A lot has happened, with Cliff Lee going to the Phillies undoubtedly the biggest move thus far. So check back early next week to

get my take on the winners and losers of the MLB trade deadline.

-Finally, I wanna touch on the passing of an absolute defensive GENIUS in Jim Johnson. Johnson was the mastermind of the Philadelphia Eagles outstanding defensive units from 1999-2008. He would derive schemes to stifle the opposition week after week, and produced 26 different Pro Bowl players during his tenure.

My fondest memory of Jim Johnson will be the 2004 NFC Championship game. Philadelphia was hosting Atlanta, and everyone was questioning whether or not the Eagles defense could contain Mike Vick (even I was nervous heading into that game). However, Jim Johnson's defense dominated, sacking Vick 4 times and limiting him to 32 yards rushing. Philadelphia won the game 27-10. Johnson will certainly be missed.

For your viewing pleasure...

*Lance Armstrong's time trial bike

*I posted earlier about Barry Zito potentially being on the trade block. Since that day, I haven't heard anything more about him being moved, which is why I didn't mention him in the video.

*Numbers on Roy Halladay: 11 wins - 3 losses, 2.62 ERA, 4 complete games, 1 shutout

*Numbers on Adam Wainwright: 11 wins - 6 losses, 2.95 ERA, 1 complete game

Lance plays the team game; MLB trade deadline looms

Lance Armstrong fell back to 4th place overall in the Tour De France today, losing ground to leader Alberto Contador and the Shleck brothers (Andy and Frank). I gotta admit, I'm not as disappointed as I thought I'd be. Here's why:

Lance has proved he can still race. He has proved he can still contend for the grandest cycling title in the world. He's proved he can still ride through the ridiculous crowds surrounding the mountain passes in the Alps (see picture). And most importantly: He has proved he's a team player.

If Contador was on another team, we may be witnessing a tremendous battle between himself and Armstrong during these final few stages. Lance is a great competitor, and he undoubtedly would take a shot at catching the yellow jersey if the current bearer was not one of his teammates. However, Lance recognizes that this is not his tour.

Alberto has earned this Tour victory. He has been superb in the Alps during the past week, and has shown that he is one of the sport's elite climbers. Lance knows this. Lance knows what a tremendous rider Contador is. And for Lance, he knows that his role this year is to escort his teammate to the 2009 overall title.

As for next year, that may be a different story. There is speculation that Lance may be headlining a new American team to compete at the Tour De France in 2010. That will certainly be a shock to the cycling world if it happens, and will undoubtedly create tons of drama during Le Tour in 2010.

- The Major League Baseball trade deadline is just over a week away, and the biggest name still being thrown around is Roy Halladay. Will he get traded? Or will he stay with the Blue Jays? (To be honest, I think the Blue Jays are beyond idiotic to consider trading the ace of their staff...but thats a story for another day).

Here's what I think will happen with Halladay: He'll end up in Philadelphia. The Phillies reportedly have the prospects to satisfy Toronto's asking price, and the Phils need another top-notch pitcher in their rotation.

Think about the teams with two-headed monsters at the top of their respective rotations - the Giants (Cain and Lincecum), the Yankees (Sabathia and Burnett), the Cardinals (Carpenter and Wainwright), and Mariners (Hernandez and Washburn...and even Bedard) just to name a few. All of these teams are competing for a playoff spot, and they all very well may end up playing in October.

If the Phillies land Halladay, they'll have one of the best combos in the game with Cole Hamels headlining their rotation. If the Phillies land Halladay, I gotta say they are my pick to win (and repeat) as World Series champs.

Think about it - they'd have Halladay and Hamels putting up K's and W's all over the place, Ryan Howard jackin' HR's, and Chase Utley and Shane Victorino bolstering the lineup. Scary stuff if you ask me.

I'm out for now. Stay tuned for more updates as the trade deadline approaches and Le Tour heads into Paris.

Holy smokes THANK YOU RICK REILLY

I stumbled upon Rick Reilly's column at espn.com about 30 seconds ago. Flat out, I COULDN'T AGREE WITH IT MORE. He pretty much took the words straight out of my mouth.

For now, I gotta digest Stage 16. I'll be back in a bit with some Tour thoughts and a few other odds and ends...

Le Tour, British Open predictions, and MLB second half predictions

I've really enjoyed waking up around 10:30 each morning and turning on the Tour De France for the past week and a half. Once you take the time to figure out what everything means (from jersey colors to the word "Peloton") its actually pretty cool to watch. Obviously, Lance Armstrong's return this year has heightened everyone's interest, so that has played a part in my devotion to viewing at least part of each stage.

The biggest rival to Lance's shot at winning is Alberto Contador, who ironically rides for the same team as Lance (Astana). I'm not gonna lie - I want Lance to win. He's the man, and I remember back in the glory days of my youth riding my mountain bike as fast as I could day after day in honor of Armstrong's tour domination.

But can I root against Contador? I desperately want to. I wanna see him crack next week in the Alps and fall behind Lance. However I have a hard time pulling myself to whole-heartedly hope for that. Maybe now is Alberto's time...maybe this is HIS tour...maybe Lance has had his moment(s) to shine. This debate is definitely what keeps me coming back to the TV each morning at 10:30 (in case you are wondering, each stage tends to wrap up between 10:30 and 11:30am, so I typically catch the last 50 miles or so).

- The British Open began today and a couple of old farts are at the top of the leaderboard as Tom Watson turned in a 5-under round of 65 and Miguel Angel Jimenez shot a 6-under 64. I say good for them, I mean I gotta give props to anyone over 50 that can play golf like that (Watson is 59; I'm unsure of Jimenez's exact age, but I know he's up there).

Will they continue their success into the weekend? Probably not. I'm horrible at predictions so I'm not gonna go down that road, but I will give you three names of players that I am rooting for: Padraig Harrington, Sergio Garcia, and John Daly. Here's why:

Paddy Harrington has been gettin criticized left and right lately due to his lackluster performances this year. Yeah, he's in a slump, but he's won the past two British Opens, so we know the dude has game (not to mention a pretty kick-ass Irish accent). Padraig - do me a favor

and shut up the critics...I'd much appreciate it.

Sergio Garcia has come close to winning this tournament in the past. He still doesn't have a major victory. I'm not a big fan of the guy, so I hope he wins to end all this talk about him being one of the better players without a major title, that way I won't have to see or hear about him for hopefully a long time.

John Daly has pretty much been to hell and back. His battles with substance abuse are well known, and he is just now starting to get his game back together. I don't know what is up with his clothing selections, but I wouldn't mind seeing him take home the title to prove that there really is hope for anyone struggling with substance abuse or any sort of similar ailment.

-And finally, some quick MLB predictions for the second half of the season. I have actually been

following baseball more this season than in the past, mainly because the San Francisco Giants have actually been doing good (I'm becoming a huge Tim Lincecum fan). So I'm probably gonna

sound like a homer when I say that the Giants will make waves in the second half of the season (it's my blog, I can do what I want, right?)

The big news of the day concerns Giant pitcher Barry Zito, and his possible placement on the trade block. His contract is massive (over $90 million) so that could handicap any trade

possibilities. But what the Giants need more than anything is another quality bat in their lineup, and using Zito as bait could help land a boost to the lineup.

Even if the Giants don't end up moving Zito, they still have a great shot to catch the Dodgers. Their pitching is fantastic (arguably the best one-two punch in the majors with Lincecum and Matt Cain), and they have an up-and-comer at third base in Pablo Sandoval. Look for people to start paying attention to the Giants in the second half - especially if they add another legit bat to their lineup.

USA Soccer beats Spain??

Yeah, I was just as shocked as everyone else. I turned on the TV and saw the 1-0 score in the 50th minute and couldn't believe it. Then Clint Dempsey made it 2-0 and I was beside myself - was this really the U.S. national team handling the mighty Spaniards?

Next up for the Americans is powerhouse Brazil in the final of the Confederations Cup. To be honest, I don't care so much about that game at this point. The Americans showed the other day that they can contend in next summers' World Cup. They proved that they can hang with the big boys on any given day. So if they lose to Brazil, I don't think my opinion of U.S. soccer will diminish that much. That being said, if they can somehow defeat the Brazilians, I will be that much more energized about the United States' chances at the World Cup.

I gotta mention the U.S. Open because I haven't posted since then, but I was saddened to see Phil Mickelson come up short (again). Here's the biggest reason why:

At just about every hole, Phil waves to the crowd. He gives a thumbs up or slaps hands with spectators, showing his true appreciation for their support. Tiger Woods? I haven't ever seen him do that. Sure, maybe on the rare occasion he has waved to the crowd or done something of that nature. I'm not saying Tiger is a bad guy. I'm just saying that because of Phil's obvious appreciation it is much easier to root for him than it is Tiger or anyone else who refuses to acknowledge the fans.

I'm sick and tired of hearing about Manny Ramirez and all of his crap, so I'm not gonna mention anything about him playing four innings for the Dodgers Triple-A affiliate Albuquerque Isotopes yesterday in preparation for his July 3rd return. However, I will mention that the Albuquerque Isotopes have the greatest name in all of minor league baseball. What the hell is an Isotope anyway? Honestly I don't really care, I just think it sounds cool.

I leave you all with this clip of T.O. getting chewed out by some bimbo supermodel. Sure, it was probably all staged, but I still enjoyed it.