Top 5 NFL Quarterbacks of the Past Decade
1. Tom Brady
2. Peyton Manning
3. Brett Favre
4. Donovan McNabb
5. Drew Brees
Week 17 Picks
__________________SPA____Topher___Timmy___Ford
Car at Atl___________Atl______Atl_____Atl_____Atl
Pit at Cle___________Pit_____Pit_____Pit______Pit
Min at Det__________Min_____Min_____Det______Det
Oak at K.C.__________Oak____K.C.____Oak______Oak
Mia at N.E._________N.E.___N.E.____N.E._____N.E.
T.B. at N.O.__________N.O.___N.O.____N.O.______N.O.
Buf at N.J._________NYJ_____NYJ____NYJ_____NYJ
Cin at Bal__________Bal____Bal___Bal_____Bal
Jac at Hou___________Hou_____Hou____Jac_______Jac
NYG at Was__________NYG____NYG____NYJ______NYG
Dal at Phi__________Phi_____Dal___Phi______Phi
Ari at S.F._________S.F.____S.F.___Ari______Ari
Chi at G.B__________G.B.____G.B.___G.B.______G.B.
Ten at Ind__________Ind____Ind___Ind_____Ind
S.D. at Den__________S.D.___S.D.___Den______Den
STL at Sea__________Sea_____STL____Sea_______STL
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Last Week ___________10-6___12-4____9-7______9-7
Season Total_________68-41___77-32____64-36_____72-37
Winning %__________62%____71%_____64%______66%
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Aunt Bethany, does your cat eat jello?
Some thoughts on the week in sports.
I think what the Connecticut women's basketball team did is amazing. Even if they have been playing mediocre competition it's still impressive to win that many games.
Favre please quit. I have loved watching you but I don't want the last image of you on a football field to be you lying on a stretcher.
I can't believe Boise State went from playing in a BCS game to playing on December 22nd. Not even playing in a bowl game after Christmas. Crazy.
I was having a discussion recently with a friend about the greatest sports movies of all time. I love these types of lists and since its the Christmas season I thought I would share my Top 5 favorite Christmas movies of all time. I suppose this has nothing to do with sports but oh well.
My Top 5 Christmas Movies
1. National Lampoons Christmas Vacation
2. Home Alone
3. Scrooged
4. A Christmas Story
5. Elf
All of us had a rough time last week with our picks with Timmy and Ford leading the way with 10-6 weekends. Topher is still leading the way but Ford is closing in with 2 weeks to go. I'm still in 3rd followed by Timmy. With the busy of Christmas I've decided not to do any in depth picks. On to this weeks picks. Have a Blessed Christmas.
Week 16 Picks
__________________SPA____Topher___Timmy___Ford
Car at Pit___________Pit______Pit_____Pit______Pit
Dal at Ari___________Dal_____Dal_____Dal______Dal
Was at Jac__________Jac_____Jac_____Jac______Jac
Det at Mia___________Det____Det_____Det______Mia
S.F. at STL__________STL____STL_____STL______STL
Ten at K.C.__________Ten____K.C.____K.C.______K.C.
NYJ at Chi__________NYJ_____Chi____NYJ______NYJ
N.E. at Buf__________N.E.____N.E.___N.E.______N.E.
Bal at Cle___________Bal_____Bal____Bal_______Bal
Hou at Den__________Hou____Den____Hou______Den
S.D. at Cin__________Cin_____S.D.___S.D.______S.D.
Ind at Oak__________Oak_____Ind____Oak______Ind
NYG at G.B__________G.B.____G.B.___G.B.______G.B.
Sea at T.B.__________T.B.____T.B.___T.B._____Sea
Min at Phi___________Phi____Phi_____Phi______Phi
N.O. at Atl__________Atl_____Atl____Atl_______Atl
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Last Week ___________8-8____9-7_____10-6______10-6
Season Total_________58-35___65-28____55-29_____63-30
Winning %__________62%____70%_____65%______68%
I think what the Connecticut women's basketball team did is amazing. Even if they have been playing mediocre competition it's still impressive to win that many games.
Favre please quit. I have loved watching you but I don't want the last image of you on a football field to be you lying on a stretcher.
I can't believe Boise State went from playing in a BCS game to playing on December 22nd. Not even playing in a bowl game after Christmas. Crazy.
I was having a discussion recently with a friend about the greatest sports movies of all time. I love these types of lists and since its the Christmas season I thought I would share my Top 5 favorite Christmas movies of all time. I suppose this has nothing to do with sports but oh well.
My Top 5 Christmas Movies
1. National Lampoons Christmas Vacation
2. Home Alone
3. Scrooged
4. A Christmas Story
5. Elf
All of us had a rough time last week with our picks with Timmy and Ford leading the way with 10-6 weekends. Topher is still leading the way but Ford is closing in with 2 weeks to go. I'm still in 3rd followed by Timmy. With the busy of Christmas I've decided not to do any in depth picks. On to this weeks picks. Have a Blessed Christmas.
Week 16 Picks
__________________SPA____Topher___Timmy___Ford
Car at Pit___________Pit______Pit_____Pit______Pit
Dal at Ari___________Dal_____Dal_____Dal______Dal
Was at Jac__________Jac_____Jac_____Jac______Jac
Det at Mia___________Det____Det_____Det______Mia
S.F. at STL__________STL____STL_____STL______STL
Ten at K.C.__________Ten____K.C.____K.C.______K.C.
NYJ at Chi__________NYJ_____Chi____NYJ______NYJ
N.E. at Buf__________N.E.____N.E.___N.E.______N.E.
Bal at Cle___________Bal_____Bal____Bal_______Bal
Hou at Den__________Hou____Den____Hou______Den
S.D. at Cin__________Cin_____S.D.___S.D.______S.D.
Ind at Oak__________Oak_____Ind____Oak______Ind
NYG at G.B__________G.B.____G.B.___G.B.______G.B.
Sea at T.B.__________T.B.____T.B.___T.B._____Sea
Min at Phi___________Phi____Phi_____Phi______Phi
N.O. at Atl__________Atl_____Atl____Atl_______Atl
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Last Week ___________8-8____9-7_____10-6______10-6
Season Total_________58-35___65-28____55-29_____63-30
Winning %__________62%____70%_____65%______68%
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
"Losers quit when they're tired. Winners quit when they've won"
Some thoughts on the week in sports.
Brett Favre is the man. I already have an entire blog article about him so there's not much to say. The man is a freak and has to be the toughest player to every play the game. Love em.
The Raiders still have a chance for the playoffs. Slim, but still possible. When your team has been so bad it's pretty exciting to even have your team be at 6-7.
Cliff Lee to the Phillies. Love it. It's good to see that the Yankees can't get anyone they want. I also love that he's out of the American League all together.
Aaron Rodgers helped me go 22-5 in my two fantasy teams this year and then gets a concussion just as the playoffs start. Awesome.
Thinking about the Vikings-Bears game at TCF Bank Stadium got me thinking about outdoor games. I think it would be so great if they played a Super Bowl in a small cold weather stadium. Perhaps, Lambeau.
Onto this weeks predictions. Spa is not doing well. I went 9-7 last week. Topher continued his hot streak with a 12-4 week. Timmy went 10-6 and Ford went 11-5. The overall standings stay the same with Topher still leading followed by Ford, Timmy and me brining up the rear. Have a great weekend!
Kansas City at St. Louis
A huge match up of 2 of the biggest surprises of the season. The Chiefs come into the game at 8-5 and lead the Chargers by one game. The Rams are tied with the Seahawks atop the underachieving NFL West with a record of 6-7. Chiefs quarterback Matt Cassell sat out the last game for the Chiefs after having an appendectomy December 8th but may play in this game. Hopefully for the Chiefs he does. Brodie Croyle his back up may be statistically the worst back up ever. He is 0-10 as a starter and last week was 7-17 passing for 40 yards. The Chiefs have not faired well on the road this year going 2-5. Regardless of who starts are quarterback for the Chiefs I’ll take Sam Bradford and the Rams at home in a low scoring game. Rams 14-10
New Orleans at Baltimore
This should be one of the best games of the week. The Ravens are 5-2 in their last 6 games. In that time Joe Flacco has completed 65% of his passed for 1800 yards, 14 touchdowns and only 2 interceptions. Since losing to the Browns on October 24th the Saints have won 6 in a row and are averaging 31 points a game. Last week the Ravens gave up 3 touchdown passes and almost 400 yards passing to Matt Schaub. I think Brees has a huge game and the Saints continue their winning way on the road in Baltimore. Saints 34-31.
Week 15 Picks
_____________________SPA___Topher___Timmy____Ford
S.F at S.D.____________S.D.____S.D._____S.F.______S.F.
Cle at Cin_____________Cle_____Cle______Cle______Cin
Was at Dal____________Dal_____Dal_____Dal______Dal
Hou at Ten____________Hou____Hou_____Ten______Hou
Jac at Ind_____________Ind____Ind_____Jac_______Ind
K.C. at Stl_____________Stl_____Stl_____K.C.______K.C.
Buf at Mia_____________Buf____Buf_____Mia______Mia
Det at T.B._____________T.B.____T.B.____T.B.______T.B.
Ari at Car______________Ari_____Ari____Car_______Car
N.O. at Bal_____________N.O.____Bal____Bal_______N.O.
Phi at NYG_____________NYG____NYG____Phi______NYG
Atl at Sea______________Atl_____Atl_____Atl_______Atl
NYJ at Pit______________Pit_____Pit_____Pit_______Pit
Den at Oak_____________Oak____Oak_____Oak______Oak
Chi at Min______________Chi____Chi_____Chi_______Chi
G.B. at N.E._____________N.E.___N.E._____N.E.______N.E.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Last Week ______________9-7____12-4______10-6______11-5
Season Total____________50-27___56-21_____45-23_____53-24
Winning %_____________65%____73%______66%______69%
Brett Favre is the man. I already have an entire blog article about him so there's not much to say. The man is a freak and has to be the toughest player to every play the game. Love em.
The Raiders still have a chance for the playoffs. Slim, but still possible. When your team has been so bad it's pretty exciting to even have your team be at 6-7.
Cliff Lee to the Phillies. Love it. It's good to see that the Yankees can't get anyone they want. I also love that he's out of the American League all together.
Aaron Rodgers helped me go 22-5 in my two fantasy teams this year and then gets a concussion just as the playoffs start. Awesome.
Thinking about the Vikings-Bears game at TCF Bank Stadium got me thinking about outdoor games. I think it would be so great if they played a Super Bowl in a small cold weather stadium. Perhaps, Lambeau.
Onto this weeks predictions. Spa is not doing well. I went 9-7 last week. Topher continued his hot streak with a 12-4 week. Timmy went 10-6 and Ford went 11-5. The overall standings stay the same with Topher still leading followed by Ford, Timmy and me brining up the rear. Have a great weekend!
Kansas City at St. Louis
A huge match up of 2 of the biggest surprises of the season. The Chiefs come into the game at 8-5 and lead the Chargers by one game. The Rams are tied with the Seahawks atop the underachieving NFL West with a record of 6-7. Chiefs quarterback Matt Cassell sat out the last game for the Chiefs after having an appendectomy December 8th but may play in this game. Hopefully for the Chiefs he does. Brodie Croyle his back up may be statistically the worst back up ever. He is 0-10 as a starter and last week was 7-17 passing for 40 yards. The Chiefs have not faired well on the road this year going 2-5. Regardless of who starts are quarterback for the Chiefs I’ll take Sam Bradford and the Rams at home in a low scoring game. Rams 14-10
New Orleans at Baltimore
This should be one of the best games of the week. The Ravens are 5-2 in their last 6 games. In that time Joe Flacco has completed 65% of his passed for 1800 yards, 14 touchdowns and only 2 interceptions. Since losing to the Browns on October 24th the Saints have won 6 in a row and are averaging 31 points a game. Last week the Ravens gave up 3 touchdown passes and almost 400 yards passing to Matt Schaub. I think Brees has a huge game and the Saints continue their winning way on the road in Baltimore. Saints 34-31.
Week 15 Picks
_____________________SPA___Topher___Timmy____Ford
S.F at S.D.____________S.D.____S.D._____S.F.______S.F.
Cle at Cin_____________Cle_____Cle______Cle______Cin
Was at Dal____________Dal_____Dal_____Dal______Dal
Hou at Ten____________Hou____Hou_____Ten______Hou
Jac at Ind_____________Ind____Ind_____Jac_______Ind
K.C. at Stl_____________Stl_____Stl_____K.C.______K.C.
Buf at Mia_____________Buf____Buf_____Mia______Mia
Det at T.B._____________T.B.____T.B.____T.B.______T.B.
Ari at Car______________Ari_____Ari____Car_______Car
N.O. at Bal_____________N.O.____Bal____Bal_______N.O.
Phi at NYG_____________NYG____NYG____Phi______NYG
Atl at Sea______________Atl_____Atl_____Atl_______Atl
NYJ at Pit______________Pit_____Pit_____Pit_______Pit
Den at Oak_____________Oak____Oak_____Oak______Oak
Chi at Min______________Chi____Chi_____Chi_______Chi
G.B. at N.E._____________N.E.___N.E._____N.E.______N.E.
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Last Week ______________9-7____12-4______10-6______11-5
Season Total____________50-27___56-21_____45-23_____53-24
Winning %_____________65%____73%______66%______69%
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Taylor Martinez is actually a Deer
Nebraska blows another chance at a Big 12 Championship. Again. Nebraska is forced to play in the Holiday Bowl. Again. Nebraska will be playing the University of Washington. Again. Man, what a difference a good quarterback makes. Nebraska had a great chance to beat Oklahoma this past weekend in the last Big 12 Championship again. They were in field goal range. Then Taylor Martinez decided to do an impression of a deer in the head lights. Again. It’s so frustrating as a fan when the defense plays so well again and again and the inept offense struggles over and over again. Okay. I'm off my rant. Nope. I can accept that Nebraska lost. I can even accept that we lost to Oklahoma. What I can’t understand is the opponent the Huskers got for their Bowl game. All I hear is that the bowl games are all about the money. I wish someone could tell me how a rematch with a team they already beat by 35 points will be a big draw. I love watching Nebraska play but I don’t have a lot of interest in watching a college game I’ve already seen that wasn’t good to begin with. Okay, now I’m really off of my rant. Last week in the predictions we all had great weeks. Topher led all of us with a 13-3 week. The rest of us all had 12-4 weeks. The overall leader is still Topher followed by Ford, myself and Timmy. On to this weeks in depth predictions.
Oakland @ Jacksonville
These 2 teams are basically mirror images of each other offensively. Look at the stats:
Oakland is averaging 339 yards a game on offense. Jacksonville, 338. Oakland passes on average for 190 yards per game. Jacksonville, 187. Oakland rushed for an average of 149 yards per game. Jacksonville, 152. Total yards on offense through the season. Oakland has racked up 4,062 yards. Jacksonville, 4,061. I see this games being a low scoring affair with both teams trying to grind it out on the ground. The Raiders rushed the ball 52 times last week and racked up 251 yards. Jacksonville with one of the best runners in the league in Maurice Jone-Drew, ran the ball 53 times for 258 yards against Tennessee. I think the difference in this game will be Jacoby Ford. The rookie wide receiver for the Raiders has come up big for them this season and I think he will do it again. Raiders 17-14.
New England @ Chicago
Patriots offense vs. the Bears defense. I’m excited to see if Brady can continue his amazing play against this Bears defense. In the last 4 games Brady has put up MVP numbers. He’s passed for 1,200 yards, 13 touchdowns and no interceptions while completing 73% of his passes. If Cutler can keep his interceptions down I think the Bears can win this game but I don’t think he will. I’ll take Belichick’s game plan and Brady’s arm in this game. Patriots 38-31.
Week 14 Picks
_____________________SPA____Topher___Timmy____Ford
Ind at Ten_____________Ind____Ind______Ind______Ind.
Cle at Buf_____________Cle_____Buf_____Cle_______Buf
Cin at Pit______________Pit____Pit______Pit_______Pit
G.B. at Det_____________G.B.___G.B._____G.B._____G.B.
NYG at Min_____________Min___NYG_____NYG_____NYG
T.B. at Was_____________Was___T.B._____T.B._____Was
Atl at Car______________Atl____Atl______Atl______Atl
Oak at Jax_____________Oak____Jax_____Jax______Jax
Sea at S.F._____________Sea_____S.F.____Sea______S.F.
STL at N.O.____________N.O.____N.O.____N.O._____N.O.
Mia at NYJ_____________NYJ____NYJ_____NYJ_____NYJ
Den at Ari______________Ari_____Den____Den______Den
K.C. at S.D.____________S.D.____S.D._____K.C._____K.C.
N.E. at Chi_____________N.E.___N.E._____N.E._____N.E.
Phi at Dal______________Phi____Dal______Phi _______Phi
Bal at Hou_____________Bal____Bal_______Bal______Bal_________________________________________________
Season Total____________41-20___44-17_____35-17_____42-19
Oakland @ Jacksonville
These 2 teams are basically mirror images of each other offensively. Look at the stats:
Oakland is averaging 339 yards a game on offense. Jacksonville, 338. Oakland passes on average for 190 yards per game. Jacksonville, 187. Oakland rushed for an average of 149 yards per game. Jacksonville, 152. Total yards on offense through the season. Oakland has racked up 4,062 yards. Jacksonville, 4,061. I see this games being a low scoring affair with both teams trying to grind it out on the ground. The Raiders rushed the ball 52 times last week and racked up 251 yards. Jacksonville with one of the best runners in the league in Maurice Jone-Drew, ran the ball 53 times for 258 yards against Tennessee. I think the difference in this game will be Jacoby Ford. The rookie wide receiver for the Raiders has come up big for them this season and I think he will do it again. Raiders 17-14.
New England @ Chicago
Patriots offense vs. the Bears defense. I’m excited to see if Brady can continue his amazing play against this Bears defense. In the last 4 games Brady has put up MVP numbers. He’s passed for 1,200 yards, 13 touchdowns and no interceptions while completing 73% of his passes. If Cutler can keep his interceptions down I think the Bears can win this game but I don’t think he will. I’ll take Belichick’s game plan and Brady’s arm in this game. Patriots 38-31.
Week 14 Picks
_____________________SPA____Topher___Timmy____Ford
Ind at Ten_____________Ind____Ind______Ind______Ind.
Cle at Buf_____________Cle_____Buf_____Cle_______Buf
Cin at Pit______________Pit____Pit______Pit_______Pit
G.B. at Det_____________G.B.___G.B._____G.B._____G.B.
NYG at Min_____________Min___NYG_____NYG_____NYG
T.B. at Was_____________Was___T.B._____T.B._____Was
Atl at Car______________Atl____Atl______Atl______Atl
Oak at Jax_____________Oak____Jax_____Jax______Jax
Sea at S.F._____________Sea_____S.F.____Sea______S.F.
STL at N.O.____________N.O.____N.O.____N.O._____N.O.
Mia at NYJ_____________NYJ____NYJ_____NYJ_____NYJ
Den at Ari______________Ari_____Den____Den______Den
K.C. at S.D.____________S.D.____S.D._____K.C._____K.C.
N.E. at Chi_____________N.E.___N.E._____N.E._____N.E.
Phi at Dal______________Phi____Dal______Phi _______Phi
Bal at Hou_____________Bal____Bal_______Bal______Bal
Last Week ______________12-4____13-3______12-4______12-4
Season Total____________41-20___44-17_____35-17_____42-19
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Lebron comes home
Before this weeks picks I had some thoughts on the week in sports.
I was watching Mike and Mike and the Dan Patrick Show this morning and all they were talking about was Lebron coming back to Cleveland. This is the most excited I’ve been to watch an NBA game since Reggie Miller retired. They had callers suggesting different ways for the fans to react. Callers were talking about how much people are going to boo him. The cleverest one I heard was for everyone to go silent when he is introduced. I think this would be great. Crowds have always booed players but I’ve never seen a game where all of the fans become silent when a player is introduced. I think it would be clever and unique. I don’t want to see Lebron get hurt but I kind of want to see someone run onto the court and try to hit him. It would be bad for the game but pretty interesting drama. I’m also really curious to see how he plays. I can see him going 1-15 in the game but I can also see him going off for like 60 points.
I’ve been really tired of hearing all this stuff about Cam Newton and whether he will be ruled ineligible. I’m really glad that it came out and was decided he can play. If only that was the end of it but I somehow doubt it is.
The Yankees came out this week and said they want Derek Jeter to look at other teams and see if he can find a better offer. I really hope he takes their bluff and leaves. I can’t imagine how big of a p.r. disaster it would be to let Mr. Yankee walk to another team. I think he would look good in the Angels red but no way I would want them to pay him as much as the Yankees are willing to pay. I’m curious if the Red Sox offered him like 25 million more than the Yankees if he would take it.
Lastly, Nebraska vs. Oklahoma. When the news first broke that Nebraska was leaving the Big 12 for the Big 10 I was a little bummed. I’ve always like the rivalries that Nebraska has had. Colorado. K-State. Texas. After being bummed for a short while I couldn’t be more happy now that Nebraska is getting out from under Texas thumb and leaving what I think is a sinking ship in the Big 12. I think it’s only a matter of time before the Big 12 dissolves and the remaining 10 teams head to other conferences. I think life in the Big 10 will be great. I think the rivalry with Iowa will be just as great as any rivalry we had in the Big 12. Back to the Oklahoma game though. I’m so excited to get to play Oklahoma one more time. I’m so excited to see Bob Stoops cry. After all of the crap Nebraska has gotten about leaving the Big 12 I would love to see Nebraska win the last Big 12 Championship game. Go Big Red!
None of us had a great week with picks. Topher is the leader at 31-14 followed closly by Ford who is at 3--15. I'm in third at 29-16 and Tim is still in last at 23-9. Onto this weeks picks.
I’ve decided to only do 2 in depth predictions this week because frankly, the schedule is weak when it comes to exciting games. The schedule does have 2 interesting games this week on it though. 2 divisional games that may decide the division.
Picks for Week 13
Pit @ Bal
Pittsburgh at Baltimore. I love this matchup. 2 tough teams with young head coaches, great running games and hard hitting defenses. The Steelers and Ravens are ranked 5th and 8th in Total Defense respectively. Both these teams have young quarterbacks. Roethlisberger is 5th in Passer rating while Joe Flacco is ranked 11th. These teams are almost mirror images of each other. Just how even are they? Over the last 6 ½ years, including 13 regular season games and 1 playoff game each team has won 7 times. The Steelers have scored 265 points. The Ravens? 264. Crazy even. I believe the Ravens will win this game for 3 reasons. They are playing at home, where they are undefeated this year. Ben Roethlisberger has been practicing in a walking boot all week. Lastly, out of the 3 losses this year for the Ravens, 2 have been on the road at the Patriots and the Falcons who are both undefeated at home. Ravens 24-21.
NYJ @ N.E.
Another matchup that I love. There are so many plot lines for this game. My favorite is Rex Ryan saying the following quote last year. "I never came here to kiss Bill Belichick’s rings.” So far he has made good winning 2 of 3 against the Patriots. The Patriots have been on a roll recently winning 3 in a row, including wins over the Steelers and the Colts. The Jets have won 4 in a row but those wins have come against teams that are a combined 13-31. I like the Patriots at home 27-20.
Season Total____________29-16___31-14_____23-9______30-15
I was watching Mike and Mike and the Dan Patrick Show this morning and all they were talking about was Lebron coming back to Cleveland. This is the most excited I’ve been to watch an NBA game since Reggie Miller retired. They had callers suggesting different ways for the fans to react. Callers were talking about how much people are going to boo him. The cleverest one I heard was for everyone to go silent when he is introduced. I think this would be great. Crowds have always booed players but I’ve never seen a game where all of the fans become silent when a player is introduced. I think it would be clever and unique. I don’t want to see Lebron get hurt but I kind of want to see someone run onto the court and try to hit him. It would be bad for the game but pretty interesting drama. I’m also really curious to see how he plays. I can see him going 1-15 in the game but I can also see him going off for like 60 points.
I’ve been really tired of hearing all this stuff about Cam Newton and whether he will be ruled ineligible. I’m really glad that it came out and was decided he can play. If only that was the end of it but I somehow doubt it is.
The Yankees came out this week and said they want Derek Jeter to look at other teams and see if he can find a better offer. I really hope he takes their bluff and leaves. I can’t imagine how big of a p.r. disaster it would be to let Mr. Yankee walk to another team. I think he would look good in the Angels red but no way I would want them to pay him as much as the Yankees are willing to pay. I’m curious if the Red Sox offered him like 25 million more than the Yankees if he would take it.
Lastly, Nebraska vs. Oklahoma. When the news first broke that Nebraska was leaving the Big 12 for the Big 10 I was a little bummed. I’ve always like the rivalries that Nebraska has had. Colorado. K-State. Texas. After being bummed for a short while I couldn’t be more happy now that Nebraska is getting out from under Texas thumb and leaving what I think is a sinking ship in the Big 12. I think it’s only a matter of time before the Big 12 dissolves and the remaining 10 teams head to other conferences. I think life in the Big 10 will be great. I think the rivalry with Iowa will be just as great as any rivalry we had in the Big 12. Back to the Oklahoma game though. I’m so excited to get to play Oklahoma one more time. I’m so excited to see Bob Stoops cry. After all of the crap Nebraska has gotten about leaving the Big 12 I would love to see Nebraska win the last Big 12 Championship game. Go Big Red!
None of us had a great week with picks. Topher is the leader at 31-14 followed closly by Ford who is at 3--15. I'm in third at 29-16 and Tim is still in last at 23-9. Onto this weeks picks.
I’ve decided to only do 2 in depth predictions this week because frankly, the schedule is weak when it comes to exciting games. The schedule does have 2 interesting games this week on it though. 2 divisional games that may decide the division.
Picks for Week 13
Pit @ Bal
Pittsburgh at Baltimore. I love this matchup. 2 tough teams with young head coaches, great running games and hard hitting defenses. The Steelers and Ravens are ranked 5th and 8th in Total Defense respectively. Both these teams have young quarterbacks. Roethlisberger is 5th in Passer rating while Joe Flacco is ranked 11th. These teams are almost mirror images of each other. Just how even are they? Over the last 6 ½ years, including 13 regular season games and 1 playoff game each team has won 7 times. The Steelers have scored 265 points. The Ravens? 264. Crazy even. I believe the Ravens will win this game for 3 reasons. They are playing at home, where they are undefeated this year. Ben Roethlisberger has been practicing in a walking boot all week. Lastly, out of the 3 losses this year for the Ravens, 2 have been on the road at the Patriots and the Falcons who are both undefeated at home. Ravens 24-21.
NYJ @ N.E.
Another matchup that I love. There are so many plot lines for this game. My favorite is Rex Ryan saying the following quote last year. "I never came here to kiss Bill Belichick’s rings.” So far he has made good winning 2 of 3 against the Patriots. The Patriots have been on a roll recently winning 3 in a row, including wins over the Steelers and the Colts. The Jets have won 4 in a row but those wins have come against teams that are a combined 13-31. I like the Patriots at home 27-20.
_____________________SPA____Topher___Timmy____Ford
Hou at Phi______________Phi____Phi______Phi______Phi.
Was at NYG_____________NYG___NYG_____NYG_____NYJ
Dev at K.C.______________K.C.___K.C._____K.C._____K.C.
Jac at Ten______________Ten____Jac______Jac_____Jac
S.F.at G.B.______________G.B.___G.B._____G.B._____G.B.
Cle at Mia ______________Cle____Cle______Cle______Cle
Buf at Min______________Min___Min______Min_____Min
Chi at Det______________Chi____Chi______Chi______Det
N.O. at Cin______________N.O___N.O._____N.O._____N.O.
Oak at S.D._____________S.D.____S.D._____S.D._____S.D.
Car at Sea______________Sea____Sea______Sea______Sea
Atl at T.B.______________Atl_____Atl______Atl______Atl
STL at Ari______________STL____STL_____STL______Ari
Dal at Ind______________Ind____Ind______Ind______Ind
Pit at Bal_______________Bal____Bal______Bal _______Pit
NYJ at N.E._____________N.E.___N.E.______NYJ______N.E.
_________________________________________________Hou at Phi______________Phi____Phi______Phi______Phi.
Was at NYG_____________NYG___NYG_____NYG_____NYJ
Dev at K.C.______________K.C.___K.C._____K.C._____K.C.
Jac at Ten______________Ten____Jac______Jac_____Jac
S.F.at G.B.______________G.B.___G.B._____G.B._____G.B.
Cle at Mia ______________Cle____Cle______Cle______Cle
Buf at Min______________Min___Min______Min_____Min
Chi at Det______________Chi____Chi______Chi______Det
N.O. at Cin______________N.O___N.O._____N.O._____N.O.
Oak at S.D._____________S.D.____S.D._____S.D._____S.D.
Car at Sea______________Sea____Sea______Sea______Sea
Atl at T.B.______________Atl_____Atl______Atl______Atl
STL at Ari______________STL____STL_____STL______Ari
Dal at Ind______________Ind____Ind______Ind______Ind
Pit at Bal_______________Bal____Bal______Bal _______Pit
NYJ at N.E._____________N.E.___N.E.______NYJ______N.E.
Last Week ______________11-5____11-5______9-7_______10-6
Season Total____________29-16___31-14_____23-9______30-15
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Happy Thanksgiving
A Happy Thanksgiving to all. I'm very thankful this year for a lot of things. My family and friends foremost. I don't know what I would do without all of you. My health, my job and all the wonderful students I get to work with every day. I hope and pray that all of you have a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving.
“By seeing the seed of failure in every success, we remain humble. By seeing the seed of success in every failure we remain hopeful.” -Mel Ziegler
So I was a bit off. Okay, not even close. Sometimes your gut is just wrong. In this instance I’m glad I was off. Not only did the Packers beat the Vikings last week which I predicted so inaccurately but in that win A-Rodg and Greg Jennings got me 72 points combined. Enough for me to score 183 points in fantasy. It was one of those perfect storm days where everything just goes right. 8 of my 9 players scored over 14points. Ridiculous. One of the reasons I love Fantasy Football. One week you score 50points and the next week you score 183 points. The person I beat this week scored 80 some but I kind of wish he would have scored like 150. Too beat someone when they score 150 points is a great feeling. So much for me being humbled. Anyway, I degress. Back to the predictions. While I missed on the Packers/Vikings game I was correct on the other 3 in depth predictions. The Steelers, Patriots and Eagles all won their games. In the overall predictions this weeks winner was Timmy who was 14-2, followed by Topher who was 13-3 and Ford who was 12-4. Sadly I finished the week at 9-7. The overall scores are listed below. On to this weeks games.
Picks for Week 12
NE @ DETROIT
The Patriots are rolling right now and I don’t see how the Lions are going to be able to stop them. The Lions have been competive in most of the their games this year but I don’t see the Patriots stumbling today. Even if Tom Brady who is questiable for the game doesn’t play. In the last 6 Thanksgiving Day games the Lions are 0-6 and have been outscored 213-74. They’ve scored over 13 points just once in that time. I think the Patriots pour it on today. 35-10.
NO @ DAL
Both teams come into today on a roll. The Saints have won 3 straight and the Cowboys are 2-0 after changing coaches. The Cowboys are 9-2 all-time against the Saints at home all thought the Saints had won 5 in a row against the Cowboys until last years 24-17 Cowboys win in New Orleans. I think the Cowboys winning streak comes to an end against the Saints. One more interesting stat. Over the last 2 seasons the Saints are 5-1 in national TV games. Their one loss coming to the Cowboys last year. Saints win 35-21.
CIN @ NYJ
T.O. said this week that Darrelle Revis is an average cornerback. We’ll find tonight just how average he is. Or perhaps we will find out how average Carson Palmer has become. The Bengals have the 23rd worst rush defense in the league. The Jets have the 4th best offense running the ball. I don’t think Mark Sanchez will have to do much in this game for the Jets to win. I think it will be close as most of the Jet’s games are. Jets 24-20.
GB @ ATL
This game should be a lot of fun too watch as 2 of the best teams in the NFL match up. The Packers defense has given up 1 touchdown in the last 3 games. The Falcons are averaging 31.5 points in their 4 game winning streak and Matt Ryan is 18-1 at home. Something has to give. Falcons win 21-17.
“By seeing the seed of failure in every success, we remain humble. By seeing the seed of success in every failure we remain hopeful.” -Mel Ziegler
So I was a bit off. Okay, not even close. Sometimes your gut is just wrong. In this instance I’m glad I was off. Not only did the Packers beat the Vikings last week which I predicted so inaccurately but in that win A-Rodg and Greg Jennings got me 72 points combined. Enough for me to score 183 points in fantasy. It was one of those perfect storm days where everything just goes right. 8 of my 9 players scored over 14points. Ridiculous. One of the reasons I love Fantasy Football. One week you score 50points and the next week you score 183 points. The person I beat this week scored 80 some but I kind of wish he would have scored like 150. Too beat someone when they score 150 points is a great feeling. So much for me being humbled. Anyway, I degress. Back to the predictions. While I missed on the Packers/Vikings game I was correct on the other 3 in depth predictions. The Steelers, Patriots and Eagles all won their games. In the overall predictions this weeks winner was Timmy who was 14-2, followed by Topher who was 13-3 and Ford who was 12-4. Sadly I finished the week at 9-7. The overall scores are listed below. On to this weeks games.
Picks for Week 12
NE @ DETROIT
The Patriots are rolling right now and I don’t see how the Lions are going to be able to stop them. The Lions have been competive in most of the their games this year but I don’t see the Patriots stumbling today. Even if Tom Brady who is questiable for the game doesn’t play. In the last 6 Thanksgiving Day games the Lions are 0-6 and have been outscored 213-74. They’ve scored over 13 points just once in that time. I think the Patriots pour it on today. 35-10.
NO @ DAL
Both teams come into today on a roll. The Saints have won 3 straight and the Cowboys are 2-0 after changing coaches. The Cowboys are 9-2 all-time against the Saints at home all thought the Saints had won 5 in a row against the Cowboys until last years 24-17 Cowboys win in New Orleans. I think the Cowboys winning streak comes to an end against the Saints. One more interesting stat. Over the last 2 seasons the Saints are 5-1 in national TV games. Their one loss coming to the Cowboys last year. Saints win 35-21.
CIN @ NYJ
T.O. said this week that Darrelle Revis is an average cornerback. We’ll find tonight just how average he is. Or perhaps we will find out how average Carson Palmer has become. The Bengals have the 23rd worst rush defense in the league. The Jets have the 4th best offense running the ball. I don’t think Mark Sanchez will have to do much in this game for the Jets to win. I think it will be close as most of the Jet’s games are. Jets 24-20.
GB @ ATL
This game should be a lot of fun too watch as 2 of the best teams in the NFL match up. The Packers defense has given up 1 touchdown in the last 3 games. The Falcons are averaging 31.5 points in their 4 game winning streak and Matt Ryan is 18-1 at home. Something has to give. Falcons win 21-17.
_____________________SPA____Topher___Timmy____Ford
N.E. at Det______________N.E.___N.E.______N.E.______N.E.
N.O. at Dal______________N.O.___Dal______N.O.______N.O.
Cin at NYJ______________NYJ____NYJ_____NYJ______NYJ
G.B. at Atl______________Atl_____Atl______G.B.______G.B.
Pit at Buf_______________Pit_____Pit______Pit_______Pit
Car at Cle ______________Cle_____Cle______Cle______Cle
Jac at NYG______________NYG____NYG____NYG______NYG
Min at Was______________Min____Min_____Was______Min
Ten at Hou______________Hou____Ten_____Hou______Hou
Mia at Oak______________Oak____Oak_____Oak______Oak
K.C. at Sea______________Sea____K.C.______K.C._____K.C.
Phi at Chi_______________Phi____Phi______Phi______Phi
STL at Den______________STL____STL_____Den_______Den
T.B. at Bal______________Bal_____Bal______Bal______Bal
S.D. at Ind______________IND____Ind______Ind ______Ind
S.F. at Ari______________Ari_____S.F.______Ari______Ari
_________________________________________________N.E. at Det______________N.E.___N.E.______N.E.______N.E.
N.O. at Dal______________N.O.___Dal______N.O.______N.O.
Cin at NYJ______________NYJ____NYJ_____NYJ______NYJ
G.B. at Atl______________Atl_____Atl______G.B.______G.B.
Pit at Buf_______________Pit_____Pit______Pit_______Pit
Car at Cle ______________Cle_____Cle______Cle______Cle
Jac at NYG______________NYG____NYG____NYG______NYG
Min at Was______________Min____Min_____Was______Min
Ten at Hou______________Hou____Ten_____Hou______Hou
Mia at Oak______________Oak____Oak_____Oak______Oak
K.C. at Sea______________Sea____K.C.______K.C._____K.C.
Phi at Chi_______________Phi____Phi______Phi______Phi
STL at Den______________STL____STL_____Den_______Den
T.B. at Bal______________Bal_____Bal______Bal______Bal
S.D. at Ind______________IND____Ind______Ind ______Ind
S.F. at Ari______________Ari_____S.F.______Ari______Ari
Last Week ______________9-7____13-3______14-2_______12-4
Season Total_____________18-11____20-9______14-2______20-9
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
You Know What Really Grinds My Geers
This might come as a surprise to some people but I am fairly competitive. I also tend to get agitated quite easily. I decided for this week’s blog to list some of these things in sports that really irk me. I would love to hear about anything else in sports that irritate you. Below I’ve also listed my picks for this week. My buddy Tim has joined the picks segment of my blog. I told him that he would be a week off but I believe he is confident he will catch the other 3 of us in wins by the end of the year. Have a great end to the week.
Analysts who say a particular game is “A must win game” when it isn’t.
The NHL
People who say small market teams can’t compete in Major League Baseball. Rangers, Padres and Reds were in the bottom 11 of payrolls at the beginning of last year. That’s 2 division winners and another who led their division most of the year.
People who say there is no parity in baseball. Since 1980, 18 different franchises have won the World Series. Since 2000 half of the MLB teams have made the World Series. Since 2000 nine different teams have won the World Series. How much more parity can we have?
People at sporting events who scream things like, “I could do a better job blocking then these guys.” Really? You weigh 120 pounds. I would like to see you try and block a 350 defensive lineman. Really I would.
People who say, “How can you watch Professional Wrestling? Don’t you know it’s fake?” You know what? It is scripted. You know what else is. Law and Order: SVU, Criminal Minds and How I Met your Mother. I probably shouldn’t watch hose shows either?
Any time Shannon Sharpe speaks
People who say NASCAR is lame because all they do is go around in circles. It’s the same things as saying football is boring because all they do is run up and down the field.
People who talk during the National Anthem
Announcers who can’t pronounce New Orleans correctly. Learn how to say it Al Michaels.
When I’m all excited to watch my NFL or college team play and they replace it with another game half way through because my team is ahead by so many.
When a caller calls into a radio show and asks a question. The announcers spend 5
minutes trying to answer the question but never actually do.
Anytime Jim Rome speaks
When someone is speaking about a different team sucking and then they refer to the Oakland Raiders in the same article.
Bob Stoops. Period.
PICKS FOR WEEK ELEVEN
Green Bay @ Minnesota
I don’t really see how the Packers lose this game. Minnesota has everything working against them. The player are revolting against the coach. Their 57 year old quarterback (who I still believe is the “Man”) has a bum ankle and a bum shoulder. The Packers defense has given up 2 touchdowns in the last 10 quarters. I just don’t know how the Vikings win this game. But they will. Vikings 24-21
Oakland @ Pittsburgh
The Oakland Raiders are in first place in their division after 9 weeks of football. The last time the Raiders were 5-4 in a season was 2002. That season they won 9 out of their last 10 games and went to the Super Bowl. Not quite sure this team is at that level yet but they are playing much better as of late. Steelers win at home but it’s close. Steelers 35-34
Indianapolis @ New England
This is the 8th straight year these 2 teams are playing. The Patriots hold a 4-3 advantage over the colts with the average margin of victory being by only 2 points. Both teams are coming off close games. With the Colts missing many key players and the game being at Gillette Stadium where the Pats are 4-0 I see this contest going in the Pats favor. New England wins 31-28.
Giants @ Philadelphia
Which Giants team are we going to see. The team who won 5 in a row or the team that got destroyed by the Cowboys at home. The Giants wins this year have come against Carolina, Houston, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit and Seattle. The best 2 teams they’ve played record wise, the Colts and Titans both beat the Giants and outscored them 67-24. The Eagles were rolling on offense on Monday night and I believe it will continue on Sunday night. Eagles 40-28.
Analysts who say a particular game is “A must win game” when it isn’t.
The NHL
People who say small market teams can’t compete in Major League Baseball. Rangers, Padres and Reds were in the bottom 11 of payrolls at the beginning of last year. That’s 2 division winners and another who led their division most of the year.
People who say there is no parity in baseball. Since 1980, 18 different franchises have won the World Series. Since 2000 half of the MLB teams have made the World Series. Since 2000 nine different teams have won the World Series. How much more parity can we have?
People at sporting events who scream things like, “I could do a better job blocking then these guys.” Really? You weigh 120 pounds. I would like to see you try and block a 350 defensive lineman. Really I would.
People who say, “How can you watch Professional Wrestling? Don’t you know it’s fake?” You know what? It is scripted. You know what else is. Law and Order: SVU, Criminal Minds and How I Met your Mother. I probably shouldn’t watch hose shows either?
Any time Shannon Sharpe speaks
People who say NASCAR is lame because all they do is go around in circles. It’s the same things as saying football is boring because all they do is run up and down the field.
People who talk during the National Anthem
Announcers who can’t pronounce New Orleans correctly. Learn how to say it Al Michaels.
When I’m all excited to watch my NFL or college team play and they replace it with another game half way through because my team is ahead by so many.
When a caller calls into a radio show and asks a question. The announcers spend 5
minutes trying to answer the question but never actually do.
Anytime Jim Rome speaks
When someone is speaking about a different team sucking and then they refer to the Oakland Raiders in the same article.
Bob Stoops. Period.
PICKS FOR WEEK ELEVEN
Green Bay @ Minnesota
I don’t really see how the Packers lose this game. Minnesota has everything working against them. The player are revolting against the coach. Their 57 year old quarterback (who I still believe is the “Man”) has a bum ankle and a bum shoulder. The Packers defense has given up 2 touchdowns in the last 10 quarters. I just don’t know how the Vikings win this game. But they will. Vikings 24-21
Oakland @ Pittsburgh
The Oakland Raiders are in first place in their division after 9 weeks of football. The last time the Raiders were 5-4 in a season was 2002. That season they won 9 out of their last 10 games and went to the Super Bowl. Not quite sure this team is at that level yet but they are playing much better as of late. Steelers win at home but it’s close. Steelers 35-34
Indianapolis @ New England
This is the 8th straight year these 2 teams are playing. The Patriots hold a 4-3 advantage over the colts with the average margin of victory being by only 2 points. Both teams are coming off close games. With the Colts missing many key players and the game being at Gillette Stadium where the Pats are 4-0 I see this contest going in the Pats favor. New England wins 31-28.
Giants @ Philadelphia
Which Giants team are we going to see. The team who won 5 in a row or the team that got destroyed by the Cowboys at home. The Giants wins this year have come against Carolina, Houston, Chicago, Dallas, Detroit and Seattle. The best 2 teams they’ve played record wise, the Colts and Titans both beat the Giants and outscored them 67-24. The Eagles were rolling on offense on Monday night and I believe it will continue on Sunday night. Eagles 40-28.
_____________________ SPA____Topher___Timmy___Ford
Chi at Mia______________ Mia ____Chi______Chi______ Mia
Buf at Cin_______________Cin ____Buf______Cin______ Buf
Det at Dal_______________Det ____Dal______Dal______Dal
Was at Ten______________Ten____Ten_____Ten______Ten
Ari at K.C._______________KC____ KC______KC_______KC
G.B.at Min ______________Min____GB______GB______GB
Hou at NYJ______________NYJ____NYJ_____NYJ_____NYJ
Oak at Pit_______________Pit_____Pit______Pit ______Pit
Bal at Car_______________Bal_____Bal______Bal______Bal
Cle at Jac_______________Cle_____Jac______Jac______Cle
T.B. at S.F.______________SF_____TB______TB_______TB
Sea at N.O.______________NO____NO______NO_______NO
Atl at STL______________Atl_____STL_____Atl________Atl
Ind at N.E.______________NE_____NE______NE_______Ind
NYG at Phi______________Phil____ NY______Phi ______Phil
Den at S.D.______________SD_____ SD______SD_______SD
_________________________________________________Chi at Mia______________ Mia ____Chi______Chi______ Mia
Buf at Cin_______________Cin ____Buf______Cin______ Buf
Det at Dal_______________Det ____Dal______Dal______Dal
Was at Ten______________Ten____Ten_____Ten______Ten
Ari at K.C._______________KC____ KC______KC_______KC
G.B.at Min ______________Min____GB______GB______GB
Hou at NYJ______________NYJ____NYJ_____NYJ_____NYJ
Oak at Pit_______________Pit_____Pit______Pit ______Pit
Bal at Car_______________Bal_____Bal______Bal______Bal
Cle at Jac_______________Cle_____Jac______Jac______Cle
T.B. at S.F.______________SF_____TB______TB_______TB
Sea at N.O.______________NO____NO______NO_______NO
Atl at STL______________Atl_____STL_____Atl________Atl
Ind at N.E.______________NE_____NE______NE_______Ind
NYG at Phi______________Phil____ NY______Phi ______Phil
Den at S.D.______________SD_____ SD______SD_______SD
Last Week ______________9-4____7-6______0-0_______8-5
Season Total_____________9-4____7-6______0-0_______8-5
Friday, November 12, 2010
Good week to be a sports fan
Sometimes the stars a line and all seems right in the world. My high school won their 26th straight game and their 2nd State football championship in a row, Nebraksa beat Kansas to move closer to a trip to the Big 12 Championship game and the Raiders beat the Chiefs to go into the bye week only ½ game behind Kansas City for the division lead. Life is great in Pat’s sports world. I also had the privledge to play “Arena Football” and some outdoor football this week with kids from the Boys and Girls Club. At first this group of 6th graders wanted to play tackle. I’ve always dreamed of plaing tackle football with a 12 year old and lighting him up but when it came down to it I just couldn’t do it. I had my chances but for whatever reason I didn’t think flatting a 95 pound kid was in the best interest of my job.
So I’ve decided to make some predictions weekly about the upcoming NFL week. I’ve never really tried to make predictions before or at least not where others could see it. To make this more interesting I’ve decided to seek the help of a few friends in giving their predictions as well. Each week my buddies Ford and Chris will be helping to give their predictions. For a few games I will also be giving a more in depth prediction. Onto this week’s games.
DET @ BUF
Buffalo has lost the last 3 games by 3 point each and all of them have been against potential playoff teams. Detroit will be out Mathew Stafford this week and possibly the season. Bills win 28-17
MIN @ CHI
The “Man” brought the Vikes back last week and may have helped save their season. Cutler was only sacked once last week but it was also against the Bills. Chicago has the 3rd ranked defense against the run. With Adrian Peterson limited I think Favre puts up a lot of passes which will cost the team a few interceptions. Bears 35-31.
NYJ @ Cle
Peyton Hillis will have a hard time running against the Jets defense. The Jets will pressure Coly McCoy all day. Mark Sanchez will do enough for the Jets to win. Jets 21-10
CIN @ IND
While the Bengals have been competitive in most of their games I don’t see this one being that way. Colts win easy and send the Bengals to a 6th straight defeat. Colts 38-17
TEN @ MIA
Chad Pennington gets the start for Miami. He doesn’t have the arm strength that Henne has and it will show. Miami is 0-3 this year at home. That record will go to 0-4. I believe Moss will have an impact on the game even if he doesn't catch a lot of balls. Titans 24-17
NE @ PIT
New England gave up 230 yards rushing last week to the Browns. Theri defense will play better but their offense won't do enough against the tough Steeler defense. Steelers at home 28-24
____________________ PAT____ TOPHER____FORD
DET @ BUF__________BUF____BUF________BUF
MIN @ CHI__________CHI_____MIN________CHI
NYJ @ CLE__________NYJ_____CLE________NYJ
CAR @ TB___________TB______TB_________TB
HOU @ JAC__________JAC_____JAC________HOU
CIN @ IND___________IND____IND_________IND
TEN @ MIA__________TEN____TEN_________MIA
KC @ DEN___________DEN____KC__________DEN
DAL @ NYG_________NYG____DAL_________NYG
SEA @ ARI__________ARI_____ARI__________ARI
STL @ SF____________SF______SF___________STL
NE @ PIT____________PIT_____NE___________PIT
PHI @ WAS__________PHI_____PHI__________ PHI
So I’ve decided to make some predictions weekly about the upcoming NFL week. I’ve never really tried to make predictions before or at least not where others could see it. To make this more interesting I’ve decided to seek the help of a few friends in giving their predictions as well. Each week my buddies Ford and Chris will be helping to give their predictions. For a few games I will also be giving a more in depth prediction. Onto this week’s games.
DET @ BUF
Buffalo has lost the last 3 games by 3 point each and all of them have been against potential playoff teams. Detroit will be out Mathew Stafford this week and possibly the season. Bills win 28-17
MIN @ CHI
The “Man” brought the Vikes back last week and may have helped save their season. Cutler was only sacked once last week but it was also against the Bills. Chicago has the 3rd ranked defense against the run. With Adrian Peterson limited I think Favre puts up a lot of passes which will cost the team a few interceptions. Bears 35-31.
NYJ @ Cle
Peyton Hillis will have a hard time running against the Jets defense. The Jets will pressure Coly McCoy all day. Mark Sanchez will do enough for the Jets to win. Jets 21-10
CIN @ IND
While the Bengals have been competitive in most of their games I don’t see this one being that way. Colts win easy and send the Bengals to a 6th straight defeat. Colts 38-17
TEN @ MIA
Chad Pennington gets the start for Miami. He doesn’t have the arm strength that Henne has and it will show. Miami is 0-3 this year at home. That record will go to 0-4. I believe Moss will have an impact on the game even if he doesn't catch a lot of balls. Titans 24-17
NE @ PIT
New England gave up 230 yards rushing last week to the Browns. Theri defense will play better but their offense won't do enough against the tough Steeler defense. Steelers at home 28-24
____________________ PAT____ TOPHER____FORD
DET @ BUF__________BUF____BUF________BUF
MIN @ CHI__________CHI_____MIN________CHI
NYJ @ CLE__________NYJ_____CLE________NYJ
CAR @ TB___________TB______TB_________TB
HOU @ JAC__________JAC_____JAC________HOU
CIN @ IND___________IND____IND_________IND
TEN @ MIA__________TEN____TEN_________MIA
KC @ DEN___________DEN____KC__________DEN
DAL @ NYG_________NYG____DAL_________NYG
SEA @ ARI__________ARI_____ARI__________ARI
STL @ SF____________SF______SF___________STL
NE @ PIT____________PIT_____NE___________PIT
PHI @ WAS__________PHI_____PHI__________ PHI
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Back in the Saddle
Recently I was having a discussion with a friend of mine about which NFL quarterbacks we most resembled. This got us into a debate which led to the following senerio. If I was to make a Camp Gray football team using last years male staff what positions would everyone be. So alas I have made 2 teams where each staff member plays both on offense and defense. For those that know any of these staff members I would love to hear you thoughts on who would win?
Team Strong
QB Sam
RB Andy
FB Emilio
WR David
WR Tim
TE Ryan
LT Josh
LG Michael
C Kevin H.
RG Joseph
RT Tyler
LE Emilio
DT Ryan
RE Tyler
LOLB Michael
MLB Andy
MLB Joseph
ROLB Josh
SS Sam
FS Kevin H.
CB Tim
CB David
Team Bushy
QB Topher
RB Jim
FB Jeff
WR Father Greg
WR Brian
TE Doug
LT Sean
LG Bill
C Pat
RG Kevin E.
RT Eric
LE Doug
DT Sean
RE Jeff
LOLB Kevin E.
MLB Pat
MLB Jim
ROLB Brian
SS Bill
FS Father Greg
CB Topher
CB Eric
Team Strong
QB Sam
RB Andy
FB Emilio
WR David
WR Tim
TE Ryan
LT Josh
LG Michael
C Kevin H.
RG Joseph
RT Tyler
LE Emilio
DT Ryan
RE Tyler
LOLB Michael
MLB Andy
MLB Joseph
ROLB Josh
SS Sam
FS Kevin H.
CB Tim
CB David
Team Bushy
QB Topher
RB Jim
FB Jeff
WR Father Greg
WR Brian
TE Doug
LT Sean
LG Bill
C Pat
RG Kevin E.
RT Eric
LE Doug
DT Sean
RE Jeff
LOLB Kevin E.
MLB Pat
MLB Jim
ROLB Brian
SS Bill
FS Father Greg
CB Topher
CB Eric
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Alan Dietzenbach Memorial Softball Tournament
With the 2nd Annual Alan Dietzenbach Memorial Softball Tournament a mere month away I thought I would a share a column from last year's game. All credit must go to my good buddy Skip Carlson. One of the greatest sports feature writers in Sauk County.
Green Battles Back For Dramatic Win at 1st Annual Alan Dietzenbach Memorial Softball Game, Alvarez Named MVP
By: Skip Carlson
Reedsburg - Softball. In my 22 years of covering sports, I've never once had any desire to write about softball. That was until I got word of an assignment to travel to the legendary Fr. Cassidy Athletic Field of Camp Gray in tiny Reedsburg, WI. The 1st Annual Alan Deitzenbach Memorial Softball Tournament was to be played, making this veteran sports writer giddier than the H1N1 virus overtaking a Catholic Summer Camp like a destructive rebel force.
With temperatures hovering in the mid-80s on this near perfect, cloudless morning, teams took to the CAF in advance of the 10am kick off to loosen their cannons and to find the sweet spot on their Louisville Sluggers.
Matched up today were bitter rivals, The Red Team vs. The Green Team.
Before the game, Red Team 3rd Baseman (and sometime color man) Doug Ulazcek lost a heartbreaking Best 2 out of 3 Rock/Paper/Scissor Match with Green Team 1st Baseman Topher Aderhold to determine the home team. This shocking come from behind victory for the Green turned out to be a foreshadow of things to come.
Green Team clean-up hitter Nicky Kaehler got things rolling patriotically for the teams by singing her unique rendition of the Star Spangled Banner.
Play Ball!
The Red Team, led by Derek Behnke and Colleen Schmidt, jumped out to an early and demanding 9-1 lead that had many onlookers fearing the worst: a slaughtering reminiscent of the Pathfinder - Trailblazer Capture the Flag game during session 1. But led by Emilio Alvarez (who, unbeknownst to teammates, was suffering from Class V Swine Flu) and the tree trunk arms and rabid eyes of Andy Schindhelm, the Green team battled back with an 8-run 4th inning to even the score at 9. Green Team 2nd basewoman Corey Seilaf and DH Jenna Keller helped the cause with 2 RBI's apiece.
With the Green Team holding on to a 12-10 lead to start the top of the 6th inning, there was no question whom the Green would send in at pitcher to close the effort: Alvarez. Alvarez, who came in with a 1.26 ERA, brings an unwavering confidence to the hill.
In the top of the 7th inning, the Red Team failed to capitalize on an excellent opportunity to score two runs when Red 3rd Base Coach (and sometime Short Stop) Kyle Gus mistakenly sent base runners home. A terrific throw with laser-like precision from Green centerfielder Mo-T Wilks was snagged by catcher Leanne Tracy. Tracy tagged runner Kelsey Greenwood and then threw out Michael Pennington at 3rd.
After a 4-run top of the 9th to knot the score 16, the Green simply needed one run in the bottom of the 9th to win.
With chants of MVP echoing through the nearby pines, Alvarez stepped to the plate with the winning run, Tracy, on second base. Alvarez waited and watched on the first pitch: Ball One! In what appeared to be a slight miscommunication between Red Pitcher Tyler Thrune and Red Catcher Mary Scanlin, Thrune delivered the second pitch, a floater (when Scanlin no doubt called for the heater). Alvarez's eyes grew to double their normal size as he stepped into the pitch and crushed it back, back, back, back, GONE! A two run walk off blast to win the 1st Annual ADM Softball Game!
Euphoria! Pure, unadulterated Euphoria!
Following the spectacular on-field celebrations came the awarding of the Inaugural ADM Softball Game MVP Trophy to Emilio Alvarez. With tears of joy streaming down his cheeks, Alvarez exclaimed, "Today, I feel like the luckiest man on the face of the planet!"
Immediately following the presentation, Ulazcek was overheard saying, "Erroneous".
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Dreams
I love dreaming. Whether it’s day dreaming or at night I love it. The reason I love dreaming so much is that you get to go to these wonderful places and experience things you would never get to do in real life. An example of this is a dream I had the other night. I ended up at a Notre Dame football practice with Brian Kelly. Granted I hate Notre Dame football and am in different about Brian Kelly but it was still a pretty sweet dream. Day dreaming is even better because I get to create situations that I would like to see. With the NCAA tourney just getting over it made me think of how sweet it would be to take players in their primes from all of the schools and have one big tournament. As not to have to come up with all of schools rosters I have made a tournament with 4 all-time programs and put them into a bracket with the starting 5. I would love to hear who would win this tournament, what great teams I might have missed and which players I missed on these teams.
UNC vs.
KU
DUKE vs.
UCLA
UNC Starting 5
G: Ed Cota
G: Michael Jordan
C: Sam Perkins
F: Phil Ford
F: Tyler Hansbrough
Duke Starting 5
G: Bobby Hurley
G:J.J. Redick
C: Elton Brand
F: Shane Battier
F: Christian Laettner
UCLA Starting 5
G: Ed O’Bannon
G: Reggie Miller
C: Kareem Abdul Jabbar
F: Bill Walton
F: Kevin Love
Kansas Starting 5
G: Jo Jo White
G: Jacque Vaughn
C: Wilt Chamberlain
F: Danny Manning
F: Raef LaFrentz
UNC vs.
KU
DUKE vs.
UCLA
UNC Starting 5
G: Ed Cota
G: Michael Jordan
C: Sam Perkins
F: Phil Ford
F: Tyler Hansbrough
Duke Starting 5
G: Bobby Hurley
G:J.J. Redick
C: Elton Brand
F: Shane Battier
F: Christian Laettner
UCLA Starting 5
G: Ed O’Bannon
G: Reggie Miller
C: Kareem Abdul Jabbar
F: Bill Walton
F: Kevin Love
Kansas Starting 5
G: Jo Jo White
G: Jacque Vaughn
C: Wilt Chamberlain
F: Danny Manning
F: Raef LaFrentz
Thursday, April 1, 2010
W.O.W.
“Hey we should get a bunch of camp guys together in the Spring.” Wise words from a wise man. A buddy of mine had this brilliant idea a few years ago. 4 years later I’m happy to report that the W.O.W. is still going strong. For those that don’t know what the W.O.W. is I will explain. It is a weekend (week) for a bunch of camp guys to get together in the Smokey Mountains to enjoy some male bonding. This includes some adult beverages, a possible cigar or 2 and something called the Father Cassidy Competition. This competition is made up of 4 events. In the past these have included a doubles pool tournament and a combine, loosely based off of the college combine run every winter in Indianapolis. We compete in these events and then depending on what place you take in that event you are awarded a certain number of points. This year’s competition included the following competitions. Singles pool tournament, a Baggo Tourney, Poker tournament and a whiffle-ball home run competition. The competitors for the Cassidy competition included myself and my buddies, Dave, Ford, Miller, Kiq, Timmy, Sean, Blaine, Tyler, Hurley, and Joe.
The first competition was a Texas Hold-em poker tournament. I myself was looking
forward to this event but some were a little disappointed it was scheduled at the same time as “The Office”. Thankfully for him he was the first one out and didn’t have to miss much of the show. The finally four came down to myself, Blaine, Kiq and Sean. Sean was the first to go followed by Kiq. After an hour of battling back and forth with some screaming over poker rules Blaine went all in. Thinking Blaine was bluffing I called his bluff. I was dead wrong and Blaine was victorious.
The Top five scores after he first event:
1st place: Blaine 300 pts
2nd place: myself at 250 pts
3rd: Kiq with 225 pts
4th: Sean with 200 pts
5th: Joe with 175 pts
The 2nd competition on Friday afternoon was a Baggo tournament. Baggo it is a brilliant game made up of a slick board and bean bags you toss at the board. Included in the field of 11 players were 4 former American Camp Association Baggo champions. Joe (2007 winner), Miller (2008 winner), myself (2008 winner), Sean (current champion). I had brought two Baggo sets on the trip but unfortunately my baggo set had been eaten by mice. Awesome. So we were down to one set. The game of Baggo is best played on a flat surface. Finding this flat surface while staying at a resort in the Smokey mountains can be a bit of a challenge. Thankfully were able to find some flat ground. The first game of the day pitted Joe vs. Dave. After battling back and forth for about 45 minutes Joe finally beat Dave. The rest of the afternoon was a tournament filled with beers being thrown down, players screaming obscenities, and 2 of the greatest come backs ever seen in a Cassidy tournament. In games played to 15, Ford came back from a 14-0 deficit to beat his opponent. We also got to witness Dave losing the very first game of the day and then coming all the way back to face Joe in the Championship. Dave beat Joe in the first championship game but because Joe still had to lose twice faced him again. Joe finally put an end to Dave’s winning streak and beat him to take the Baggo Tourney Championship.
Top 5 after the 2 events.
1st: Joe 475 pts
2nd: Blaine at 463 pts
3rd: Kiq with 425 pts
4th: Dave with 325 pts
5th: Myself with 300 pts
The 3rd competition on Saturday afternoon was to be knife throwing. Unfortunately after a few worries of getting arrested and the cheap knives breaking we decided to go with the safer Whiffle-ball tournament. This event was fun but a little sloppy. One of the contestants found out how wet the field was when he went to retrieve a ball and ended up muddy one side of his body. The rules for this competition were fairly simple. Each participant had 10 outs to get as many home runs as they could. Since it was whiffle-ball we designated a home run as getting the ball out of the in-field on the fly. Any ball not a home run or a whiff when swinging consituted an out. The top 3 scores would advance to the 2nd round. Dave and Joe advanced with 4 home runs. Sean and Tyler both had 3 home runs so they competed in a hit-off to determine who would advance. Sean was able to defeat Tyler and move on to the finals. After each of the competitors hit one home run they each took another 5 outs. Here Dave was able to defeat the others with 5 home runs while Joe and Sean weren’t able to hit one out.
Top 5 after 3 events.
1st: Joe with 713 pts
2nd: Dave with 625 pts
3rd: Blaine with 526 pts
t-4th: Kiq and Sean with 488 pts
The 4th and final event was the singles pool tournament. It was an exciting event with crazy shots, huge upsets and the first appearance of the “Purple Monster” on the weekend. Much suspense though was taken out of the event when Joe locked up at least a 4th place finish in pool. This allowed Joe to take home the Father Cassidy Trophy and mark his place in the history of the W.O.W. Kiq ended up beating Joe in the finals of the pool tournament. Thanks to all the guys who made it a great weekend with a lot of great competition.
The final standings for the Father Cassidy Memorial Trophy Competition
1st: Joe at 963 pts
2nd: Dave at 850 pts
3rd: Kiq at 788 pts
4th: Sean at 688 pts
t- 5th: Blaine & Pat A. at 576 pts
7th: Timmy at 514
8th: Hurley at 501 pts
9th: Ford at 463 points
10th: Tyler at 400 points
11th: Miller at 389 points
The first competition was a Texas Hold-em poker tournament. I myself was looking
forward to this event but some were a little disappointed it was scheduled at the same time as “The Office”. Thankfully for him he was the first one out and didn’t have to miss much of the show. The finally four came down to myself, Blaine, Kiq and Sean. Sean was the first to go followed by Kiq. After an hour of battling back and forth with some screaming over poker rules Blaine went all in. Thinking Blaine was bluffing I called his bluff. I was dead wrong and Blaine was victorious.
The Top five scores after he first event:
1st place: Blaine 300 pts
2nd place: myself at 250 pts
3rd: Kiq with 225 pts
4th: Sean with 200 pts
5th: Joe with 175 pts
The 2nd competition on Friday afternoon was a Baggo tournament. Baggo it is a brilliant game made up of a slick board and bean bags you toss at the board. Included in the field of 11 players were 4 former American Camp Association Baggo champions. Joe (2007 winner), Miller (2008 winner), myself (2008 winner), Sean (current champion). I had brought two Baggo sets on the trip but unfortunately my baggo set had been eaten by mice. Awesome. So we were down to one set. The game of Baggo is best played on a flat surface. Finding this flat surface while staying at a resort in the Smokey mountains can be a bit of a challenge. Thankfully were able to find some flat ground. The first game of the day pitted Joe vs. Dave. After battling back and forth for about 45 minutes Joe finally beat Dave. The rest of the afternoon was a tournament filled with beers being thrown down, players screaming obscenities, and 2 of the greatest come backs ever seen in a Cassidy tournament. In games played to 15, Ford came back from a 14-0 deficit to beat his opponent. We also got to witness Dave losing the very first game of the day and then coming all the way back to face Joe in the Championship. Dave beat Joe in the first championship game but because Joe still had to lose twice faced him again. Joe finally put an end to Dave’s winning streak and beat him to take the Baggo Tourney Championship.
Top 5 after the 2 events.
1st: Joe 475 pts
2nd: Blaine at 463 pts
3rd: Kiq with 425 pts
4th: Dave with 325 pts
5th: Myself with 300 pts
The 3rd competition on Saturday afternoon was to be knife throwing. Unfortunately after a few worries of getting arrested and the cheap knives breaking we decided to go with the safer Whiffle-ball tournament. This event was fun but a little sloppy. One of the contestants found out how wet the field was when he went to retrieve a ball and ended up muddy one side of his body. The rules for this competition were fairly simple. Each participant had 10 outs to get as many home runs as they could. Since it was whiffle-ball we designated a home run as getting the ball out of the in-field on the fly. Any ball not a home run or a whiff when swinging consituted an out. The top 3 scores would advance to the 2nd round. Dave and Joe advanced with 4 home runs. Sean and Tyler both had 3 home runs so they competed in a hit-off to determine who would advance. Sean was able to defeat Tyler and move on to the finals. After each of the competitors hit one home run they each took another 5 outs. Here Dave was able to defeat the others with 5 home runs while Joe and Sean weren’t able to hit one out.
Top 5 after 3 events.
1st: Joe with 713 pts
2nd: Dave with 625 pts
3rd: Blaine with 526 pts
t-4th: Kiq and Sean with 488 pts
The 4th and final event was the singles pool tournament. It was an exciting event with crazy shots, huge upsets and the first appearance of the “Purple Monster” on the weekend. Much suspense though was taken out of the event when Joe locked up at least a 4th place finish in pool. This allowed Joe to take home the Father Cassidy Trophy and mark his place in the history of the W.O.W. Kiq ended up beating Joe in the finals of the pool tournament. Thanks to all the guys who made it a great weekend with a lot of great competition.
The final standings for the Father Cassidy Memorial Trophy Competition
1st: Joe at 963 pts
2nd: Dave at 850 pts
3rd: Kiq at 788 pts
4th: Sean at 688 pts
t- 5th: Blaine & Pat A. at 576 pts
7th: Timmy at 514
8th: Hurley at 501 pts
9th: Ford at 463 points
10th: Tyler at 400 points
11th: Miller at 389 points
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
I must come clean...
So for the past few weeks I have been having a horrible case of writers block. Perhaps it’s because for me this is one of the worst times of the sports season. No NFL, no baseball, NBA season at this point doesn’t excite me and college basketball is still a few weeks away from getting really exciting. It is with that I have decided to talk about one of my favorite sports. Professional Wrestling.
I know what a lot of you are thinking. Professional Wrestling is not a sport. Perhaps not but I love it none the less. I am coming clean to the whole world. I love professional wrestling. I’ve loved it since I was 10 years old and still love it. I love the athleticism. I love the larger than life personalities. I love watching the athleticism and genuinely not knowing what is going to happen. I get this from friends though. “But Pat. It’s fake.” True it is scripted but you know what else is “Fake?” Friends, Seinfeld, Law and Order SVU, The Office. My other favorite shows.
When I was little I even dreamed of being a professional wrestler. This was until I told my dad and he said, “In order to be a professional wrestler you have to be strong and stupid. You’re neither.” I still don’t know if that was a put down or a compliment. I remember watching Bret Hart when I was little. When my step-dad almost ran our car into his in Memphis on vacation, it too this day is still one of the greatest moments of my life. Getting to meet him and get a picture with him was the greatest thing for a wrestling fan. I remember in high school slopping down in front of the TV every Monday night to watch wrestling. It was always hard when the Raiders were on Monday Night Football. Do I watch the Raiders or watch Sting propel down from the rafters.
When I got to college I would watch it every Monday night with my friend Matt. Getting to go to my first live event and see a show in person still rates as one of the greatest experiences I’ve had with my dad and step-dad. Now as I get older sharing this passion with my 2 nephews. Remembering what it was like to be that age and dreaming of performing in front of thousands of people. Trying these moves on my friends. Playing the video games and once in a great while getting to go to a live show. I can’t wait for the day when I can share this with my nephews and hopefully someday my child. I have baseball and football icons. I loved watching Reggie Miller. None of these “athletes” though will ever compare in the same way to me as these other sports heroes growing up. The Hulk Hogans and Bret Harts. Triple H’s and Rocks. Kevin Nash and Sting. Maybe wrestling is fake, but the excitement, tears and laughter I have had for 20 years is not.
I know what a lot of you are thinking. Professional Wrestling is not a sport. Perhaps not but I love it none the less. I am coming clean to the whole world. I love professional wrestling. I’ve loved it since I was 10 years old and still love it. I love the athleticism. I love the larger than life personalities. I love watching the athleticism and genuinely not knowing what is going to happen. I get this from friends though. “But Pat. It’s fake.” True it is scripted but you know what else is “Fake?” Friends, Seinfeld, Law and Order SVU, The Office. My other favorite shows.
When I was little I even dreamed of being a professional wrestler. This was until I told my dad and he said, “In order to be a professional wrestler you have to be strong and stupid. You’re neither.” I still don’t know if that was a put down or a compliment. I remember watching Bret Hart when I was little. When my step-dad almost ran our car into his in Memphis on vacation, it too this day is still one of the greatest moments of my life. Getting to meet him and get a picture with him was the greatest thing for a wrestling fan. I remember in high school slopping down in front of the TV every Monday night to watch wrestling. It was always hard when the Raiders were on Monday Night Football. Do I watch the Raiders or watch Sting propel down from the rafters.
When I got to college I would watch it every Monday night with my friend Matt. Getting to go to my first live event and see a show in person still rates as one of the greatest experiences I’ve had with my dad and step-dad. Now as I get older sharing this passion with my 2 nephews. Remembering what it was like to be that age and dreaming of performing in front of thousands of people. Trying these moves on my friends. Playing the video games and once in a great while getting to go to a live show. I can’t wait for the day when I can share this with my nephews and hopefully someday my child. I have baseball and football icons. I loved watching Reggie Miller. None of these “athletes” though will ever compare in the same way to me as these other sports heroes growing up. The Hulk Hogans and Bret Harts. Triple H’s and Rocks. Kevin Nash and Sting. Maybe wrestling is fake, but the excitement, tears and laughter I have had for 20 years is not.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Ding Dong the Witch is Dead
So the "Man" couldn’t do it. Life is good again. All I have heard recently is how Peyton Manning is the greatest football player ever. Not the greatest quarterback of this era but EVER. Friends, people on the radio, articles. Blah, blah, blah. Peyton is King. “The Saints are a great story but let’s be real. They have no real chance. Peyton is playing the greatest football of his career. Peyton will win this game and cement his legacy as the Greatest”. Not the Colts will win this game. Peyton will win this game.
And then this happened.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xh5D_TMGwjk
I don’t think I’ve ever been as happy to see a quarterback throw an interception in my life. It’s not that I hate Peyton Manning. It’s not like he’s Eli. He’s a great quarterback. One of the best ever. I just get so tired of people thinking he’s the greatest thing since sliced bread. He’s been great in the regular season. Maybe the best. But championships are not won in the regular season. They are won in the post season where Manning has not been very good. He won a Super Bowl. But you know what? He has the same amount of championships as Trent Dilfer. (That was for you Topher) Let’s look at his post season stats. He’s 9-9 in post season games. He’s thrown 27 touchdowns but has also thrown 18 interceptions. His QB rating in those games? 87.5.
On Monday I heard 2 people on ESPN radio talking about Peyton. One of them said, “So do you think this game hurt Peyton’s Legacy.” The other said, “Not at all. Peyton didn’t hurt his legacy at all in this game. He didn’t do anything to tarnish his legacy.” WHAT! 2 words. Tracy Porter. I know, I know. I just got done writing an article about how Brett Favre is the man even though he threw an interception at the end of the game. Big difference is I’m not getting paid tons of money from ESPN to tell it how it is. That radio personality should have at least commented on the fact that the score was 24-17 Saints with just under 4 minutes left in the game. That was a pretty big interception. Yet, this play didn’t hurt his legacy at all? That’s garbage. And the personality that didn’t mention the interception is garbage. Make me wanna puke.
My main point is this. Peyton is a very good football player. I would still stay he’s one of the best to ever play the game. But let’s be honest. He’s no Tom Brady.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODlL8azAEKo
And then this happened.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xh5D_TMGwjk
I don’t think I’ve ever been as happy to see a quarterback throw an interception in my life. It’s not that I hate Peyton Manning. It’s not like he’s Eli. He’s a great quarterback. One of the best ever. I just get so tired of people thinking he’s the greatest thing since sliced bread. He’s been great in the regular season. Maybe the best. But championships are not won in the regular season. They are won in the post season where Manning has not been very good. He won a Super Bowl. But you know what? He has the same amount of championships as Trent Dilfer. (That was for you Topher) Let’s look at his post season stats. He’s 9-9 in post season games. He’s thrown 27 touchdowns but has also thrown 18 interceptions. His QB rating in those games? 87.5.
On Monday I heard 2 people on ESPN radio talking about Peyton. One of them said, “So do you think this game hurt Peyton’s Legacy.” The other said, “Not at all. Peyton didn’t hurt his legacy at all in this game. He didn’t do anything to tarnish his legacy.” WHAT! 2 words. Tracy Porter. I know, I know. I just got done writing an article about how Brett Favre is the man even though he threw an interception at the end of the game. Big difference is I’m not getting paid tons of money from ESPN to tell it how it is. That radio personality should have at least commented on the fact that the score was 24-17 Saints with just under 4 minutes left in the game. That was a pretty big interception. Yet, this play didn’t hurt his legacy at all? That’s garbage. And the personality that didn’t mention the interception is garbage. Make me wanna puke.
My main point is this. Peyton is a very good football player. I would still stay he’s one of the best to ever play the game. But let’s be honest. He’s no Tom Brady.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODlL8azAEKo
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Super Bowl Dream Teams
With the greatest sporting event of the year a mere 3 days away, I decided to put together my All-Star Super Bowl Team. I only used players who have played in the last 10 Super Bowls. I also picked players based on their overall play in those games. I would love your thoughts on players that I may have missed or that you disagree with. I would also love to know which team you would pick to win and what the score would be.
AFC OFFENSE
QB: Tom Brady
RB: Jamal Lewis
FB: Dan Kreider
WR: Hines Ward
WR: Deion Branch
TE: Doug Jolley
LT: Matt Light
LG: Alan Faneca
C: Dan Koppen
RG: Joe Andruzzi
RT: Max Starks
AFC DEFENSE
DE: Aaron Smith
DT: Casey Hampton
DT: Richard Seymour
DE: Dwight Freeney
LB: Mike Vrabel
LB: Ray Lewis
LB: Teddy Bruschi
SS: Troy Polamalu
FS: Bob Sanders
CS: Asante Samuel
CS: Charles Woodson
K: Adam Vinatieri
P: Chris Gardocki
RET: Jermaine Lewis
Coach: Bill Bellicheck
NFC OFFENSE
QB: Kurt Warner
RB: Thomas Jones
FB: Mike Alstott
WR: Terrell Owens
WR: Larry Fitzgerald
TE: Kevin Boss
LT: Walter Jones
LG: Steve Hutchinson
C: Olin Kreutz
RG: Chris Snee
RT: Jon Runyan
AFC OFFENSE
QB: Tom Brady
RB: Jamal Lewis
FB: Dan Kreider
WR: Hines Ward
WR: Deion Branch
TE: Doug Jolley
LT: Matt Light
LG: Alan Faneca
C: Dan Koppen
RG: Joe Andruzzi
RT: Max Starks
AFC DEFENSE
DE: Aaron Smith
DT: Casey Hampton
DT: Richard Seymour
DE: Dwight Freeney
LB: Mike Vrabel
LB: Ray Lewis
LB: Teddy Bruschi
SS: Troy Polamalu
FS: Bob Sanders
CS: Asante Samuel
CS: Charles Woodson
K: Adam Vinatieri
P: Chris Gardocki
RET: Jermaine Lewis
Coach: Bill Bellicheck
NFC OFFENSE
QB: Kurt Warner
RB: Thomas Jones
FB: Mike Alstott
WR: Terrell Owens
WR: Larry Fitzgerald
TE: Kevin Boss
LT: Walter Jones
LG: Steve Hutchinson
C: Olin Kreutz
RG: Chris Snee
RT: Jon Runyan
NFC DEFENSE
DE: Michael Strahan
DT: Warren Sapp
DE: Simeon Rice
LB: Derrick Brooks
LB: Antonio Pierce
LB: Mike Jones
LB: Karlos Dansby
SS: John Lynch
FS: Dexter Jackson
CB: Marcus Trufant
CB: Ronde Barber
K: Jeff Wilkins
P: Tom Rouen
RET: Ron Dixon
Coach: Tom Coughlin
Monday, January 25, 2010
I still believe Favre is the man
So I knew as soon as the ball was intercepted that Favre was going to get all of the crap. Maybe he deserves it. They basically had the game won. All he needed to do was run the ball or at least throw it away. Longwell comes on and kicks a field goal and the Vikings are in the Super Bowl.
Of course it didn’t happen that way. For the 3rd time in 6 years Favre threw an interception at a crucial time at the end of a playoff game. All kinds of people are blaming the loss on Favre. I don’t see it that way though.
What I saw was so completely different. The man is 40. It’s not that old in lawyer years or youth ministry years or doctor years. In quarterback years it is. Without Favre there is no way they are in the NFC Championship game. Tarvaris Jackson is not getting them there. Sage Rosenfels is not getting them there. The rest of the team was trying to fumble the game away to the Saints and Favre kept bringing them back. I know the blame will fall to Favre but how about these other players. How about Harvin and Berrians 4th quarter fumbles. The 12th player who joined the huddle. The coverage team for allowing Pierre Thomas to gain 40 yards on the overtime kick return. Asher Allen’s holding call that gave the Saints a first down in overtime. Ben Leber getting a pass interference call in overtime. Favre deserves some blame but not all of it.
Also, there were 2 plays that will I will probally remember for the rest of my life and that make me appreciate Favre even more. During the 4th quarter Favre was leveled by two of the Saints. After Favre had gottened leveled he needed help to get off the field and a friend I was watching the game with said, “That’s it. Favre is done. No way he is coming back in the game.” At that moment I knew that Favre would be coming back. The only way I could see him not coming back in was if his leg had gotten completely ripped off. I truly believed he would back in but there was a small part of me that was really sad. “Is he really done. Is that the last time I will ever see him play in a game?" But then he did it. He got the ankle wrapped again and came back in. A few plays later Favre was leveled again but got the ball off to Percy Harvin. Favre was one of the only players to chase after the ball to try to recover it and got nailed again in the process. As a fan of Favre he has given me so many great memories and a few not so great. If he is done playing football I hope others will remember the toughness he showed throughout his career and not dwell on the interceptions he threw.
Of course it didn’t happen that way. For the 3rd time in 6 years Favre threw an interception at a crucial time at the end of a playoff game. All kinds of people are blaming the loss on Favre. I don’t see it that way though.
What I saw was so completely different. The man is 40. It’s not that old in lawyer years or youth ministry years or doctor years. In quarterback years it is. Without Favre there is no way they are in the NFC Championship game. Tarvaris Jackson is not getting them there. Sage Rosenfels is not getting them there. The rest of the team was trying to fumble the game away to the Saints and Favre kept bringing them back. I know the blame will fall to Favre but how about these other players. How about Harvin and Berrians 4th quarter fumbles. The 12th player who joined the huddle. The coverage team for allowing Pierre Thomas to gain 40 yards on the overtime kick return. Asher Allen’s holding call that gave the Saints a first down in overtime. Ben Leber getting a pass interference call in overtime. Favre deserves some blame but not all of it.
Also, there were 2 plays that will I will probally remember for the rest of my life and that make me appreciate Favre even more. During the 4th quarter Favre was leveled by two of the Saints. After Favre had gottened leveled he needed help to get off the field and a friend I was watching the game with said, “That’s it. Favre is done. No way he is coming back in the game.” At that moment I knew that Favre would be coming back. The only way I could see him not coming back in was if his leg had gotten completely ripped off. I truly believed he would back in but there was a small part of me that was really sad. “Is he really done. Is that the last time I will ever see him play in a game?" But then he did it. He got the ankle wrapped again and came back in. A few plays later Favre was leveled again but got the ball off to Percy Harvin. Favre was one of the only players to chase after the ball to try to recover it and got nailed again in the process. As a fan of Favre he has given me so many great memories and a few not so great. If he is done playing football I hope others will remember the toughness he showed throughout his career and not dwell on the interceptions he threw.
Monday, January 18, 2010
Chris Aderhold is the King of Sports Knowledge
I don't like being wrong. I don't believe anyone does. With that in mind I have to admit when I am wrong. In my last blog I mentioned how I had competed in a sports trivia competition with my friend Topher. We battled back and forth in this competition and ultimately Topher beat me. In my last article I might have hinted that I didn’t think some of the questions were fair. I would like to state here in front of the whole world that I was wrong. Whether or not I believed some of the questions were unfair and weren’t sports questions is beyond the point. The point is my good buddy Chris Aderhold beat me. He beat me fair and square. He had to answer the exact same answers as me and he answered more of them correct. The competition was to see who knew more about sports trivia. Topher beat me and therefore I am saying outright Chris Aderhold knows more about sports than myself. It was a great competition and was a ton of fun to compete in. Well done Chris.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
I Need HELP
I would like to coach someday. I don’t care what sport it is or what age level it is. I guess I would prefer that it was one of the major sports since that’s what I know the most about. There is a small problem though. I haven’t played a lot of organized sports in my life. I have a passion for sports and am willing to learn. What I need though is help. What’s the best way to learn how to coach? Are there books I can read? Are their videos I can watch? Better yet is there someone out there who has a lot of time that would be willing to teach me how to be a coach. I need someone to teach me the very fundamentals of a sport. I think I could be a very good coach. So I am putting it out there to the world. Patrick Andera wants to coach! Is there anyone is willing to undertake this project of helping me get there?
I also wanted to comment on something exciting that happened to me recently. For the past few years I have had an argument with a friend of mine that I knew more about sports than him. After asking 3 different people to help come up with a trivia game to prove who was the best I finally find a friend who was willing to take the time to put together this contest. In front of a few (try 20) friends, myself and this acquaintance competed. We were neck and neck through the first half of the game. It was crazy how many questions we had the same answers for that were absolutely wrong. Then came my nemesis category. Sports Movies. I learned quickly that as much as I love sports I don’t know anything about sports movies. He smoked me in this category and I was never able to recover. He beat me fair and square and I have no problem saying he knows more about sports movies than me. It is still hard for me to believe he knew more about sports than me. But, as a good friend once told me, “Make plays and not excuses.” Christopher Clyde Aderhold, on that day you were better than me. You knew more about sports movies than I did. Congratulations sir. Thank you to Lindsay, Nicky, Gus, Matt, Mama Pitts and whoever else came up with the questions for the game. It was one of the most fun things I have ever done in my life. Topher, rematch someday?
I also wanted to comment on something exciting that happened to me recently. For the past few years I have had an argument with a friend of mine that I knew more about sports than him. After asking 3 different people to help come up with a trivia game to prove who was the best I finally find a friend who was willing to take the time to put together this contest. In front of a few (try 20) friends, myself and this acquaintance competed. We were neck and neck through the first half of the game. It was crazy how many questions we had the same answers for that were absolutely wrong. Then came my nemesis category. Sports Movies. I learned quickly that as much as I love sports I don’t know anything about sports movies. He smoked me in this category and I was never able to recover. He beat me fair and square and I have no problem saying he knows more about sports movies than me. It is still hard for me to believe he knew more about sports than me. But, as a good friend once told me, “Make plays and not excuses.” Christopher Clyde Aderhold, on that day you were better than me. You knew more about sports movies than I did. Congratulations sir. Thank you to Lindsay, Nicky, Gus, Matt, Mama Pitts and whoever else came up with the questions for the game. It was one of the most fun things I have ever done in my life. Topher, rematch someday?
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
72 Sporting Events to See
A few years ago I came across an article on ESPN.com from Jim Caple. It was his “101 things all sports fans must experience before they die.” I decided to come up with a list for myself that I would like to see before I die. I’m sure there are great sporting events that I missed. I would love to hear these and others peoples dream sporting events to see.
72 Little League World Series
71 Penn St football game during a white out
70 Texas High School football game in Odessa
69 USC/UCLA football from Coliseum
68 Boise St football game at home
67 Iron Bowl at Alabama
66 Texas/OU football game
65 Wisconsin Mens Hockey Game
64 Kentucky Derby
63 Masters
62 World Cup
61 Winter Olympics
60 Boxing match at MGM Grand
59 Daytona 500
58 Syracuse/St.Johns at MSG
57 Suns/Spurs in Phoniex
56 Argentina/Chile soccer game in Chile
55 Georgetown/Syracuse basketball at Carrier Dome
54 Orange Bowl
53 Dakota Marker Game from Coughlin
52 Tennessee/Florida football game at Knoxville
51 Red Wings/Black Hawks game in Joe Louis Arena
50 Bull Riding Championships in Vegas
49 Cowboys/Giants in Jersey
48 Wisconsin/Michigan State Basketball Game in Madison
47 NFL draft
46 Royal Rumble
45 Pro Bowl
44 Fiesta Bowl
43 OSU/OU in football at Stillwater
42 Hesiman Presentation
41 NBA All-Star game
40 Kentucky/Lousiville at Rupp
39 Wrestlemania
38 Pacers/Knicks at MSG
37 Saints game in Superdome
36 Raiders/Chargers in Oakland
35 College World Series
34 Notre Dame/USC football game at Notre Dame
33 Cowboys/Eagles in Cowboys Stadium
32 SEC Championship
31 Big 12 Championsip
30 World Series
29 Steelers/Ravens in Pittsburgh
28 Ohio St/Wisconsin game from the Horse Shoe
27 Sugar Bowl
26 Summer Olympics
25 Patriots/Colts from Gillete Stadium
24 Packers/Bears at Soldier Field
23 Cubs/Cardnials game at Wrigley
22 Lakers/Celtics at Staples
21 Raiders/Steelers at Heinz Field
20 Rose Bowl
19 Big 10 Mens bsketball tourney
18 ACC Mens basketball tourney
17 BSC National Championship
16 Super Bowl
15 Final Four game
14 Mens College Basketball Div 1 National Championship
13 Lakers/Cavs in Cleveland
12 Kansas Game at Allan Fieldhouse
11 Spring Training in Arizona
10 Raiders/Chiefs at Arrowhead
9 Packers/Vikings at Lambeau
8 Yankees/Red Sox at Fenway
7 Angels/A's at Angels Stadium
6 MLB All-Star Game
5 Ohio St/Michigan from the Big House
4 LSU night game at Death Valley
3 Nebraska/Colorado football in Lincoln
2 Duke/UNC at Cameron
1 Raiders/Broncos game from the Black Hole
72 Little League World Series
71 Penn St football game during a white out
70 Texas High School football game in Odessa
69 USC/UCLA football from Coliseum
68 Boise St football game at home
67 Iron Bowl at Alabama
66 Texas/OU football game
65 Wisconsin Mens Hockey Game
64 Kentucky Derby
63 Masters
62 World Cup
61 Winter Olympics
60 Boxing match at MGM Grand
59 Daytona 500
58 Syracuse/St.Johns at MSG
57 Suns/Spurs in Phoniex
56 Argentina/Chile soccer game in Chile
55 Georgetown/Syracuse basketball at Carrier Dome
54 Orange Bowl
53 Dakota Marker Game from Coughlin
52 Tennessee/Florida football game at Knoxville
51 Red Wings/Black Hawks game in Joe Louis Arena
50 Bull Riding Championships in Vegas
49 Cowboys/Giants in Jersey
48 Wisconsin/Michigan State Basketball Game in Madison
47 NFL draft
46 Royal Rumble
45 Pro Bowl
44 Fiesta Bowl
43 OSU/OU in football at Stillwater
42 Hesiman Presentation
41 NBA All-Star game
40 Kentucky/Lousiville at Rupp
39 Wrestlemania
38 Pacers/Knicks at MSG
37 Saints game in Superdome
36 Raiders/Chargers in Oakland
35 College World Series
34 Notre Dame/USC football game at Notre Dame
33 Cowboys/Eagles in Cowboys Stadium
32 SEC Championship
31 Big 12 Championsip
30 World Series
29 Steelers/Ravens in Pittsburgh
28 Ohio St/Wisconsin game from the Horse Shoe
27 Sugar Bowl
26 Summer Olympics
25 Patriots/Colts from Gillete Stadium
24 Packers/Bears at Soldier Field
23 Cubs/Cardnials game at Wrigley
22 Lakers/Celtics at Staples
21 Raiders/Steelers at Heinz Field
20 Rose Bowl
19 Big 10 Mens bsketball tourney
18 ACC Mens basketball tourney
17 BSC National Championship
16 Super Bowl
15 Final Four game
14 Mens College Basketball Div 1 National Championship
13 Lakers/Cavs in Cleveland
12 Kansas Game at Allan Fieldhouse
11 Spring Training in Arizona
10 Raiders/Chiefs at Arrowhead
9 Packers/Vikings at Lambeau
8 Yankees/Red Sox at Fenway
7 Angels/A's at Angels Stadium
6 MLB All-Star Game
5 Ohio St/Michigan from the Big House
4 LSU night game at Death Valley
3 Nebraska/Colorado football in Lincoln
2 Duke/UNC at Cameron
1 Raiders/Broncos game from the Black Hole
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