Sunday, September 5, 2010

The Pig Season Begins with a Quack Attack

NCAA football is underway, thank God. I so detest August for its pre-season NFL games and NCAA football hype. Just put the pig in play already. I want to see Chris Fowler, Lee Corso, and Kirk Herbstreit discuss games that have actually been played rather than the inane speculation and debate about whether Lame Kiffin and Rich Rodriguez have character issues.

The Oregon Ducks beat the shit out of the New Mexico Lobos today, 72-0. Now that...is an ass kicking. The score was 59-0 at the HALF. I wish I could have heard the Lobos' half time speech. What do you even say at that point? What's left to say? It would have been great if OU coach Chip Kelly would have had the cheerleaders suit up for the second half while the players went into the visiting student section to pick up on the Lobos' girlfriends. I actually think the OU cheerleaders could have kept New Mexico under 59 in the second half. I truly believe this!

We'll see if the Ducks and their stupid rotating Nike wardrobe are for real soon enough.

Anyone see the catch WR Julio Jones (Alabama) made today? That might be the best we'll see all year...

Here are things I want to happen this season:

I want Big Blue to lose 6 games so I can see Rich Rodriguez slither even farther down the toilet (I'm pissed they beat UCONN today).

I want USC to lose 6 games so Lame Kiffin has to give his clothes back to the emperor who lent them to him.

I want Notre Dame to continue its string of mediocre seasons so NBC can enjoy more shittier-than-they-should-be ratings.

I think I want Alabama to lose because of Nick Saban's stoic-asshole persona, and because he was pissed when he got doused with Gatorade during last year's national championship game (seriously fucker, you just won the NCAA title...lighten the F up). But, I have always liked the Tide, and they have the second best uniforms in the nation.

I want Penn State to win it all, because Joe Pa rules and because I'm still pissed the Nittany Lions did not receive a share of the national title back in '94 when they went undefeated and had one of the best offenses in NCAA football history. I mentioned previously that 'Bama has the second best uniforms in the nation. Guess who has the best? Yup...the Nittany Lions.



I want more Smurf Turf games that mean something. I'm sold on Boise State, but shit...can we get a meaningful game after the beginning of September for once?

And lastly, I want God, Satan, Allah, Quetzalcoatl, Zeus, Odin, or whoever runs the show to please intervene and GET A FUCKING PLAYOFF IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL. I have never, ever in my 30+ years of following sports heard lamer excuses for why a playoff can't exist. College pig used to be the second biggest sport in this country, behind Major League Baseball and ahead of boxing and horse racing. There is no greater myopia in the modern era than the thought process of those who claim a playoff isn't practical, possible, or prudent. Without going into too many details, and while trying not to get too pissed off, here's a precis of what to do:

Have all NCAA schools play a max of 11 games (before the bowl season). Have 16 teams selected to the "Big Dance" and seed them 1-16 a la NCAA hoops March Madness. Let them play rounds once per week over four weeks to decide a champion (8 games week 1, 4 games week 2, 2 games week 3, national title week 4). Hold the championship game on New Years Day the way it used to be done.

Two teams end up playing 15 games. Before you say that's too many, most of the better teams play (at least) 12-13 games in this era anyway (considering conference tournaments and bowl games). Some play 14 game seasons. I doubt those that go far in my tournament scenario would care because of the boatload of TV and ticket sales cash rolling in to the school's coffers each week, and players wouldn't miss class either because it's the holiday season (another red herring supporters of the current system often argue).

There are obvioulsy sacrifices to be made, but that's inevitable in any new system. The Big Ten just split Ohio State and Michigan into separate divisions, so don't tell me about tradition keeping a system the way it is (and yes I know the Buckeyes and Wolverines will still play each other each November).

The other argument that bowl games would become meaningless with the implementation of a tournament is another stupid position. This just in: every bowl game except one is ALREADY MEANINGLESS. No one gives a shit about a BCS bowl unless it's the national championship. Keep the bowls. Who cares? There's nothing stopping schools from going to them. The only one who really cares about bowl matchups are students and almuni anyway. Really, what national interest is there in a 6-5 San Diego State team playing a 7-4 North Carolina squad in the Las Vegas Bowl?

Let's get a tournament, NCAA. You think March Madness is big? A college football tourney would make people hibernate through March until MLB opening day in April.

Saturday, September 4, 2010

Walkman Nostalgia

The ipod generation will never know the wonderful limits of the Sony Walkman. Here is a picture of the model I owned back in 1985. It was as small as a cassette case and only needed 1 AA battery. I absolutely loved this device. I think it was better to be forced to listen to one tape at a time rather than choose the myriad combinations of artists and songs the shuffle and playlist features of today's ipods/mp3 players allow. It's the same logic that reveals why LPs are better than CDs in many ways; you are forced to listen to an album in its entirety, in the order the artist intended. It's sad that today the concept of an entire album is mostly long gone. Funny to think I actually miss the Dolby B noise reduction and Cr02/Metal settings my Walkman featured.

Friday, September 3, 2010

Big Ben Less The Raper

This just in...NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has reduced Pittsburgh Steeler quarterback Ben Roethlisberger's suspension for [alleged] sexual misconduct from 6 to 4 games. This is interesting considering that nothing has changed regarding the incident for which Roethlisberger was suspended. The only thing that has changed is that time has passed. I wonder if money has anything to do with this. The Roethlisberger incident and subsequent allayed outrage is indicative of a very big problem in American society. Is there no sense of decency? Shame on Goodell. Shame on the NFL. Shame on the rest of us for sins of omission.

A New Sports Blog

My friend C. Wright Parsons has a great sports blog up and running. Mets fans shouldn't miss it. Since no one will admit they follow the Mets, you can tell others you read the blog for the alternate posts...

Those Timeless Tunes...

Here's a list of 20 absolutely great, great, great songs (in no particular order). I don't care that many are over-played. They should be.
  1. More Than A Feeling - Boston
  2. Born To Run - Bruce Springsteen
  3. The Boys Of Summer - Don Henley
  4. The Spirit Of Radio - Rush
  5. I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues - Elton John
  6. I Want To Know What Love Is - Foreigner
  7. Baker Street - Gerry Rafferty
  8. Somebody's Baby - Jackson Browne
  9. Fire And Rain - James Taylor
  10. Faithfully - Journey
  11. Bridge Over Troubled Water - Simon and Garfunkel
  12. Sloop John B - The Beach Boys
  13. In Your Eyes - Peter Gabriel
  14. Stuck On You - Lionel Richie
  15. I Love You - Climax Blues Band
  16. Sister Golden Hair - America
  17. If You Leave Me Now - Chicago
  18. Leaving On A Jet Plane - John Denver
  19. Perfect Day - Lou Reed
  20. Baba O'Riley - The Who