Untitled Sports Blog

Houston Cougars - Recruiting News, Stadium Referendum Passes

2012-02-03T03:22:00.007-06:00

Yes we all know by now that the University of Houston Cougars are headed to the Big East after the 2012 season.

The Cougars capped off a 13-1 season with the Ticket City Bowl win over a Penn State team in disarray but still facing the fifth rated defense. Case Keenum solved them quick and dispatched the Nittany Lions 30-14.

So with the football season in the review mirror what was left for the Cougars to do as a follow up?

The next big task facing new Houston coach Tom Levine was keeping the recruiting class of 2012 intact. Not only did he succeed in bringing in a talented class, he wrested away a prize recruit from Notre Dame.

Recruiting Day Surprise
Deontay Greenberry committed the Fighting Irish eight months ago. Despite the commitment to the Irish, he took a last minute weekend visit to UH. Pretty much everyone attributes the switch to his relationship with UH assistant Jamie Christian. Christian recruited Greenberry for Arizona St. before relocating to Houston's staff. My best guess is that Greenberry did a the last minute visit to Houston as a courtesy to Christian.

Initially, Greenberry was following his cousin to Notre Dame. After his Houston visit Greenberry stated that

I was going to Notre Dame for the wrong reason...I started sitting down and really thinking what's best for me, where I would feel most comfortable.

Greenberry is ranked a five star recruit by Scout.

Greenberry's highlight reel:

Other Recruiting News
Even if Greenberry stayed with the Irish, the Cougars still hauled in a nice recruiting class. Scout ranked the Cougars as top recruiting class in Conference USA and 57th overall.. For comparison, future Big East brethren Boise St. ranked a step ahead of UH a #56, SMU at #65 and Central Florida #119. In the Big East, the Cougars ranked only ahead of #66 UConn and #68 South Florida.

I can't do the new class justice in a blog write up. Instead I'll leave it to the pros. The best free capsules are from official Houston website and Houston Chronicle UH beat writer Sam Khan, Jr.

Students Approve Fee Increase
Finally, one last step was required to fund a new football stadium and renovate Hofheinz Pavilion. The athletic department and the student government asked the students to vote in favor of increasing fees to fund both projects.

Again, Khan does a fantastic write up on what the referendum approval means to the school.

For artistic renderings of the new facilities and the UH push to get the approval visit Building UH Pride Together.

Cougar Pride Brewing
And now for an Unkle Monkee editorial.

Major props to the University of Houston students for passing the referendum. The administration and athletic department worked hard to move the Coogs out of Conference USA and into the Big East. With their work done, the students were ask to do their part and decide whether or not to build facilities deserving of the conference upgrade. And the students overwhelmingly approved the measure to impose fee increases on themselves.

In these economic times, when funding and money is tight, the students decided to add more to their financial obligations to the University. That is asking a lot when $50 can buy a lot of cheap beer, Ramen noodles and mac & cheese. On the message boards, many commented that $50 is not a lot of money in the grand scheme of things. Yes it is when you are paying for books, tuition, rent and buying food. Every cent counts.

Yet the students realized that the conference upgrade raised the profile of the athletic teams which in turn raised the profile of the University. In view such upgrades, they saw the teams deserved to play in upgraded facilities. 9,923 students (26.1% of enrollment) voted. 7,334 (73.9%) voted in favor of the increase. The students didn't think about the present. They saw the future...they saw the potential for the Cougars...they not only voted on the ballot, they voted with their wallets and bank accounts.

Go Coogs!

Houston Cougar Game Day 8 vs. Rice Owls

2011-10-26T21:32:00.000-05:00

#17 Houston vs. rice

October 27, 2011

7:00 p.m.
Robertson Stadium - UH Campus
Houston, TX
TV: Fox Sports Net
Radio: 790 AM (Houston, Tx)
Houston leads series 36-22

rice (intentionally left in lower case to signify the insignificance of that school) won the last meeting between the cross town rivals. With Case Keenum lost for the year, the quarterbacking duties fell on true freshman David Piland. Piland kept the Coogs in the game by throwing three touchdowns. His owl counterpart, Nick Fanuzzi, equaled his touchdown total.

The game boiled down to who made the least mistakes. Unfortunately that mistake was made by the Cougars. Piland fumbled the snap on a 4th and 1 and the owls recovered. Houston lost the game 34-31.

2008 signified the most significant meeting standing and championship wise for the two schools. The winner mostly likely would end up in the C-USA championship. rice prevailed in a shoot out 56-42 at rice stadium.

The game set up a 2009 revenge match for the Cougars. This time the Cougars did not mess around. Houston posted the largest margin of victory in the series. The Coogs pounded the owls 73-14.

Once again, 2011 sets up to be another revenge game for the Cougars. This time Case Keenum returns to the helm of the Cougar offense. Add in the new found brilliance of the defense and this game looks to be another massive beat down in the series.

Here's hoping the Cougars hang 80 or more on rice.

Link Dump

Memorable Moments from Bayou Bucket

A Look Back at Last Five Bayou Bucket Games

SB Houston Game Preview

Houston 63 Marshall 28 - Thundering Herd, Blundering Turd

2011-10-26T20:44:00.001-05:00

Marshall defensive football players talked the talk. Until Saturday's game, they walked the walk. They looked to knock Houston's record setting quarterback Case Keenum out of the game. Marshall already knocked out a few quarterbacks. To wit: Southern Miss Austin Davis, VA Tech Logan Thomas, Louisville Teddy Bridgewater and Central Florida Mark Godfrey. Next? ~~Case Keenum~~.

Instead, Keenum and the Cougar offensive line thwarted the plan. Keenum left his footprints all over the Marshall defense. Keenum's game line: 24 of 28 passes completed for 376 yards and 6 TDs. No sacks. No interceptions. Keenum also broke former Hawaii quarterback Tommy Chang's all time total offense record. Chang held the record with 16,910 yards. When back up UH quarterback Cotton Turner took his first snap in the 4th quarter, Keenum sat on the sidelines with a career total of 17,173 total yards.

Again the Cougar defense came up big when it mattered. Trailing 35-14 in the last seconds of the 2nd quarter, Marshall held a 4th and 1. The decided to go for the touchdown instead of the field goal. It was a momentum building play either way it went. A TD and Marshall is back in it. A stop and the Cougars maintain a commanding lead. With an anxious sell out crowd yelling, the Cougar defense stood tall and swung the game clearing in the Cougar's favor.

The defense held firm and chipped in on the scoring. In the 3rd quarter, true freshman Derrick Matthews returned an interception 20 yards for a TD. In the 4th, defensive end Kelvin King almost returned an interception for a TD but fell short in his 69 yard return.

UH vs. Marshall Game Book

UH vs Marshall Box Score

Houston vs. Marshall Motivational Video

Houston vs. Marshall Highlights

Houston Cougar Game Day Idle - Coogs To Big East?

2011-10-15T03:44:00.000-05:00

With the exception of ESPN, other media outlets report that the Big East will expand by six teams. The teams include Boise St., Air Force and Navy as football playing members only. Central Florida, SMU and our dear old Houston Cougars would play as full members in other sports.

So what is the real scoop? At this point it is really hard to tell. Initially, a week ago, the Big East was on its death bed. Pitt and Syracuse bolted for the ACC and TCU jilted the Big East for the Big 12. UConn desperately tried to join Pitt and Syracuse in the ACC. Louisville, West Virginia, Cincinnati and Rutgers eyed other conferences as well. Pending a move by Missouri to the SEC or Big Ten, and a desire of the Big 12 for 12 members, Louisville and/or West Virgina might head to the B12. Rutgers may or may not be headed to the Big 10.

Regardless, at stake for the Big East was their automatic qualification to a Bowl Championship Series bowl status (BCS AQ). The SEC, ACC, Big 10, Big 12, Big East and Pac 12 champs all receive automatic bids to the lucrative bowls and paths to a BCS title game. All other conferences and independents must meet minimum criteria to get a slot in the country club. Boise St. and TCU are the two non-AQ schools that consistently earn a seat at the exclusive table but neither has been given a national title shot.

With the loss of Pitt, Syracuse and TCU, the Big East faced the loss of revenues from football and the next TV contract. With the expected entry of TCU, the Big East hoped to tap the Texas market in TV and recruiting. The addition of TCU also expected to boost the ranking of the conference to maintain the league's lock to access to a lucrative BCS bowl. With three schools gone, what next?

Attractive schools abound despite the defections. BYU went independent after breaking away from the Mountain West Conference (MWC). Boise St. left the WAC for the MWC in hopes of strengthening its schedule and BCS appeal. Notre Dame plays in all Big East sports except for football. The service academies (Navy, Air Force, Army) maintain national followings from their respective branches and the University status of their academies.

At one point a few years ago, there was speculation that the MWC would either take the Big East's AQ status or force a seventh AQ slot for a conference. Utah and TCU earned victories to strengthen the conference standing. Many speculated that adding some stronger non-AQ schools like Houston, Nevada, Hawaii and Boise St. would only enhance a conference could already compete with the AQ conferences. Then Utah left for the Pac-10/12, TCU went to the Big East/Big 12 and BYU went indie. A promising conference was left in shambles. If the Big East raids come to fruition, then the MWC will be further weakened with the losses of Boise St. and Air Force.

Since the break up of the old Southwest Conference, Houston, TCU, SMU and Rice have been on the outside looking in. TCU earned its place in the new BCS. Houston, SMU and Rice went through the motions in their respective conferences.

Houston Cougar fans through the ages always feel slighted. Playing for years in the 50s, 60s and 70s in smaller conferences or independent, the Cougars enviously eyed the Southwest and Southeast Conferences. It wasn't until the 70s that the Cougars gained membership into the SWC and the validation they sought. Three SWC championships in the first four years of membership only proved the Cougars belonged and three Final Four teams in the 80s showed the Coogs weren't just a football school. So the break up of the SWC and the exclusion in the formation of the Big 12 only opened old wounds for the Coog faithful.

From the depths of the dissolution of the SWC to the exclusion from the Big 12, do the Cougars finally have a home at the BCS Club? From all indications, yes.

There is no reason for any school invited to the Big East to turn the invite down. ESPN tried to play up the MWC/C-USA merger/association as a reason for Boise St. and Air Force turn down the Big East. Houston, SMU and Central Florida also appeared enticed but a 22 football league. ESPN reports appear speculation based on old reports and information. Boise and AF were initially hesitant only due to the fact that they needed reassurance that the league would survive. Once the football schools said they will raise the exit fees then Boise and AF agreed. ESPN also floated that AF soured on the idea after Army backed out a deal. Curiously, only ESPN reports that Army was offered. Multiple news sources never mention Army. Navy appears a fence sitter but reportedly the Big East is also working out a custom offer for the Midshipman.

Other early reports stated that three schools were up for two remaining spots. Houston, SMU and Temple were in play for two spots. Apparently, Villanova, a basketball school, blocked Temple and that opened up the door for the Texas schools.

So how does it all break down? If media reports are accurate, which is a big if, then Big East expansion is set and the moves are all formalities. Six schools that played decent to great football found a home at the Big Boy Money Club. Despite ESPN's reports, the schools won't turn down the invites because to much money left on the table.

So much speculation but so much hope for Cougar fans, let's pray/hope for the best.

Houston Cougar Game Day 6 - Houston vs East Carolina

2011-10-08T00:58:00.000-05:00

October 8, 2011

6:00 p.m.

Houston, TX

University of Houston Campus

Robertson Stadium

Overall Series - East Carolina leads 6-4

Last Meeting - East Carolina 38 Houston 32 in 2009 C-USA Championship Game

With conference realignments still the major story of the college football season, there is still some action on the field.

The Cougars continue to hover just outside the Top 25 in both AP and Coaches polls. Sporting a 5-0 record and a struggling defense, the Coogs appear to impress enough voters to get them into the polls.

East Carolina rolls in with a 1-3 record but 1-0 in conference. The Pirates played three AQ BCS opponents in four games. They played Virginia Tech to a 17-10 loss. In C-USA play, the Pirates defeated UAB 28-23. I planned on going over the offensive stats of the Pirates but the Cougar defense makes all that irrelevant as they make the anyone seem like world beaters.

Houston Game Day Notes

Weekly Houston Press Conference

Houston Cougar Game Day Central

Houston Chronicle Stories:

For Sims, No Place Like UH

UH Looks Good at 5-0 But How Good?

What Does TCU Going to Big 12 Mean for UH

Houston 49 UTEP 42 - Miner Defenses Rule

2011-10-08T00:18:00.000-05:00

Well if you are a fan of high scoring offenses and no defense, this was the game for you. Houston outscored UTEP 49-42. Neither defense had an answer for the opposite offense. Houston's defense made a brief appearance when linebacker Marcus McGraw returned a fumble 34 yards to give the Coogs the first lead of the game at 21-14.

A common theme has emerged through three road games. For some reason the offense doesn't start well. Couple that fact with a porous defense and again the Coogs fell behind early. The Miners were able to build a 14-0 1st quarter lead on the strength of the Cougars drives that ended: punt, missed FG, downs, punt.

The defense did make a few stops to allow the offense back in the game and knot the game at 14. McGraw's TD capped what was actually an outstanding defensive effort in the 2nd quarter. The defense also forced a couple of UTEP punts and an interception. The effort allowed things to start out even at the second half tied at 21.

Without a doubt Houston's player of the game was Charles Sims. Sims gained 111 yards on the ground and scored 2 TDs. He also had back breaking 84 yard TD reception on a screen pass. That TD and the ensuing 2 point conversion gave the Cougars a 49-35 lead.

The defense though could not stop UTEP. The Miners clawed back and scored a TD with 6:20 left in the game. The Cougar offense managed to run 2:44 off the clock before give the ball back on a punt. Again the Miner offense sliced up the Cougar defense and marched down to the UH 19. A draw play thrown for a loss moved them back to the 23 but it was two incomplete passes on 3rd and 4th downs that sealed the game for Houston.

All the details and more can be found in the UH vs UTEP game book.

Suck for Luck Campaign

2011-10-07T23:53:00.000-05:00

Before the football season, the Suck for Luck campaign theme was coined. Of course, it meant the race for the first overall pick to select Stanford's quarterback Andrew Luck. Among the preseason front runners counted Buffalo, San Francisco, Miami, Seattle and Denver.

At the quarter mark of the season, the race appears to change. The 49ers and Bills currently are in the thick of division races. Indianapolis and Kansas City, defending division champs, are suddenly bottom feeders in the hung for Luck.

Other bottom feeders, like St. Louis, Carolina, Minnesota and Jacksonville already have the quarterback of the future on the roster. Sam Bradford appears to regressed in St. Louis but he is the future arm of the franchise. Cam Newton, so far, is erasing doubts about his ability to play in the pocket and breathed life into a listless franchise. The Donovan McNabb experiment will soon end and Christian Ponder will no doubt take his spot. Jacksonville already started the Blaine Gabbert Era with the sudden release of David Garrad and the flop of Luke McCown.

Miami, from top to bottom, is a mess. Most teams enjoy the friendly confines of home. The Dolphins have only won one home game last season and none this year. Off the field, owner Stephen Ross has turned the list of owners into a celebrity list: Venus and Serena Williams, JLo, Marc Anthony, Fergie, Gloria Estefan, Emilio Estefan. Coach Tony Sparano appears clueless and will probably be fired sometime soon. Quarterback Chad Henne is out for the season and doesn't appear to be the long term solution at the position. Chances are high that the once proud franchise will win the Luck Sweepstakes. The question is will Luck really want to play there and is it the best place for him?

My how have the mighty fallen. With Peyton Manning out, the Colts franchise is teetering on the brink. Manning covered the flaws of the franchise. I always thought Jim Caldwell is clueless on the sideline and that Manning's on field prowess covered up for Caldwell. So far that theory is playing out. Even the speedy defense was built for Manning. The philosophy was for Manning to get big lead and let speedsters Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis tee of on offenses trying to catch up. Again that theory is bearing out. If they win the Luck sweepstakes, can the right the direction of the franchise? Will Manning come back and play a year or two and show Luck the ropes? Luck is probably the best bet to take up the mantle of Manning.

Weekly Awards
Line of the Week
Baltimore Ravens Defense - 1 fumble returned for TD, 1 INT returned for TD, 2 sacks, 9 pass deflections, 3 fumbles recovered
Honorable Mention: Detriot Lions Defense - 2 INTs returned for TDs, 3 INTs,
Honorable Mention: Beanie Wells - 27 carries, 138 yards rushing, 3 TDs

JaMarcus Russell Line of the Week
Mark Sanchez - 11 of 35 for 119 yards, 1 INT for TD, 4 fumbles, 3 fumbles lost

Goat of the Week
Tony Romo, Jason Garrett and Felix Jones
Romo threw three key picks and two were returned for TDs to help blow a 27-3 lead. Garrett allowed Romo to keep throwing the ball instead of trying to control the clock and ball. Jones ran out of bounds late in the game to stop the clock. Only problem is that it was 4th down.

NFL Week 2 - Blowout KC, Romo Media Frenzy

2011-09-23T22:23:00.000-05:00

A little late but better late than never. Just a few quick observations for the week.

KC Goes South
I'll start with Kansas City. Some NFL pundits predicted that the Chiefs would take a step back after winning ten games and the AFC West. I don't think anyone saw the 0-2 start by blow outs. The aggregate score in the losses is 89-10.

It's only two games but it appears the wheels already fell of the season for the Chiefs. I can understand getting routed in one game. Bad days happen. Total melt downs occur. Everything goes right for the other team while you day goes to garbage.

Two games though are inexcusable. These are professional players and coaching staffs. There is no excuse to lose games like this. Two or more losses like this and I don't see how Todd Haley survives.

Romo Media Flip Flop
Last week after the NY Jet debacle, the national media was all over Tony Romo. This week after the 49ers OT win, the media were singing his praises. He was skewered over an open flame for his fumble and interception that lead to the loss. In week two, he went out with an injury and came back to lead the Cowboys to victory. After having no heart all of a sudden the media sang about how tough and how much he respect he had for playing hurt.

Listen, I know you are paid for your opinions but stick to your guns and don't flip flop like a politician. The Romo praising was stomach turning coming from the same media personality who flamed him the previous week. Add to the fact that this is only one game. What if Romo blows another game or two? They are probably going back to bashing...then praising when he does well again.

I'll stick to my guns. Tony Romo isn't a big game quarterback. He wins occasionally but does enough boneheaded moves in key games to not elevate to the level of Mannings, Brady and Brees. He's a second tier level of quarterbacks.

Message Sent and Ignored
Baltimore, what was that? Nothing is worse than dropping a game to a struggling team right after administering a beat down of your heated rival. The Ravens clobbered the Steelers in opening week. Pundits claimed that the Ravens sent a message to the Steelers and the rest of the league. Evidently the Steelers heard and laughed. They recovered nicely in shutting out the Seahawks.

After week one, the Ravens were riding high and the Steelers written off. Now after week two, we are back to square one and even at 1-1. That goes to show how ridiculous trying to take one game and expand it toward the season. One game doesn't send a message. At least it mutes the message when the Ravens failed to back it up on the second week.

Line of the Week
28 of 46 passing for 432 and 1 TD - Cam Newton. I awarded it to Newton not because he did it this week. I did it because it's the second week in a row he threw for over 400 yards. Some scouts and media doubted Newton's ability to stay in the pocket and play out of the pro set. So far so good as he proves his doubters wrong so far. Let's see how he does the rest of the season. I just might be enjoyable.

JaMarcus Russell Player of the Week
Luke McCown. He was handed the starting job up the release of David Garrard. McCown, in his second start of the season, lost the starting job. He was yanked from the game against the Jets in the 4th quarter. He managed four interceptions and gave way to rookie Blaine Gabbert.

Goat of the Week
The Chicago Bears offensive line. Jay Cutler is on track to get sacked 88 times or something like that.

Houston Cougar Game Day 4 vs. Georgia St.

2011-09-22T01:04:00.000-05:00

Sept. 24, 2011

7:00 p.m.

Robertson Stadium
University of Houston Campus
First meeting between teams
TV: CSS
Radio: 790 AM (Houston)

Coming of the largest come from behind win in Houston Cougar history, the Coogs host Georgia St. Panthers for the second home game of the year. GSU plays in the NCAA Football Championship division. They began play in 2010.

This is the type of the game most schools schedule for the first game of the season. A sort of real time scrimmage/tune up before the season starts. UH opened up with UCLA, North Texas and LA Tech.

Georgia St. started off the season with a win against Clark Atlanta 41-7. The Panthers have lost their next two games against Old Dominion (40-17) and Jacksonville St. (37-21). Georgia St. is lead by head coach Bill Curry.

The game should be a stat padding outing for Case Keenum and Company. I seriously doubt Georgia St. gives the Coogs much of a game but then again I thought the same about North Texas.

Link dump:

UH Official Home Game Day Central

UH Official Game Notes

Weekly Press Conference Quotes

Sam Kahn's UH Blog - A Glance at Georgia St.

Case Keenum Win's C-USA Player of the Week

Houston 35 LA Tech 34 - Cougar Heartache Turns to Bulldog Heartbreak

2011-09-21T22:51:00.001-05:00

The Cougars started off like I feared they would. Actually they started off much slower than I feared. For two quarters and the majority of a third, Houston looked like they would rather be anywhere but Ruston, LA playing LA Tech. The Bulldogs did everything right and the Coogs arrived with five minutes left in the 3rd quarter.

As I stated in the Game Day 3 entry, the Coogs could ill afford to fall behind and hope to turn on the switch. Despite my thinking, they did both falling behind 34-7 and turning on a switch to win 35-34.

The two slow starts against North Texas and LA Tech are baffling. The defense was pushed around early in both contests and the offense misfired on almost every possession.

Houston's first eleven possessions went: punt, fumble, punt, punt, interception, punt, TD, punt, end of half, punt, interception. The results showed on the scoreboard 34-7.

The defense was just as pathetic. The Bulldogs scored on 6 of 11 possessions: 2 FGs and 4 TDs. The fortunate thing is the defense did make a few stops or else the game would probably been out of reach.

While the Coogs made as many mistakes and misfires, they did atone for it all in the last 20 minutes of the game. Dubbed the Cardiac Coogs by the UH faithful, they stunned the home crowd. The offense scored the necessary 28 points for a one point lead. The defense forced ended the Bulldog dominance while getting key stops and turnovers. The Mad Dogs intercepted one pass, recovered a fumble, made the 'dogs punt twice and got the ball back on downs.

The Cougars overcame disaster and staged the biggest come from behind victory in school history.

The question becomes why did they set such a hole for themselves. The came out fired up against UCLA and a rowdy home crowd. They never trailed in that game. Against North Texas and LA Tech, they trailed early. Is it a lack of motivation on the players part? Is it coaching? Do the coaches fail to motivate and game plan? Whatever the problem, the Cougars need to clean it up. With conference play and tougher opponents coming up, such play will lead to a loss or two. While not saying it publicly, the Coogs goal is to run the table and up in best bowl game possible.

For more stats than you can imagine: UH vs LA Tech Game Book

Houston Cougar Game Day 3 vs. Louisana Tech

2011-09-15T20:59:00.000-05:00

Sept. 17, 2011

6:00 p.m. Central

Joe Aillet Stadium

Ruston, LA

TV: ESPN3.com

Radio: 790 AM (Houston)

Houston lead series 3-2

Last meeting: LA Tech 19 @ Houston 7 in 1995

Houston Game 3 Notes

Louisiana Tech Game 3 Notes

Houston Cougar Weekly Press Conference

Houston Chronicle: Familiar Faces On Sidelines This Weekend

The Houston Cougars play their third game of the year and second in a row on the road at Louisiana Tech. Houston held off UCLA 38-34 in the first game and over came a slow start to destroy North Texas 48-24 in the next game.

Houston probably looks to improve on a few things against the Bulldogs. UH struggled defensively against UCLA's big tight end and also played a sluggish first half against UNT. LA Tech is a better team than UNT and if the Coogs come out sluggish, they could easily find themselves on the wrong side of the scoreboard when the final whistle blows.

The Cougars need to put together a solid four quarters of football for a couple of reasons. First, they can ill fall behind and hope to turn on a switch. Sometimes that switch isn't so easy to flip against a stronger opponent. Case Keenum needs to hit his WRs early and often. Establishing the run will only help the vertical game. Defensively, the Coogs need to show they can consistently stop any team. UCLA passed the ball down field at will. UNT put together two quality drives to end the first half.

Georgia St. will be the final tune up before conference play opens. However the Coogs need a strong effort all around against LA Tech before dismantling Georgia St. in a sacrificial lamb game.

Houston 48 North Texas 23 - Coogs Are Unwelcomed Guest

2011-09-15T20:00:00.001-05:00

The game started off slowly for the Houston Cougars. North Texas, electrified by the home crowd in the inaugural game of Apogee Stadium, put up a challenge to the Cougars. Whether it was the crowd, a fired up Mean Green team, a lackadaisical Coog team or a combination, North Texas ran tough for a half.

North Texas took the opening kick off 55 yards and lined up for what looked like an inspires start. The euphoria didn't last long as Houston's D.J. Hayden intercepted a pass from quarterback Derek Thompson. The Coogs returned the favor a few plays later. The Mean Green defense sacked and stripped the ball from UH star quarterback Case Keenum. UNT wasted no time in converting the turnover into a 7-0 lead and keeping the crowd pumped.

The Cougars looked like the were going to blow the game wide open after scoring on three successive drives and taking a 17-7 lead into the 2nd quarter. North Texas opened the 2nd quarter with the ball. They drove the ball efficiently and moved to 17-14. The Cougar defense struggled to solve the Mean Green defense. The drive took 13 plays, 79 yards and 6:59 off the clock.

Keenum and the offense did the defense no favors by only holding onto the ball for five plays and under two minutes. The Coogs failed on a 4th and 4 conversion and continued to let UNT hang around. UNT took advantage of the stalled drive. The Coog defense though held and UNT settled for a FG and a 17 all tie.

Houston squeezed out a field goal for a 20-17 halftime lead.

Then the Cougars decided to play some football. The Coogs scored touchdowns on their first three possessions of the second half. The score went from 20-17 to 41-17 in a flash. It was the knock out blow to the Mean Green and the enthusiastic crowd. The few thousand Cougar fans in the stands and the thousands others at home could breath a sign of relief.

In the end, it was Cougar speed, size and talent that just overpowered and struggling team. Emotions only sustained the Mean Green for a half. Sometimes emotion and heart enough. But on this night, once the Coogs went to work, it was all over for UNT.

For the night, the Cougar offense rumbled for 127 yards rushing and 563 yards passing. Keenum finished 26 of 41 for a whopping 458 yards and five TDs. WR Patrick Edwards scorched the UNT secondary for 187 yards on 8 catches and a TD. Edward earned C-USA Player of the Week for his efforts. WR Justin Johnson contributed 87 yards and two TDs.

For the nitty gritty details of the game see Houston vs. North Texas Game Book.

NFL Week 1 - 9/11 Remembered

2011-09-13T22:53:00.000-05:00

To say that the opening remembrance ceremony of 9/11 in the NFL was emotional is a vast understatement. When the Texans, my home team, introduced the NYFD as honorary captains on the field I thought that was about it. The firefighters received a nice standing ovation.

Then came Robert De Niro on screen and his introduction. Taps was played and followed by a moment of silence. As soon as taps started, I felt the eyes water. The screen showed all the stadium crowds for the noon opener. The moment of silence was stunning. It was quieter that what I ever imagined a 70,000+ crowd could be. People cried. People looked stunned. Immediately after the moment, Clay Walker sang the national anthem. Right after chants of USA broke out. The whole affair was moving. The NFL did a class act and didn't go over the top. Everything was extremely appropriate on this day of remembrance.

Arena League Game
On the field the action officially kicked off on Thursday night with defending champ Green Bay hosting New Orleans. After the 3rd quarter it turned into an arena league game. I'm not a fan of high scoring light up the scoreboard games. I like a good well played game on both sides of the ball. Defensively this game was an eyesore. I turned it off midway through the 3rd.

Hurricane Cam
A hurricane has swirled around Cam Newton since around the SEC championship game. Critics doubt his pro potential. Many thought Carolina reached making Newton the overall number one pick. For one week at least, Newton silenced critics and played an outstanding debut game. He line only read 22 completions for 422 yards and two TDs. Better yet, Newton staying home and didn't run away at the first sign of trouble. Its only one game but I hope he continues to silence critics.

Ravens Maul Steelers
Seriously Pittsburgh, what was that? Much is made about the Super Bowl loser hangover. For the Fat Ben Roethlisberger lead Steelers, it's been two titles followed up by two playoff misses the following season. Fat Ben and Company started early this season. Seven turnovers and a 35-7 beat down by their fiercest division rivals the Ravens. I haven't seen the game but I may watch for the entertainment value later this week.

Falcons Grounded
Going in to the season, I think the Atlanta Falcons entered with to many questions on defense. They really didn't do much to address the concerns after the Packers ran them off the field in the playoffs. Instead they traded a big chunk of their draft picks to select Julio Jones in the first round. For week one, the results were unexpected. Matt Ryan threw for 319 yards and a pick. The Falcon offense put up some impressive numbers. Michael Turner rambled for ten yards a carry ten times for 100 yards. The receiving trio of Jones, Roddy White and Anthony Gonzalez combined for 204 yards. One glaring state is missing from those numbers. No one bothered to put the ball in the endzone.

The defense performed as expected. Jay Cutler threw for 312 yards and two TDs. Matt Forte was a one man wrecking crew. He ran for 68 yards on 16 carries and caught 90 yards on 5 receptions that included a 56 yard TD.

The Falcons management built the team with a fundamental flaw. They build an offense capable of scoring on the ground with Michael Turner and move the ball through the air with Matt Ryan and his receivers. The problem occurs when a opponent is able to score a high number of points while the defense holds the Falcons in check. In this case, the Bears offense slowly built up to a 23-6 lead in the 3rd. The mighty Falcon offense racked up the yards but the mighter Bear defense only allowed field goals and even scored TD to make matters worse. The Falcons were again exposed by a team with balanced with talent on both sides of the ball.

Ironically, it was the Falcons defense that actually scored the team's sole touchdown.

Chiefs In A World of Hurt
Most fans and pigskin pundits know the preseason means nothing in translating into regular season play. The majority though thought the Chiefs problems would carry over. They were exactly right. What wasn't expected was the week one embarrassment. The Chiefs lead the league in rushing last season. The Buffalo Bills were one of the worst five teams in the league. The Bills ripped the Chiefs 41-7. Many expected a step back for the Chiefs playing a harder schedule as a division winner. A step back is fine but not against weaker teams.

Weekly Awards
Line of the Week
32 completions on 48 attempts for 517 yards and 4 TDs - Tom Brady in a Pats 38-24 win over the 'phins.

JaMarcus Russell Player of the Week (formerly the Vince Young Player of the Week)
Donovan McNabb for his outstanding JaMarcus like numbers. 7 for 15 for 39 yards and a touchdown. Very below average.

Joe Pisarcik Goat of the Week
Tony Romo - when the game is on the line you don't want the ball in Romo's bubbling hands. First he fumbled in trying to drive into the endzone. Trying to score isn't a sin in of itself. Losing the ball in a close game is a mortal sin though. Romo did better for an encore. In crunch time he lofted a ball straight into the waiting hands of Darrell Revis. Finally, in the closing seconds he walks away from the center and is not ready for the ball when it is hiked. Each sin isn't much alone but when they occur in closing moments they add up to disaster. Dallas loses the game due to special team blunder and Romo blunders.

NFL 2011 Week One Picks

2011-09-11T02:42:00.001-05:00

Again I'm trying for a full season of picks against the spread. As usual the rules are the same. First rule, these picks are made only for fun. In fact I make picks to show why you shouldn't bet. Second rule is more a disclaimer: make your bets based on my selections at your own risk. I'm not liable for you following my stupidity.

Now the rules for my game. In past seasons, I've made my picks based on the link of Fox Sports Odds. In the past, spreads from four books were given. This year it's three books. If all three odds are the same then those are the odds I go with. If not then majority wins and I pick for or against the majority spread. In the event that all three odds makers are different, I will post a link to the fourth randomly selected Google search to break any tie. I also reserve the right not to make a selection on a game. Finally, if no odds are given I can't make a pick.

Obviously the Thursday opener is in the books so I can't make that pick. Here we go!

Pittsburgh (+1) at Baltimore - Always a tough game to call. There is no love lost between these two teams and the Black and Blue Division second place team might not make the play offs. In their last two Super Bowl appearances the Steelers have faltered. Ravens defense is aging. To me this is a pick em...I'm going with the home team...Ravens

Atlanta at Chicago - all three books have a different spread. Tie break time. Google search yielded NFL Odds and broke the tie with the Falcons (-2) a road favorite. I see a Bears win out right.

Cincinnati (+7) at Cleveland - Both teams are a mess. Cleveland's a more organized mess but game should be tighter than 7 either way. Bengals cover.

Indianapolis (+9) at Houston - NFL Odds broke a tie. Houston whipped Indy at home but lost on the road. Peyton Manning out for the season, probably, and Arian Foster sits. To much emotion involved but I think the Texans win handily.

Tennessee (+1) at Jacksonville - I really want to pass on this game. Both teams are a mess but I think the Titans are going in the opposite direction of the Jags. Titans

Buffalo (+5) at Kansas City - Chief

Philadelphia (-3.5) at St. Louis - Tons of hype around the Eagles and they might overlook the Rams in week one. Rams

Carolina (+7) at Arizona - This a dangerous pick. I want to take a pass but I'm going to take the Cards only because the Panthers are a really lost team at quarterback.

Minnesota (+8.5) at San Diego - my first pass of the season. Chargers just start to slow out of the gate to warrant a selection.

Seattle (+5) at San Francisco - If the Seahawks would start a warm body at quarterback I'd favor them. I want to a pass on this too but I'll take 49ers

NY Giants (-3) at Washington - Giants

Dallas (+6) at NY Jets - I think Jets win but Dallas covers.

New England (-7) at Miami - Tony Sparono and crew are already auditioning for next week. Home crowd gives enough energy to Dolphins at least cover.

Oakland (+3) at Denver - pass

Houston Cougar Game Day 2 vs. North Texas Mean Green

2011-09-08T22:23:00.000-05:00

Date: September 10, 2011

Time: 6:00 p.m. CDT

Location: Apogee Stadium on UNT Campus

Denton, TX

Radio: 790 AM (Houston, TX)

TV: ESPN3.com

Last Meeting: 1998 Houston 31 UNT 9

All Time Series : UNT leads 7-5

Welcome

The Houston Cougars travel to Denton, TX to help the University of North Texas open their brand spanking new Apogee Stadium. How or why the Coogs were invited to open up is unknown to me. Hopefully though it is a glimpse into the future of the Cougars. With $60 million of $80 million needed to break ground pledges, the Cougars hope to soon open a new stadium too.

There's really not much to say about the game except the Cougars can't afford a let down. The betting line is 21.5 in favor of the Coogs. Under former coach Todd Dodge, the Mean Green were a complete mess. Dodge was fired midseason after a 1-6 start. The Green finished 3-9 under interim head coach Darryl Dickey.

A new stadium, a new coach, same old results. UNT dropped the opener to FIU 41-6.

After a big game against UCLA, the Coogs should breeze to an easy victory. The main thing is to avoid a let down, get a big lead and get the starters out of there to rest and avoid injury.

Not much more to add but Go Coogs!

Avenged - Houston 38 UCLA 34

2011-09-03T22:37:00.052-05:00

It wasn't the beat down that the 2009 Rice game was. Nor the resounding thrashing of the 2010 UTEP game but the Houston Cougars extracted a measure of revenge on the UCLA Bruins for an upsetting game in the Rose Bowl last year.

Case Keenum returned to form. So did the Houston defense.

Sam Khan, Jr. described the crowd best with the term raucous in his article about the Cougars win. Fans of all ages were fired up for the game. The student section sold out and was loud and proud. The announce crowd tallied at 31,144. Not sure if it's an official sell out but good to see the home town fans show up. In the past a game like this might get 28,000 or might not.

Cougar of the Game
Case Keenum - He returned as if never injured. With the Coog WR/RBs scorching the UCLA Bruins, Keenum amassed 310 yards passing and added another 30 running. He also tossed one TD. He continues his assault on the NCAA record book.

Troubling Stat of the Game
554 total yard by the Bruins offense. Head coach Kevin Sumlin did say the Bruins offense contained "some of the biggest humans we'll see." I don't know if he was talking about the big uglies upfront but the Bruin TE and WR corp gave the Cougars fits all game long. When not hitting his receivers down field for big gains, UCLA quarterback Richard Brehaut gashed them on the ground.

Not all was lost defensively. Like I started on the Game Day 1 entry, if the defense can make some key stops and give the ball back to the offense, things might turn out different.

First off, despite the yardage, the Coog Mad Dogs recovered one fumble early in the game. That turnover lead to a touchdown.

In the closing minutes of the first half is where the defense made its key stop and pretty much turned the game in the Cougars favor. Brehaut completed a 5 yard TD and the Bruins closed the gap to 17-14 with 2:49 left in the half. In the matter of 3 plays and under a minute the Coogs widen the lead to 24-14. With 1:56 left, the Bruins had time to work. The Cougars give up a first down but then hold on the next three plays forcing UCLA to punt. Keenum and Company take possession with 35 ticks left on the half clock. They needed only three plays, including a UCLA pass interference call, to put the ball in the endzone to Tyron Carrier. Houston closes out the half up 31-14 thanks to one defensive stop.

Kicking Is Key
There was a total of one Bruin fans sitting in my section. His recurring theme during the game was Bruin kicking game is an adventure. Line drive extra point after line drive extra point, I expected a missed PAT. It never happened. Then came the 4th quarter. Despite the yardage total, the defense made a stop and UCLA decided to kick the FG. The kicker, Kip Smith, finally put some height on the kick but he still missed. I knew it was no good as soon as the student section behind the goal posts went wild before the ref's signal. A blocked extra point finally came after the Bruins cut the Cougar lead to four. Despite all else, the game came down to two botched kicks by UCLA...a missed FG plus blocked extra point equals the difference in a 38-34 contest.

The Highlights and Other Videos
Game Highlights

Coach Sumlin's Post Game Press Conference

Keenum's Post Game Comments

Coach Sumlin's Motivational Video

UCLA Head Coach Rick Neuhisel's Post Game Comments

Houston Cougar Game Day 1 vs UCLA - Links Dump

2011-08-30T16:19:00.003-05:00

Just dumping a few links in anticipation of the Houston vs. UCLA match up on Saturday.

University of Houston vs. UCLA Game notes

Conference USA Week One Notes

From The Houston Chronicle:

Case Stories: Keenum Once Kicked A 47 Yard FG

Faith, Family, Friends Help UH's Keenum Bounce Back From Injury

UH, Central Florida Set To Make More Headlines in C-USA

Houston Cougars Game Day 1 - vs. UCLA Bruins

2011-08-26T21:46:00.005-05:00

Date: September 3, 2011
Time: 2:30 p.m.
Location: John O'Quinn Field at Roberston Stadium
University of Houston
TV: Fox Sports
Radio: 790 AM (Houston)
Last Meeting: 2010 @ UCLA 31 Houston 13

Revenge Match

The Houston Cougars entered the 2010 season with high expectations. The Cougars had a highly successful 2009 season that saw victories over #5 Oklahoma St., Texas Tech and Mississippi St. The Cougars took a late season tumble that ended with losses in the Conference USA title game and the Armed Forces Bowl. The loss to Air Force in the bowl game was especially bitter to fans and star UH QB Case Keenum. Keenum threw 6 interceptions in the game.

UH opened the 2010 season with resounding wins over Texas St. (68-28) and UTEP (54-24). The wins also returned the Cougars to the national rankings entering the game with the Bruins.

However the UTEP game only foreshadowed a more ominous injury against UCLA. In the 3rd quarter against the Miners, Keenum threw a pick and attempted to make a tackle. Keenum missed and was injured on the play. It was later revealed he sustained a concussion.

Fast forward to the next game versus UCLA. Things were already going bad for the Coogs. Down 21-3, Keenum threw an interception to Akeem Ayers and again attempted a tackle. The results of that one player devastated the Houston season. Keenum and the hopes of Cougar fans everywhere lay crumpled on the turf of the Rose Bowl.

Case Keenum tore his ACL and the hearts of Cougar fans. The injury ended Keenum's college career, his assault on the UH and NCAA record book, the Cougars hopes of crashing the BCS and dreams of a wonderful season.

To add insult to injury, Keenum's primary back up Cotton Turner sustained a season injury also. The injuries thrust true freshman Terrance Broadway into the fire and the starting line up a week later.

In the last two seasons, Houston prevailed on revenge games. In 2008, crosstown arch-rival Rice knocked the Cougars out of the C-USA title game and the 2009 Cougars responded with a 73-14 thrashing of the Owls. In 2009, UTEP burst the bubble of the Coogs. The Cougars were coming off back to back wins over #5 Oklahoma St. and Texas Tech then lost to UTEP. The 2010 Cougars retaliated with a 54-24 beat down.

Coming off a bitter 5-7 season, the Coogs hope to get a second shot at the 2010 season. Well not really. The schedule plays much easier than 2010. However, Case Keenum attained a sixth year of eligibility from the NCAA. The offense returns a high powered attack lead by WRs Patrick Edwards and Tyron Carrier. The Coogs also return stud running backs Bryce Beall and Michael Hayes. RB Charles Sims returns after sitting out his sophomore season. The NCAA ruled Sims ineligible academically for the 2010 season. Sims (2009) and Beall (2008) are former C-USA Freshman of the Year.

Finally a word about the defense. If the Coogs defense leaps to the middle tier of NCAA defenses then the season becomes a much more promising one. The defense doesn't even have to make a giant leap statistically. If they can make just a few more stops a game and get Keenum and Company the ball back, the Coogs will soar in 2011.

Houston Cougars Basketball - Fall 2010/Spring 2011 Signees - Jherrod Stiggers

2011-08-04T02:12:00.000-05:00

Continuing to meet the new Houston Cougar basketball signees, welcome Jherrod Stiggers from Terrell, TX. Reports list Stiggers as a 200 lb. shooting guard. According the release from the University, Stiggers averaged 18.4 points per game and named the 15-4A move valuable player.

Stiggers joined the Cougars in the early signing period last fall.

Rivals rates Stiggers a 3-star recruit while Scout ranks him a 2-star recruit. ESPN also rates Stiggers with 3-stars and gives him a 91 grade. The 91 score reflects him as a Mid-Major Prospect on the ESPN Grading Scale. Follow the links for more information on Stiggers.

Jherrod Stiggers Summer Mixtape; University of Houston Commit

Find more videos like this on BALLISLIFE - It's More Than A Game, It's A Lifestyle

NFL Lock Out Update

2011-07-12T11:55:00.000-05:00

I've written post about the lock out from the perspective of sitting at the negotiating table myself. I'm a union steward for my shop and represented the employees in contract talks with the company I work for. Fortunately we were not in a lock out situation like the players.

The other thing to consider is that the NFL labor situation is unique and different than the private sector. Basically it is a group of workers negotiating a collective bargaining agreement. In the private sector that CBA pretty much sets working conditions and pay. Pay is the key difference between the two types of CBAs. My CBA sets wages, a wage scale and raises. In the professional sports world, pay is individually negotiated by agents as well as pay raises and other perks. There are some guidelines on what can and cannot be included in an individual contract. There is a player standard contract that meets minimum requirements and spells out certain expectations like player conduct. Finally, the league office and the players union must also sign off on it.

According to the latest reports, both sides have reached tentative agreements on most the major issues. The two outstanding issues are the rookie wage scale and an issue with free agency.

As for the rookie wage scale, some basic parameters have been set but how many rookies will it affect and the length of contracts they can sign appear to be the issues. The owners want to include several first round picks in the draft subject to the scale. Since there is a gentlemen's agreement on slotting rookie contracts, they only need to agree where the scale starts and how many players it covers. After that, by the slotting system, the scale trickles down to the lower drafted players.

There is a good side bar in an ESPN.com story on the rookie wage scale. I highly recommend reading it. I can't do it justice trying to explain it here.

I think the rookie wage scale is workable. I can't see how it would scuttle the rest of the agreement. The biggest issue, the revenue split, is agreed upon. That was the issue that potentially could have shortened or canceled the season. With that out of the way, unless some boneheaded owners dig in, the CBA should be done soon. Keep in mind it only takes a few owners to sink the agreement. To ratify the deal, 24 out of 32 owners need to approve the deal. It will take 9 owners to sink an agreement.

The Dead Days of Summer

2011-07-10T00:53:00.000-05:00

I have nothing new to add thus no entries lately.

The Astros are atrocious. The best I can do is start to scan the minor league system for looking for something to clasp onto in desperate hope for the future.

The Texans still concern me. I still want to know who is going to play linebacker. I'm not sold on Connor Barwin as a LB. They are going into the new season with the same defensive backs. If there is a new season.

I pretty much could careless if the NBA locks out, folds and goes away for ever.

So right now I'm keeping myself entertained with soccer. I watched the Gold Cup, some of the women's World Cup and the Dynamo.

At the very least I'm looking forward to college football and the Return of Case Keenum to my Houston Cougars.

No blog entry for a while because really not much to blog about.

Houston Cougars Basketball - Fall 2010/Spring 2011 Signees

2011-05-15T01:40:00.002-05:00

Recruiting - the life blood of college sports. Cougars head coach James Dickey continues to build his squad with nine total scholarships to give in the fall and spring signing periods. The 2010-11 class features five freshman, two junior college transfers and one NCAA Division 1 transfer. The Cougars have one more scholarship to give by May 18.

Fall 2010
Jonathan Simmons (Smiley H.S./Midland J.C.)
Jherrod Stiggers (Terrell H.S.)
TaShawn Thomas (Killeen H.S.)
J.J. Thompson (Irving H.S.)
Joseph Young (Yates H.S.)

Spring 2011
LaRon Barnes (Desoto H.S., Stonewall, LA)
Leon Gibson (Navaro J.C.)
J.J. Richardson (Pitt/Smiley H.S.)

This page entry is a work in progress. I'll be adding highlights, stats, news and other news on the recruits as time permits.

Joseph Young - Guard, Freshman

Yates High School, Houston, TX

Young originally signed a national letter of intent with Providence but later asked for a release. Providence refused the release when Young decided to transfer to Houston. He sat out the 2010-11 season but was able to practice with the team. He will still have four years of eligibility when he starts play in 2011-12.

Links

University of Houston Player Bio

ESPN U 100 Player - Bio

Browns Get One Over On Falcons

2011-04-30T04:04:00.000-05:00

In the boldest move of the 2011 draft, the Atlanta Falcons traded a boat load of picks to the Cleveland Browns for WR Julio Jones.

Why do I think the overpaid? The Falcons need more defensive help than offensive help. To wit, last year's playoff loss to eventual champs Green Bay Packers. The offense already features RB Michael Turner, QB Matt Ryan, WR Roddy White and TE Tony Gonzales.

Further proof the trade is all wrong? SI.com's resident hack Peter King defends the pick.

Unless the Falcons win the Super Bowl in the next three years this trade can wreck the franchise for a few years. A team can't give up that many draft picks and not feel the pinch down the road. If they do win a title, the all is vindicated.

That's my opening salvo on the draft.

Houston Cougars - 2012 Recruit Terrence Taylor

2011-03-13T01:51:00.003-06:00

Terrence Taylor of Diboll High School
RB - Junior
Class of 2012
Verbally committed to Houston

Career Stats

	Rushing				Receiving
Year	Att	Yds	Avg	TD	No	Yds	Avg	TD
2010 (Jr.)	170	1,224	7.2	22	4	162	40.5	2
2009 (So.)	232	1,276	5.5	14	8	93	11.6	0
2008 (Fr.)	29	279	9.6	3	-	-	-	-

Highlights from Hudl.com: Terrence Taylor Highlights

More Highlights:

Diboll High School vs. Athens High School Terrence Taylor Highlights

Houston Cougars - Spring Football Edition

2011-03-05T18:50:00.003-06:00

2010 - A Lost Year

The Houston Cougars return to the practice field after a disappointing 2010 season that saw BCS dreams shattered along with Heisman trophy candidate Case Keenum's season against UCLA Bruins. The play ended the season and seemingly the collegiate career of Keenum. Keenum's back up Cotton Turner also sustained a season ending injury in the same game and Terrance Broadway was thrust into his first action.

Broadway started the first post Keenum game against Tulane and struggled but the Cougars prevailed. Broadway would never start again and only see mop up duty thereafter. Fellow true freshman David Piland started the remainder of the season. Broadway transferred at season's end.

The Coogs never really got back on track and failed to qualify for a bowl game.

2011 - A Do Over?

Keenum declared during the season that he would apply for a medical redshirt and a sixth year of eligibility. The NCAA rarely grants medical redshirts. In order to gain one, a player must prove that a second season was lost due to injury. An initial reshirt year for any reason counts against a player's five years to use four years of eligibility. Keenum sat out his freshman year and Kevin Kolb was the starter.

The Cougars were able to prove that Keenum sustained an injury his freshman year. The NCAA took that injury and the current one as evidence that entitled Keenum to one more year.

The Cougars followed up Keenum's good news with 2011 recruiting class that looked to fill holes on defense and build depth on the offensive line. On defense the Coogs signed 12 players including six from the JUCO ranks. Coach Kevin Sumlin also added bulk up front on defense and offense. For the complete list of players and bios, they are listed at the official Houston Cougars athletic website 2011 Recruiting Class.

Today was the first day of spring practice. So in honor of the day, I present the first link dump of Houston Cougar football.

Houston Cougar Spring Football Official Website

2011 UH Cougars Spring Roster

2011 UH Cougars Spring Depth Chart
Players on team but not listed on two deep due to injury:QB Case Keenum, LB John McIntyre, DB Zach McMillian, DL Zeke Riser, DB Nick Saenz and DL Radermon Scypion

Day #1 Photos

Day #1 Notes from UHCougars.com

From the Houston Chronicle:
Five Things to Watch

New UH beat writer Sam Kahn's Blog
Spring Football Set To Begin for Cougars

NFL and Players In Mediation

2011-02-19T21:05:00.002-06:00

Previously I gave my perspective on the bargaining process. To reiterate, deal making usually happens in the last days of negotiations and sometimes take a few days past the deadline by extending the existing CBA for 24-48 hours. That usually happens when sides are very close to a deal and just have a few things to iron out.

Entering mediation for the final two weeks of the current deal looks like a positive step. It signals that both sides are serious about working a deal out. Things didn't look so good when two days were scheduled and the second day was canceled.

George Cohen is tasked with bringing the two sided to an agreement. Cohen isn't unfamiliar with sports CBA negotiations. He handled the MLS and MLS players union and they ultimately got a deal done.

Of course, the NFL is a much bigger fish. Billions of dollars are at stake and neither side wants to give in.

Cohen's job will be to make recommendations and try and find a middle ground.

Psychologically it helps the sided more agreeable to new ideas. If it comes from an outside neutral party then the two sides can view that the other side didn't make the proposal. Maybe both parties will be more at ease accepting ideas from a third party versus one side basically making demands and the other side rejecting it.

An article on George Cohen linked by Stephanie Stradley.

I haven't read the blog yet but John McClain states the positives of mediation in his blog.

They met two days already but are under a gag order so news is coming out of the conferences. The talks are planned for two weeks. Each day they negotiate the odds get better a deal will get done. If talks are called off then a work stoppage is extremely likely.

All us fans can do is hope for the best and prepare for a draft watching party.

Marc Savard Shuts It Down

2011-02-09T01:55:00.002-06:00

Boston Bruin veteran Marc Savard shut down the remainder of his 2010-11 season due to lingering effects from a concussion.

This is the right decision on so many levels. In the middle of a strong Bruins season, Savard put his health above all else. The Bruins are a Stanley Cup contender and Savard has never won a Cup.

Props go out to the Bruins too for not putting pressure on Savard to continue. Savard discussed his situation with his agent, general manager and team doctor. They all agreed that ending the season early was in the best interest of Savard. The best interests of Savard...that sound refreshing.

Savard feels he came back to soon from a previous concussion. He suffered dizziness, headaches and depression. He admits he is scared. What scares him the most is the memory loss. He also admits that frustration sets but knows he needs time and patience to get through this.

While he is finished for the season, Savard won't call it a career yet. He said it is tough to finish a season but "I'm hoping to be able to continue at some point."

After making this decision, I have no doubt he will make the right one regarding his life, health and hockey career when the time comes.

My Insights Into NFL Labor Negotiations

2011-02-07T09:20:00.002-06:00

I'm not going to rehash all the points reported and discussed in the media. Instead I'm going to offer my basic insight on labor negotiations. Last year I sat on the union side of the table as a negotiator for a new labor contract with the company I work for. It was very stressful, tiring and educational.

The first point to realize is that March 3rd is not a hard deadline. It is common practice in my industry to renew the current contract on a rolling basis during negotiations. If negotiations are progressing and the deadline looms, both parties usually mutually agree to renew the existing contract every 24 hours. This allows negotiations to continue beyond the deadline and avoid a work stoppage.

Another point to consider is that most deal making gets done in the last two weeks. My sessions met constantly for six weeks but the meat and potatoes wasn't really nailed down until the final three weeks. Right now some wonder why there is no sense of urgency between the two sides. There is but right now they are involved in waging the war of public relations. Saturday before the Super Bowl they had a formal full session between both negotiating committees. Expect more frequent meetings after the Super Bowl. Most of the deal making gets done off the record as evidence by informal meetings between NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and NFLPA executive director DeMaurice Smith.

Both sides know the parameters of what they will accept and won't accept. It's a giant game. Both sides overshoot what they are seeking and eventually look to meet in that middle common ground. As an example, in my negotiations we knew already what we going to get as raises for the length of the new contract. We have an industry standard and the union and company know the standard is the outcome. Yet we over shot the standard and of course the company lowballed their offer. In the course of two days, offers and counter offers were passed over the negotiating table and we eventually met at the industry standard. Why this game is played I really don't know. I just know from first hand experience that it is.

The bottom line is that the NFL is a cash cow for both sides. The owners want a little more of the revenue back and I can't say I blame them. The players want to keep what they won in previous negotiations. I can't blame them either. I think the players will end up giving back some of the revenue but not as much as the owners want. In return, they will get a rookie scale to free up more money for vets instead of unproven high picks. Also I think the owners will give more benefits or money for retired players.

If there is a work stoppage, it will be over free agency, salary caps and maybe a cadre of hardline owners who will refuse to bend any toward the players demands.

I read in a Sporting News Daily article that the owners can start imposing work rules on players once the deadline passes. The players can stop it by appealing to the National Labor Board. From what I understand this is not true. The owners can only impose new rules on the players if negotiations reach an impasse. For impasse to occur, the NFLPA must show an unwillingness to make any movement or progress in negotiations. As long as they continue to negotiate in good faith, owners cannot declare an impasse. A lock out is not impasse. An lock out is the owners refusing to allow the players to return to work without a new contract or renewal of the old one. During the lock out, negotiations could continue and make progress.

In the end, both sides will not shoot the golden goose. They will get a deal done before the draft and camps will open on time. Of course, that's just my opinion. There could be a complete meltdown across the table. Hot heads might prevail and gum up the process.

Central Florida, Houston and the Big East

2011-01-30T20:42:00.004-06:00

I'm so far behind on my magazine subscriptions and other reading that I've finally decided to drop many of them and read a select few. Still just getting caught up on the ones I have.

One of my favorite publications in the Sporting News Daily. It gives a ton of sports info for only $2.99 a month and is digitally delivered. My only beef with them is other than an iPad, no other portable device supports the Zinio reader.

Enough of that little rant.

I mentioned Zino, delayed reading and Sporting News Daily because I came across an interesting little blurb.

Much speculation has been making the rounds on the Houston Cougar message boards, fans and internet about Big East expansion. Of course we all know that if it's on the internet it must be true.

So I take the blurb on the January 28th Sporting News Daily with a grain of salt.

One of the unconfirmed theories floated by Cougar fans and speculators is that Villanova, Central Florida and Houston are the next choices for Big East expansion. The current thinking is Villanova has a foot up on the other schools should they decided to commit to a BCS level football team. If they don't then its Houston or Central Florida.

Again, unfounded as far as I know, Big East member South Florida is rumored to lobby against Central Florida's membership.

Sporting News Daily reports that USF doesn't wield the power to keep UCF out. The article states instead "there is no school in the Big East with less power, less of commissioner John Marinatto's ear, than USF." According to the article and internet rumor, it's not USF that is UCF's biggest stumbling block. What hurts UCF instead is the close location of USF. The location doesn't add significant recruiting or television markets.

The article mentions in the last paragraph that Houston brings the No. 4 market and a recruiting hotbed. Again, no mention that Houston is actually in the expansion picture but it adds fuel to the fire of internet speculation.

The Return of Keenum

2011-01-15T00:52:00.007-06:00

I seriously doubted that the NCAA would grant Houston Cougar quarterback Case Keenum a sixth year of eligibility. Under NCAA rules, an athlete has five years to complete four years of competition. Most players use the freshman year to use the so called red shirt year. During a red shirt year, an athlete may practice and attend meetings but cannot enter competition. Once a player enters a contest, even if for one player, that red shirt year is over and it counts against eligibility rules.

Normally to get a medical red shirt, basically a sixth year to complete four years of competition, a player must demonstrate that two years were lost to circumstances beyond his control...mainly injury.

Case Keenum took a red shirt his freshman year as a back up to Kevin Kolb and maybe Blake Joseph (I really don't remember). The injury he suffered against UCLA happened during his fourth year as an active player and fifth year of eligibility. Basically most Cougar fans knew that Keenum's career at UH was over and the season was lost. Houston limped to a 5-7 finish.

The University's announcement that Keenum applied for a sixth year met some hope but mostly skepticism.

On Friday, the University of Houston announced that the NCAA granted Keenum one more year of eligibility.

The UH athletic department reportedly gave evidence to the NCAA that Keenum was hurt before his freshman year and later hurt again during an all star high school game. The injuries prevented Keenum from competing his freshman year. Combined with his 2010 injury, Keenum lost two years and thereby met the NCAA's requirement.

Without further delay, here is the media reaction/documentation of Keenum's return.

1560 AM's Travis Rodger's Interview of Keenum
Case Scores Six - Houston Chronicle
Little Dicky Justice Writes a Niiiiice Column for Case
Official University of Houston Announcement
SB Houston- He's Baaaack
Houston Sports Fan In General Scott Robinson Celebrates Some Houston Good News

And Keenum's Press Conference:

Updated 1/17/2011
Evil Longwhorn Steve Campbell's Chron Blog on Case's Return

Keenum's Interview on Sports Radio 610

NFL Week 11 - Yeah Yeah Yeah

2010-12-01T14:56:00.002-06:00

I try to write a weekly NFL column. Work and the Texans funks I go into sometimes keep me from it. Sometimes I just flat out get lazy.

The Big Topic - Andre Johnson vs. Cortland Finnegan
By now it is obvious that Johnson and Finnegan don't like each other. All that came to a head last week when Johnson pretty much kicked Finnegan's ass. Evidently they had been jawing at each other all game. The play before the fight there was a little pushing and shoving between the two. The next play Finnegan shoved his hands under Johnson's face mask and Johnson ripped Finnegan's helmet off and proceeded to connect three times to the head.

Being a Texans fan, I'm biased. I'm not going to hide that fact.

However, I don't blame Johnson one bit for going after Finnegan. If he is getting some cheap shots, at some point enough is enough and you have to send a message. Finnegan has a reputation for being a dirty player. Is he? I don't really know. He is feisty, pesky and a runt. It was probably a combination of things that got Johnson angry. Finnegan probably began with head games, which I'm sure most defensive backs do, and started mixing in some borderline tactics.

I'll pretty much sum up the fight this way: it was like a hockey brawl. In the NHL, most teams employ an enforcer, goon or tough guy. This guys sole job is to be a pain in the ass and rough up the star players. At some point, the other team sends in their enforcer to either retaliate against the other teams star or the enforcer himself. The enforcers eventually square off, drop gloves and go at it. For some strange reason, it is ingrained in NHL culture. Despite what NHL powers say about cleaning up the game, fighting remains an integral part of the sport. It doesn't happen every game but the potential for a fight exists at every game.

Fortunately, fighting isn't part of NFL culture. No team has a goon to go head hunting on for the other teams stars. No goons face off to send a message. But every once in a while, tempers do fly and fights happen.

This thing between Johnson and Finnegan had been brewing for three years. It finally reached a point where they dropped gloves and went at it. Finnegan accomplished what he wanted by getting Johnson ejected. Johnson accomplished his goal of beating Finnegan's ass. A fair trade off. Finnegan was also ejected.

A corollary topic has been about commissioner Roger Goodell's meting out of punishment. The consensus among the shows I've listened to and the articles I read is that there is no rhyme or reason on how Goodell decides punishments. Fines, suspensions or a mixture, there is no hard rule. It seems arbitrary at times.

The other consensus is that if Goodell suspended Finnegan he would have also had to suspend Johnson. I honestly believe both should have been suspended. Johnson knocked Finnegan's helmet off and landed three hits to the head. That alone should warrant suspension. Finnegan had three prior fines. On the third one he should have been suspended and any further incidents increase fine and at least one game suspension.

Instead the Commish issued a slap on the wrist to both and let bygones be bygones. The fines send no message to other players about fighting. Game suspensions are the best way to get a player's attention. They don't get paid for those games. Plus he knows it hurts the team by his absence. Sometimes letting your teammates down and their anger is enough to keep one in line.

NFL Week 8 - Moss Gone

2010-11-02T14:54:00.004-05:00

I'm back from vacation and ready to bring up the quality of this blog for the rest of the year. I've been writing subpar columns from what I used to write in my opinion.

Moss is Gone
Randy Moss literally talked his way off the Minnesota Vikings and probably the NFL (at least for the season). The Vikings placed Moss on waivers after his one catch for 8 yards performance against the Patriots.

Last week the NFL fined Moss $25,000 for not making himself available to weekly media interviews. There is an interview clause in the standard player contract. Players must make themselves available, usually teams arrange a specific day once a week, for interviews. The moody Moss sat his day away from media day.

After the Vikings vs. Patriots game, he claimed he will only conduct interviews with himself. He went on to say how much he missed the Pats and Bill Belichick. On Monday, head coach Brad Childress informed the players that Moss no longer played for the Vikings.

Moss actually talked his way off two teams this season. The Patriots were not to pleased with his performance or his rambling, long winded, self important press conference after opening week games.

The Vikings paid a big price for Moss. A third round may not seem steep on the surface but it is. The third round usually is where teams try to fill depth on the roster and occasionally an immediate contributor. Instead the Vikings received a three game rental for Moss.

The move was just the latest in a season gone awry for the Vikings. Brett Favre started the season with his usual drama queen act. Then came the off field allegations of Favre's behavior. His on field performance nose dived from last year. The defense hasn't played at the same level as last year either. Mix in the Moss fiasco and the Vikings place second after Dallas in the underachieving category.

McNabb Benched
The Redskins are one of more storied NFL programs. That is until Daniel Snyder took over. Since then the 'skins are now pretty much a joke.

I figured the hiring of Mike Shanahan might bring some stability to the organization. Instead it's more of the same. First, while not entirely Shanahan's doing, came the Fat Albert Haynesworth fiasco.

This week Shanahan added more fuel to the burning franchise. Late in the game, old rat face benched starter Donovan McNabb and inserted the Sex Cannon Rex Grossman. The move proved an utter failure. Sexy Rex fumbled the first snap and Detroit rookie Ndamukong Suh returned it for a game ensuring touchdown.

Shanahan's reasoning in the post game presser? McNabb didn't have the two minute offense down. Oh really? That speaks volumes about Shanahan's coaching. McNabb has been a Redskin since last Easter. He's had since the with OTAs, camping and preseason as well as in season practice to learn it. Either McNabb is stupid, which isn't the case. He ran a variation of the West Coast offense for Andy Reid in Philly. Or Shanahan isn't a very good instructor.

Yesterday Shanahan backtracked from his statements. He claimed that McNabb had leg injuries and "cardiovascular endurance" issues. What? So now McNabb isn't in shape? Again I find that hard to believe.

For whatever reason, Shanahan made the decision in game that Grossman gave him the best chance to win. Hard to believe but what other reason is there other than Shanahan's ineptitude? One thing Shanahan is not know for is his personnel evaluation. After he won a power struggle over his general manager in Denver, he assumed control of all personnel decisions. He ended up getting fired and leaving the Broncos a mess on defense.

Now it looks like Snyder may have made another bad coaching hire and the 'skins continue the downward spiral.

Dallas Karma
I think I'll leave the Dallas Karma bit its own entry.

Raheem Morris Not Over His Head
Last year there was much said and written about Raheem Morris in over his head as the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Many pundits thought Morris was one and done in Tampa. He fired his offensive coordinator before the season started. He fired the defensive coordinator midseason and took over the defense calls himself. Many saw that as signs of disarray and a sinking ship.

Fast forward to this year and the Bucs are sitting at 5-2 and in contention in the NFC South. It looks to me that Morris is anything but in over his head.

It's just another reason to not listen to the talking heads in the media. If they new what they were talking about they would be making money in football and not watching and making stuff up.

Stat Line of the Week
The box score of the Green Bay versus NY Jets. The Packers won 9-0 on the strength of Mason Crosby's three field goals.
1st Quarter
FG 4:41 Mason Crosby 20 yd FG
Plays: 5 | Yards: 34 | Time: 1:51
4th Quarter
FG 6:36 Mason Crosby 41 yd FG
Plays: 8 | Yards: 34 | Time: 3:58
FG 0:27 Mason Crosby 40 yd FG
Plays: 4 | Yards: 1 | Time: 2:03

Player of the Week
David Garrard
I think this selection is more indicative of how far the Dallas Cowboys have fallen than how good a player Garrard is. Garrard has been down right awful and benched this season. Yet he was an efficient 17 of 21 passing for 260 yards and 4 TDs.

JaMarcus Russell Player of the Week
Matt Schaub
Schaub played a terrible game when the Texans had a chance to sweep the season series from the Colts and claim sole possession of first place in the AFC South. Instead he didn't show up and threw a costly pick six and fumbled on his last snap of the game.

Goat of the Week
Rex Grossman/Mike Shanahan
Grossman for fumbling the ball on the first snap and Shanahan for putting in a cold quarterback in the closing seconds of the game.

NFL Week 6 - Quarterback Roulette

2010-10-20T17:49:00.003-05:00

This year, so far, has been a revolving door for starting quarterbacks. I'm talking about the lack of performance benchings and not the injury changes.

Carolina, Oakland, Arizona, Philadelphia, Tennessee and Jacksonville are a few teams that benched the opening day starter for performance. Vince Young and David Garrard returned as starters the next week but Matt Moore, Jason Campbell and Derek Anderson didn't.

Carolina opted to start second round pick Jimmy Clausen and now will return to Moore. Switching out one quarterback for another though shouldn't make a difference on the misery of the Panthers. Clausen's 47% completion rate along with 5 turnovers is slightly better than Moore's 42% and 8 turnovers. Why the change then? Beats me. Probably wants to keep both quarterback's brains from turning to complete mush. The only way to do that is to not one all 16 games.

The Hex of JaMarcus Russell?
Detroit has the Curse of Bobby Layne. Does Oakland have the opposite effect in a jinx or hex? Did the franchise snake bit the quarterback position forever with the selection of JaMarcus Russell?

It's to early to tell if the Raiders quarterbacks are snake bitten. A hex, jinx or curse develops over time.

Despite the lack of evidence for a hex, something is going on at the quarterback spot. Jason Campbell went directly to the bench after a Russell like performance opening day. Campbell received another shot at the starting job due to injury. Campbell did his best JaMarcus Russell impersonation. He posted a line of 8 of 21 for 83 yards passing along with a 10.7 passer rating. Campbell is so bad that the Raiders are thinking of starting third stringer Kyle Boller against Denver.

As For the Eagles
Kevin Kolb went to the bench after an injury. Michael Vick stepped in as the starter. The unwritten rule is a player doesn't lose a starting job to injury. Kolb was expected back when he recovered. Head coach Andy Reid even named Kolb the starter. Then a day later Reid decided to go with Vick. And it paid off. Then Vick got hurt and now Kolb is starting again. Reid stated though that if Vick were healthy Vick would start.

The interesting thing about the Eagles quarterback shuffle is there is no animosity between the two nor in the locker room. Controversies usually divide a locker room as players back their favorite guy. By all accounts that's not the case at all in Philly.

According to SI.com's Peter King, the two quarterbacks respect and like each other. According to Kings account:

When Vick hugged Kolb after the game, he said to him, "I'm proud of you.'

I think both players realize that they will succeed somewhere in the NFL so there is no point undermining each other. Vick has lost it all once before due to off the field behavior. He's getting a second chance. If he gains a reputation in the locker room with an attitude or as a subversive player, he career is effectively over. No one will want to deal with him anymore. Kolb probably also realizes that he has many years ahead of him to play barring injury. He waited behind Donovan McNabb for his chance patiently. I think he's willing to wait it out a little bit more if he has to.

The Brett Favre Saga
I normally don't give any air time to Brett Favre and his off the field antics. He thrives on being a drama queen and hacks like Peter King eat it up.

So I'm limiting my words here. All I have to say about the latest reports and allegations concerning Favre is the whole affair is curious.

Why did Jenn Sterger wait a about two years to release the information about the photos and Favre? More odd is that she released the allegations but has been quiet since. She has made no public allegations of harassment nor filed a law suit. It appears that she just threw it out there to give someone a story. I have no clue to her motivation.

Box Score Line of the Week
Chris Ivory RB Saints
158 yards on 17 carries for a 10.5 average.
Considering this was only his fourth NFL game....outstanding

Player of the Week
E.J. Henderson MLB Vikings
Two interceptions that lead to ten points in the Vikings 24-21 victory against the Cowboys.

Joe Pisarcik Player/Coach of the Week
Todd Haley and Charlie Weis
In the closing minutes of the Texans vs. Chiefs game, on a 3rd & 2 the Chiefs passed. Matt Cassell overthrew the tight end. The incomplete pass stopped the clock, allowed the Texans to preserve a time out and eventually score the game winning touchdown with 28 seconds left.

JaMarcus Russell Player of the Week
As mentioned earlier, Jason Campbell did his best to out do Russell posting a 10.7 passer rating.

Houston Cougar Game Day 6 vs. Rice

2010-10-14T14:51:00.004-05:00

Houston Cougars vs. rice owls
October 16, 2010 2:30 p.m.
Rice Stadium

Last Meeting:
Houston 73 Rice 14
Houston leads series 26-10

Official UH Weekly Press Release
Evil Longhorn Steve Campbell's Notes
On The Job Training for Piland
Houston Chronicle's UH Notebook

Case Keenum Injury Watch
Keenum To Apply For Medical Redshirt

Last year's beat down of rice.

Houston 42 Tulane 23

2010-10-02T23:47:00.005-05:00

The Houston Cougars played the first post Case Keenum game. Under center was true freshman Terrance Broadway. The announced crowd 32,007 was technically a sell out but I figured about 22K was in actual attendance. The 2:30 p.m. kick off on an absolutely hot and humid day mixed with Keenum out for the year affected the attendance.

Regardless of the attendance, QB situation, heat and uncertainty of the rest of the season, the Cougars prevailed over the Tulane Green Wave 42-23. Broadway and the offense managed a 28-14 lead at halftime.

The hero of the game for the Coogs came on defense though. Cornerback Loyce Means intercepted two passes in the final six minutes to seal the game for the Coogs. The last pick he took to the endzone for a touchdown and put the Green Wave down for good. Means heroics earned him C-USA Defensive Player of the Week.

In Keenum's absence, Broadway went lead the Cougars to a 21-0 lead. However Broadway also fumbled twice and threw one interception. Junior running back Bryce Beall powered the Cougar offense with 123 yards on 24 carries with 4 going for TDs.

Houston 42 Tulane 23 Highlights

Houston Chronicle Recap
Houston vs. Tulane Box Score

Game Day Pictures
Houston Chronicle Pictures
Stephen Pinchback Photos
My Game Day Photos - coming soon

Case Keenum Injury Watch
Keenum Has Successful Surgery

Keenum's Surgeon Explains Injury

NFL Week 2 vs the Spread, Week 4 Picks

2010-10-02T21:08:00.002-05:00

I'm really late with the week two results and obviously I didn't post any week three picks. Sometimes that happens when you have a real job.

For the week I went 8-6-1 to bring my overall record to 15-12-4. So far I'm in the money if I'm betting equal amounts in all games. Not by much but the point is to win money not lose or tie.

Week Two Highlights
I don't review all my picks but I highlight some of the good and bad guesses I made.

This week's only push was the Texans (-3) vs Redskins. The Texans met the spread in overtime.

I expected the Vikings (-5.5) to beat the Dolphins but not cover. The Dolphins won outright and gave me the win.

I figured the Ravens (-3) offense would bounce back from the bad week against the Jets. I underestimated the Bengals based on their performance against the Patriots. This game went in the loss column.

The bookies gave Tennessee to much respect with a (-5.5) so I went with the Steelers. They delivered a win for me.

The Bucs (+3) I underestimated and overestimated the Panthers. The Bucs are slowly improving and the Panthers quarterback situation is chaos. Something to keep in mind with both teams when making selections for week four.

Patriots (-3) were humbled by the Jets. The Jets offense played at a higher level than against the Ravens. Put this one in the loss side of the ledger.

I thought the Giants (+5) would put up a better fight against the Colts. I should have known the Older Manning would be angry after losing the previous week in Houston. Giants are in a free fall.

Week 4 Picks
Jets (-6.5) @ Bills - A no brainer with the Jets.

Lions (+14.5) @ Packers - I noticed a couple of years ago that most double digit spreads are sucker bets. With really no numbers to back my theory up, I also see more double digit spread wins early in the season and less in later on. I'm very hesitant to take the Packers and two touchdowns. The only thing that swings this pick to the Packs is that Matthew Stafford is out. Packers

Ravens (+2.5) @ Steelers - Steelers defense is playing lights out with a healthy Troy Palomalu. The Ravens offense has only one good outing in three games. Take the Steelers.

Broncos (+6.5) at Titans - This is a tough pick and the type of selection that can make or break your week. I think this spread is a result of the lack of respect for Denver's defense. I think the score is closer in favor of the Broncos.

49ers (+7) @ Falcons - Atlanta is on a roll. A rout of the Cardinals in week two and a OT victory over the Saints. The 49ers are in a free fall. Falcons take this plus the points at home.

Bengals (-3) @ Browns - Wow, that low. I'm thinking more of -4 or -4.5 for the Bengals but -3 it is.

Panthers (+14) @ Saints - No comment. Saint

Seahawks (-2) @ Cardinals - I think Seattle is playing a better than the Cards so gut tells me Seahawks.

Texans (-3) @ Raiders - Texans need a rebound game after last week's very disappointing loss to the Cowboys. Raiders might put up a fight but Texans cover.

Colts (-7) @ Jaguars - Colts

Redskins (+5.5) @ Eagles - It's possibly going to be an unpredictable emotional game. Donovan McNabb has a chip on his shoulder after being traded to a divisional rival. The spread for this game ranges from 4.5 to 6 points. The majority was 5.5 so that is what I use. I'm going to take the Redskins in this one.

Cardinals (+9) at Chargers - I'd like to take a pass on this one but it's not sick enough to. I don't think the Chargers cover so take the Cardinals to keep it closer than 9.

Patriots (-1) @ Dolphins - I like the Dolphins at home.

NFL Week 3 - Singletary & 49ers Done?

2010-10-02T17:51:00.002-05:00

A firey head coach, Mike Singletary brought spirit and spunk to a listless 49ers team that continued its downward spiral under Mike Nolan. A midseason promotion from assistant head coach gave Singletary the remainder of the season as an audition. After the season he won the job outright.

The years under Nolan were finally were the ones the 49ers would make the playoffs. Singletary then brought the supposed fire and brimstone needed to jump start the niners to the next level. It didn't happen in 2009. It doesn't look like it's going to happen in 2010.

Three games into the season, the 49ers fired offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye. So the downward spiral continues.

Singletary is an inner your face, yelling kind of coach. He's old school tough. The players love him. The played inspire football for him early on. Singletary put his foot in talented but volatile TE Vernon Davis. Davis straightened out his attitude and now is one of the best and highest paid TEs. Michael Crabtree had a productive rookie year despite a lengthy hold out. Former #1 overall pick Alex Smith choose to take a pay cut and continue with the team. The defense absolutely loved Singletary.

Losing changes things. Singletary is still the same fire and brimstone coach. The problem becomes when do the players start tuning him out? Yelling and screaming can only get you so far. The bottom line in sports is winning. Players will put up with a lot if winning. Not so much if losing.

Albeit for different reasons, three players abruptly have left the team. Second year running back Glenn Coffee retire in August citing spiritual reasons. Kentwan Balmer took a leave an absence during training camp. Michael Lewis lost appears to have lost his starting job and now wants his outright release.

These only the cracks we see in the foundation. Who really knows what happens behind the scenes. Don't forget GM Scott McCloughan left suddenly with no real explanation in March.

A perfect storm might be brewing in San Francisco conspiring to the Singletary regime soon. The 49ers play in one of the weaker divisions and many already crowned them champs. The team has fallen short of expectations for years now. A few more losses and Singletary might get the boot. The schedule does no favors as they play at Atlanta and host Philadelphia. The 49ers might be 0-5 after that stretch with the Raiders coming across the Bay for a game. A loss or poor showing might just finish off Singletary.

Midseason coaching changes are rare but the 49ers have done it recently. Usually if a midseason change is coming, teams wait until the open date. Singletary might not make it that far.

Animal House Strikes, Again
Just when you think the NY Jets had things under control on and off the field, Braylon Edwards drags the team back into the spotlight again for the wrong reasons.

Police pulled Edwards over for having to dark a tint on his windows. The police ended up arresting Edwards on suspicion of driving under the influence.

The Jets decided to "punish" Edwards by benching him for a quarter in last week's game. GM Mike Tannenbaum stated the punishment wasn't for the DUI but for being out late. I think the one quarter time out made the Jets look foolish. I would have much more understood had the Jets said they will wait for the case to work through the legal system before deciding what to do with Edwards. The quarter sit down and the excuse it was for being out late make a mockery of the seriousness of the situation.

NFL Stat Line of the Week
Leon Washington - RB/KR Seattle
4 Kick off returns for a total of 253 yards, 2 TDs (101 and 99 yards) for an average of 63.3 yards per return.

NFL Player of the Week
After scoring only 10 points in each of the first two games, the Ravens finally found their offense. Anquin Bolden earns this week's award for 142 yards on 8 catches for 3 TDs to ignite a stagnated Ravens offense.

JaMarcus Russell Player of the Week
David Garrard - QB Jacksonville
A week after getting bench, Garrard responded with an anemic 13-30 passing for 105 yards. Behind Garrard's leadership, the Jags only managed a field goal.

Joe Pisarcik Player/Coach of the Week
Mike Singletary - Head Coach 49ers
I'm changing the award to make just about everybody eligible for this one...from GMs, coaches and players. Singletary wins this week due to the flat out awful performance against the Chiefs. The 49ers are a few more blow out loses away from an interim head coach.

NFL Week 2 - Clash of the Titans - Young vs. Fisher

2010-09-24T22:13:00.006-05:00

I've been side tracked all week so a major delay in my weekly NFL blog.

First game that comes to mind is the Titans vs. Steelers game. With Fat Ben out for four games, many thought a 2-2 record was a major accomplishment. It is if you've seen the numbers the QBs put up this week you'd probably chalk this game up as a loss. Donna Dixon and C-Batch managed a grand total of 21 passing yards. This game was all Steeler defense and Vince Young/Carry Collins turnover suckage.

Vince Collins and Kerry Young accounted for five turnovers (3 Int and 2 fumbles lost).

I think at this point it is safe to assume that Troy Polamalu is more valuable to the Steelers win column that Fat Ben. A healthy Polamalu means a nasty defense. When he was out last year, the defense was suspect at best but on top with him. The offense is no where as strong without Fat Ben but the team is still winning. The Steelers aren't going to be able to out defend for 14 more games this year so getting Fatso back is important. It's just worth noting how much better the Steelers are with The Hair than without.

To me it's pretty evident that Jeff Fisher doesn't like Vince Young. Young was never Fisher's choice in the 2006 draft. That selection was purely Bud Adams doing. In the 2008 season opener, Vince Young was benched and later refused to return to the game. Collins helped topple the Colts from the AFC South top. Fisher kept Collins as the start through a miserable start of the 2009 campaign. Again, it was only after Bud Adams intervene did Young return as the starter after the open week. Against Pittsburgh last week, Fisher didn't hesitate to yank Young after three turnovers. Fisher did say Young will remain the starter. It's not like Fisher has any other options or Adams will let him start Collins.

The big question becomes who wins the Clash of the Titans? Fisher? Young? How about Bud Adams? He wins as the owner. Ultimately who will Adams choose? The moody inconsistent quarterback or the longest tenured coach in the NFL? I'm not sure I can make a strong argument for either side. If I'm the owner I go with the man who won most recently for me. Fisher took a Collins led team to the playoffs in 2008 while Young sulked on the bench. I think this is the make or break year for one or both. Adams could decide to jettison both and start from scratch. Not only have the Colts returned to the top but Houston passed up Tennessee along the way as top challenger.

NFL Line of the Week
Matt Schaub - QB Houston Texans
38-52 passing, 497 yards, 3 TDs, 1 Int
Seriously, I'm not a Texans homer. After all I did give this weekly award to Payton Manning. I can't help it though. 400+ yards in a game will get you Line of the Week and Texans quarterback Matt Schaub turned in the line of the week.

NFL Player of the Week
Mark Sanchez - QB NY Jets
Last week's JaMarcus Russell Player of the Week is this week's Player of the Week. Sanchez bounced back from last week's loss and criticism of the Jets to defeat AFC East division favorite New England Patriots. Sanchez threw 3 TDs in a 28-14 victory.

JaMarcus Russell Player of the Week
Joe Flacco - QB Baltimore Ravens
In a 10-15 defeat by the Bengals, Flacco threw a Jake Delhomme like 4 interceptions. In two games, despite one win, the supposedly improved Ravens offense has only mustered up 20 points.

Joe Pisarcik Players of the Week
New York Giants
Yes I picked the whole team. Eli was out played by Payton. Tom Coughlin was outcoached by Jim Caldwell. Joseph Addai and Donald Brown out rushed Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs. It was just a nasty beat down of a supposed power team by a finesse team. Jacobs probably could have won this award on his own.

Houston Cougars Game Day 4 vs. Tulane

2010-09-23T17:10:00.006-05:00

VS.

Houston vs. Tulane
Sept. 25, 2010
2:30 p.m.
Robertson Stadium
University of Houston Campus
TV: CBS-College Sports
Radio: 790 AM

Last Meeting
Houston 44 Tulane 16
in New Orleans, LA

The Cougars try to bounce back from season ending injuries to starter Case Keenum and back up Cotton Turner during a 31-13 drubbing at the hands of the UCLA Bruins. The loss knocked the Cougars out of the Top 25 polls. Starting in place of Keenum and Turner is true freshman Terrance Broadway.

Houston Cougar Notes
Game 4 Notes
Coach Sumlin's Weekly Press Conference
Loss of Keenum Deals Blow To Cougars
Evil Longhorn Steve Campbell's UH Blog

Terrance Broadway
QB Broadway Will Start vs. Tulane
Broadway UH Profile
Broadway Takes Center Stage at UH

NFL Week 1 Players of the Week

2010-09-17T23:51:00.003-05:00

I usually include this with my weekly NFL thoughts. Since I wrote it before the two Monday night games were played I wanted to wait the games out.

NFL Line of the Week
Payton Manning QB Indianapolis Colts
40 completions on 57 passes for 433 yards and 3 TDs. A new record for attempts and surpassed 400 yards for the fourth time in his career. What made this the Line of the Week is that the Colts still lost. Which brings me to the next category.

NFL Player of the Week
Arian Foster RB Houston Texans
Foster carried 33 times for 231 of the Texans 256 yards enabling them to finally get the Colt monkey off the team's back. It is only the first game but if nothing else it gave the Colts and the league something to think about.

JaMarcus Russell Player of the Week
Mark Sanchez QB NY Jets
The Jets went on Hard Knocks, built up the defense, settled the contract hold out of Darelle Revis and talked a big game. They forgot one thing in the process. NFL teams still need to move the ball and at the very least make teams respect the pass game. The Jets didn't really try to get down field with the Ravens. Sanchez posted a JaMarcus Russell like line of 10 completions on 21 attempt for 74 yards and no TDs.

Joe Pisarcik Player of the Week
Alex Barron OL Dallas Cowboys
A holding call on the play with the game winning touchdown ended the game for the Cowboys. Barron committed the infraction and there was no question that it was the right call. In a mistake filled game for the Cowboys, Barron merely finished off a lackluster night all around for Dallas.

NFL Week 1 vs. the Line, Week Two Picks

2010-09-17T22:16:00.004-05:00

Week one is over and it's time to assess the damage.

This was a very strange week in that there were three pushes: Vikings vs Saints (-5), Cardinals (-4) @ Rams, Bucs(-3) vs. Browns.

For the remainder of the games my record was 7-6 against the spread.

The Highlights
One line upset I called were the Texans (+2) hosting the Colts. Texans took care of business and beat the Colts straight up.

The second upset I picked was the Redskins(+3.5) over the Cowboys. A last second hold to end the game saved bettors that picked the 'skins in this one.

Ravens(+3.5) also upset the Jets. I went Ravens more as a counter pick against the over hyped Jets. That isn't really a good way to pick teams.

The Lowlights
Two teams laid eggs and it hurt the bottom line.

First off the Bengals didn't even bother to show up against the Pats. It was no contest.

The Chargers also left a stinker on the field with the Chiefs pulling off the upset.

Week 2 Picks
Not really much to analyze from last week's picks so I'll just move on to week two picks. Picks are in bold.

The point of making picks is to make money not pick every game. For the last two years, I've picked every game and kept count. After week one, three pushes and other factors, I've decided to a rule change. I can take passes on games if I so choose. I imagine this will be a rarely invoked rule though.

Chiefs (+2) at Browns - pass. Two teams in disarray. No need to waste time or money on this game.

Eagles (-7) at Lions - Lions are improving but both teams starting quarterbacks are hurt. Eagles have a much better back up in Michael Vick. Take the Eagles as the road favorite.

Dolphins (+5.5) at Vikings - Neither team was impressive during the opening week. I'm thinking the spread might be a little to wide. Dolphins lose but take the points.

Cardinals (+6.5) at Falcons - Cardinals defense is better than you might think but Falcons running back is usually a beast at home. Falcons

Ravens (-3) at Bengals - Point spread ranges from Ravens -1.5 to -3 depending where you looked. Doesn't really matter though. The Ravens defense looked solid and the Bengals offense looked like garbage in week one. Ray Lewis looks like an ageless wonder. Ravens

Bears (+7) at Cowboys - Cowboys offense struggled in preseason and carried over into week one. Seven points is a wide spread for a struggling offense. The Bears might lose but they cover.

Bills (+13) at Packers - First double digit spread of the year and usually I warn that it's a sucker bit. The Bills are possibly the worst team in the league so throw your lot with the Packers.

Steelers (+5) at Titans - This is going to be a fist fight. Neither Vince Young or Donald Dixon inspires much confidence to break the game open. Look for Chris Johnson and Rashard Mendanhall to get plenty of runs. I think the the line should be more at Pittsburgh (+3). Take the Steelers and the points.

Buccaneers (+3) at Panthers - I thought about taking a pass on this game. However, I think Panthers will take care of the Bucs at home with the run game. Panthers

Seahawks (+3.5) at Broncos - The Seahawks need to prove last week was a fluke before I start picking them against a team not named the Raiders. Broncos

Rams (+3.5) at Raiders - Same old Raiders, at least Rams have a new quarter back. Rams

Patriots (-3) at Jets - Like the oddsmakers, I give the edge to the Patriots due to the fact that they can stretch the field.

Texans (-3) at Redskins - The gut is telling me to go with the Redskins. Coming off against a win against one Texas team at home, the Redskins welcome the "other" Texas team. These aren't the Cowboys though. Texans

Jaguars (+7) at Chargers - This is one of those iffy spreads. I think it's borderline to wide. Chargers are at home and there is no rain as of kickoff. Charger

Giants (+5) at Colts - Manning vs. Manning is the story line. The mangled Colts run defense is the story. Do the Giants run amok like Houston did last week? Giants

Saints (-6) at 49ers - Last week was a debacle for the niners and the Saints handled the Minnesota Brett Favres. Saints

Houston Cougar Game Day 3 - UCLA Bruins

2010-09-15T15:45:00.004-05:00

#23 Houston @ UCLA
Sept. 18, 2010 9:35 P.M. CDT
Rose Bowl
Los Angeles, CA
TV: FoxSports
Radio: 790 AM KMBE

Last Meeting
UCLA 42 Houston 24
Sept. 19, 1998
Robertson Stadium
UH Campus

Game 3 Notes
NCAA Football Polls - Cougars Debut at #23
Evil Longhorn Steve Campbell's UH vs. UCLA Preview

Houston Cougar Notes
Bryce Beall C-USA Player of the Week
Coach Kevin Sumlin's Weekly Press Conference

Case Keenum Injury Watch
Update #1
UH's Mum on Keenum
Update #2
Keenum Day to Day
Update #3
Cotton Turner May Get Start At UCLA
Update #4
Keenum Game Day Decision

Last Year's Game 3 vs. Texas Tech Finish Part 1

Texas Tech Finish Part 2

2010 First Road Game vs #5 Okie St. Cowboys

NFL Week One - It's Almost in the Books

2010-09-13T10:46:00.006-05:00

I'm still pumped up about my hometown Houston Texans manhandling of the Indianapolis Colts defense and pounding Payton Manning into the ground. That's another blog post though.

With two games to go, I decided to get a jump on the weekly NFL blog.

Comedy Central
I'm starting with the Dallas Cowboys 7 Washington Redskins 13. All I can say is what a joke it was for both teams. Jerry Jones self anointed the Cowboys Super Bowl Champs before the season. He wants them to be the first to win on home turf. Somebody for got to tell his team and the Redskins that.

The common saying is preseason doesn't mean anything. For the most part that is true but some things stand out so bad that they do count and should be cause for concern. In case of the Cowboys, failure to run or pass into the endzone continues as well as a subpar offensive line. The trend carried into the regular season with only one TD. The run game was decent with 103 yards. My issue with the run game was the near equal distribution of hand offs to Marion Barber (8), Felix Jones (8) and Tashard Choice (5). Why? Establish a lead back and let him get into a flow. I understand getting playmakers on the field but find a top back and use the others in he is ineffective or gets tired.

The Redskins receivers just cannot catch the ball. Donovan McNabb wasn't on target on a host of throws but the receivers dropped their fair share of catchable balls.

In the end it was the Cowboys lack of discipline and leadership that cost the game. Coach Wade Phillips never should have called a play to go down field to end the first half. Tony Romo never should have to get the ball out to Choice. Choice never should have tried to make a play. They did and Washington took a 10-0 lead into the half.

One last thing I've noticed about the Cowboys. They really don't have a player team leader. No one to step up and kick the team in the ass and tell them to focus. It appears the players go through the motions and play with no sense of urgency.

For a team with Super Bowl aspirations, the start of the season only continued to raise more questions that started in the off season.

The Other Dullards
I didn't get to watch the game but by all indications it was snorefest like the Cowboys vs. Redskins game. I might be wrong and it might have been the defensive battle I adore. Whatever the case, the Steelers survived Fat Ben's suspension for one game on Rashard Mendenhall. With the game in overtime tied at 9, Mendenhall ran over right tackle for game winning 50 yard game winning TD.

The defense held the game in check. The Falcons also have playoff aspirations. RB Michael Turner was held to 42 and quarterback Matt Ryan tossed one INT, no TDs and 252 yards.

ATL needed the game to try and take care of an opponent with a suspended key player. They failed. They also need the game because they believe they can take the divisional crown from New Orleans. Not a good start.

The Trendy Obvious Pick...uh maybe
Kurt Warner left, Matt Leinhart cut and Derek Anderson starts. St. Louis is so devoid of talent that many top picks, including rookie QB Sam Bradford. Seattle is in rebuild mode with a new coaching staff. Seattle his been a constant decline since their 2006 Super Bowl appearance. That all adds up for the 49ers as an obvious choice rather than a trendy pick.

And the 49ers laid an egg in the opener. Seattle blasted the 49ers 31-6. A very auspicious start the season for team that could almost win its division by default. I love the fire and hard nose Mike Singletary brings to the sidelines but something apparently didn't get through in the first week. Maybe he needs to drop his pants or put his foot in someone's ass like he did Vern Davis. Players will eventually tune him out if they don't results on the field.

Dumb and Dumbest
In the past I've never held my disdain for Jack Del Rio. I anointed him with the Herm Edward Lifetime UnAchievement Award. It's the title that goes to the reigning worst coach in the NFL. The criteria is pretty low. Basically you must look clueless on the side line, make questionable personnel and game day mistakes and coach a team with decent talent and still utterly fail. The award is named after the constant recipient of it. On the other sideline facing Del Rio is second year Denver coach Josh McClown. He really is a clown. Nothing he had done on the field warrants the title. McClown earns his status based on three issues: ran off a whiny egotistical quarterback (who bares as much fault), traded away a pouting productive receiver (who learned how to act from the quarterback and teams reaction) and traded a draft bounty to draft Tim Teabow. Add to the fact that McClown started the Broncos off fast and then lead them right of playoff contention.

Add all the Del Rio/McClown ingredients together in a football game and you have a battle between the reigning Herm Edwards Coach and the top contender. After a season of discontent, running off players and a midseason melt down, we only needed to see a game between the idiots. Del Rio's players tried to defend the coach but the Broncos were up to the task and lost the game 24-17 and usurping the Crown of Worst Coach in the NFL for Josh McClown....congrats you idiot.

With two games to go, I won't name my offensive, defensive and lines of the week until tomorrow.

Houston 54 UTEP 24

2010-09-11T23:56:00.001-05:00

The Houston Cougars avenged last year's 58-41 upset at the hands of the UTEP Miners. The Coogs defeated the Miners 54-24 with the out come never really in doubt.

For the second consecutive game, the Cougar faithful sold out a game. For many outsiders that may not seem a big deal but given Cougar attendance history it is a big deal.

The Miners used the opening drive to take their only lead of the game 7-0.

From there on it was the Houston Cougar ground show. Yes, that's right, the Cougars ground the Miners into the turf with a rushing attack. In addition to the usual 300 plus passing yards, the Cougars added 308 yards running the ball. Bryce "Brick" Beall lead the way with 195 yards and 3 TDs rushing. JUCO transfer Michael Hayes added 77 yards on 17 carries and matched Beall's 3 TDs.

For the first time in 31 games, Cougar quarterback and Heisman hopeful Case Keenum failed to pass for a touchdown. Keenum also failed to reach the 300 yard mark in passing yards. More important remains the status of Keenum's health. Keenum left the game in the 3rd quarter after trying to make a play after he threw an interception.

At the end of the game, all that matters is a Cougar victory. Pass records, Heisman trophies, streaks and attendance records don't mean anything if the Coogs lose when the clock reads 00:00.

Houston Chronicle Recap
Houston vs. UTEP Stats
El Paso Times Recap

Case Keenum Injury Watch
UH Mum on Keenum Status

Game Day Pictures
Houston Chronicle Pictures
Stephen Pinchback Game Day Photos
My Game Day Photos

Houston Cougars vs. UTEP - Game Day 2010

2010-09-11T21:48:00.006-05:00

vs.
9:15 p.m.
Sept. 10, 2010
John O'quinn Field at Robertson Stadium

University of Houston

2009 Result
#12 Houston 41
UTEP 58

ESPN.com Recap

2010 Preview Houston vs. UTEP

Official Houston Cougar Game 2 Release

Houston Chronicle Steve Campbell's Cougar-Miner Preview

2009 Houston vs. UTEP Lowlights

Unkle Monkee vs. the NFL Spread Week 1

2010-09-06T21:25:00.003-05:00

Here goes the first week. I don't think I was able to do weekly numbers last year. The times and years that I've tried I haven't been very good. So first of all, this is for my pleasure and not gambling purposed. If you decide to use my selections, God help you and reread the last sentence. If you go ahead, I bare no liability or responsibility for you mistakes.

My grounds for the game:

I use FoxSports.com's odds. Mainly because it was only odds I could get at work where I used to write this column. They've since blocked my access but I kept the tradition going.
Which brings up other rules. Since they list four books odds, I go with majority wins for my spread.
No choice is made if there is no line.
If for whatever reason all four books are different, I have to look for fifth source.

Without further ado, my selections with brief commentary for this week. Picks are in bold

Minnesota at New Orleans (-5). Three of the four have Saints (-5) and one has (-5.5). The opening line I saw early in the week was Saints (-4.5). At home to open the season and a rousing Super Bowl reception should have the players and fans amped. Saints

Miami (-3) at Buffalo. Bookies and bettors not showing the Dolphins much respect. I actually find the spread to low. I think the Dolphins win handily.

Indy (-2) at Houston. The spread ranges from -1.5 to -2.5 on this game. Two books had the -2 spread. I know this game intimately as I've spent many seasons on my season ticket seat angry after watching the Colts beat the Texans. I'd almost say it's a sucker bet with the Texans taking it to the wire last few meetings only to blow it. They could keep it close and upset the spread and still lose. Given recent history my logic wants me to say Colts but I'm going with Texans

Cincinnati at New England (-4). No enough love for a Bengals team that won the Black and Blue division. Bengals might lose but they beat the spread.

Atlanta (-2.5) at Pittsburgh - The Steelers offense is in disarray with Big Ben's suspension and Byron Leftwich's possibly missing with injury. Going to take the road favorite Falcons

Oakland at Tennessee (-6.5). That's about right with Chris Johnson having a field day. Titans

Detroit at Chicago (-6). I had a tie with my FoxSport odds with a two with -6 and two with -6.5 Bears. I used oddsmaker.com for the tiebreaker. Bears

Denver at Jacksonville (-2.5) - Ineptitude of Jack Del Rio vs. the clown Josh McDaniels. I'm going to side with Del Rio here. Jaguars

Carolina at NY Giants (-7). This is kind of a gut call. I think the Giants are a bit in disarray. Panther

Cleveland at Tampa Bay (-3) - More ineptitude on both sides of the ball. For some reason I like Eric Mangini's ineptitude slightly more. Browns

Green Bay (-3) at Philadelphia. I think Green Bay makes enough stops of Kevin Kolb's debut and it's a bigger margin. Packers

Arizona (-4) at St. Louis. Sounds about right. Cards are night and day with Kurt Warner gone. Cardinals

San Francisco (-3) at Seattle - I think -3 is a bit low. 49ers

Dallas (-3.5) at Washington. Not to sure about the Cowboys offense until they show something in the real season. Redskins

Baltimore at NY Jets (-3.5). This is going to be a very interesting game for the opener. Ravens pull off the upset.

San Diego (-4.5) at Kansas City. Bad news for KC's defense. Chargers

Apology

2010-08-17T01:39:00.002-05:00

I'd like to offer up an apology to someone who asked to remain anonymous. I fully respect the reasons why he/she wanted anonymity.

I used some strong language in a post a while back. I didn't read the email in response to the post until recently. I totally understand why I was called out and replied to about the language I used.

I don't apologize for my editorial or opinion but I do apologize for the offending language. I didn't so much offend the person who replied to my post but I did reach an unintended audience and my response was very inappropriate when viewed through the eyes of that audience....that was never my intention.

In life there are people we view with unquestionable and unconditional admiration and love. So when someone speaks or writes in a bad way about that person, the admirer is upset and disturbed that someone could say such things. There are very few lines I won't cross. However given the email that was sent to me and the person that held this emailer in high esteem, I feel I did cross a line I never should have crossed. For that I'm truly sorry.

I wish I could do or say more but the person requested anonymity and I respect that but at the same time I hope this person accepts my sincerest apology. I think this episode makes me a better person by reminding that I write for an audience and sometimes that audience doesn't need to see my worst side.

The Touchy Feely All-Star Game

2010-07-11T17:50:00.003-05:00

Major League Baseball probably has the worst criteria for selecting All-Stars.

First, let managers, players and bench coaches make the selections. Either take the vote away from the fans or weigh the fan voting to keep ballot stuffing to a minimum. Weigh the fan voting to 25-30%. Let the remainder go to people that watch baseball on a daily basis. It's a manager and coach's job to know the opponent. Let them have a bigger say in the All-Star line ups than the fans that vote for either a local favorite or a name will nothing else to go by. Taking the decision on reserves away from each All-Star manager also avoids appearance of favoritism by selecting a player on his team.

The worst rule, by far, stipulates that each team must have a player on the squad. The local Houston Astros serve as a prime example. It's a terrible club playing terrible ball from top to bottom. No one on the Astros deserves an All-Star spot. However due the little league rule, Michael Bourn will carry the banner. Without looking at stats, cause I really don't care right now, it's a safe bet that someone more deserving was left off. I want to see the best players and not a player from every team.

Finally, do away with the winning league hosts the World Series. The rule doesn't add any intrigue. Instead it robs the team with the best record from hosting if their All-Star team loses the game.

USA Comes Up Short in World Cup

2010-06-27T00:25:00.004-05:00

First and foremost, Congrats to Team USA in the 2010 World Cup. They managed to win their group which was no small feat since it included England, Algeria and Slovenia. The USA drew against England and Slovenia and had to fight to get the draw against Slovenia. They had to beat Algeria to advance to the final 16. In dramatic fashion, the USA pulled it off in added time on a Landon Donovan goal.

In the knock out round, the USA gave up the quick goal again. Ghana scored very early in the game on an inexcusable turnover to dig an early goal deficit. A Ghana foul on Clint Dempsey in the penalty area earned penalty kick. Donovan converted the kick to tie up the game 1-1. It went into extra time, where Ghana scored on defensive melt down to make it 2-1. This time the United States made no comeback. They fell short and a magical Cup show ended.

And I'm all right with it. They overcame adversity and probably earned a ton of respect from world wide. The United States competes hard and is no fluke. The run up to the Confederation Cup saw them defeat top ranked Spain and had Brazil fighting from behind. No small accomplishments in this game. Powers Italy and France went home earlier than the US. Both nations were finalists in the last Cup.

What does the future hold? Probably continued success. The USA are no longer the backwater push overs they were in the 1980s and even in the hosted 1994 games. The US has now advance out of the group stage three times in last five cups. The program needs to keep building and not lay stinkers like they did in 1998 and 2006. They need to develop a solid defensive back third. To many mistakes on the defense lead to many early goals. They also need to continue to develop players like Donovan and Dempsey. Both will be four years older in the next Cup and are not guarantees to make the squad next time. The next generation needs be groomed and set up for qualifications, Gold Cup and whatever competitions the future hold.

In the end, thanks Team USA to a good run as well as igniting the passions of the country.

World Cup, Astros Moves

2010-06-22T10:36:00.003-05:00

World Cup
The World Cup is winding down to the knock out rounds. I can't really say it's been the most exciting World Cup. In opening games, teams played tentative and appeared happy with a draw.

The second games provided a little more entertainment as teams started to think about points and goal differentials for advancement. Today is the first day of third games. FIFA mandates that the last games are played concurrently to avoid game day shenanigans.

South Africa earned the distinction of first host country not to advance. It's a shame to say the least. They acted as great hosts and there hasn't been much negative said about the venues. The worst thing that can be said is the sound of vuvuzelas making the stadia sound like beehives. I have no problem with it but some "traditionalists" have complained about it. Deal with it. If the fans didn't like it they wouldn't keep bringing them into games. It appears the foreign travelers to South Africa are enjoying making the noise as much as the natives.

The traditional European powers have played less than impressive. France ends the tournament in disarray. England hasn't managed to win in playing two lackluster games against the United States and Algeria. Spain lost a mild upset to Switzerland. Germany lost a stunner to Serbia after an opening 4-0 rout of Australia. Portugal managed a 0-0 tie versus Ivory Coast but embarrassed North Korea 7-0. France goes home with no wins and one scored goal. England is on the bubble to advance. Right now the name of the game is just to get the next round and start anew.

Team USA faces Algeria and with a win USA goes through. Conceding early goes has been USA's flaw. Algeria pressed impressively against England. USA needs to assert themselves early and not play from behind. The defense must play strong in the back third. Landon Donovan needs to impose his will on the game. They cannot come out flat and worry about getting help. They just need to go in and handle business.

Astros Call Ups
The Astros made five roster moves calling up three players and designating two players for assignment.

Astros 2008 top pick Jason Castro, 3rd baseman Chris Johnson and outfielder Jason Bourgeois join the Big Show from AAA Round Rock. Catcher Kevin Cash and outfielder Corey Sullivan received the designation for assignment tag.

Ed Wade probably convinced owner Drayton McLane that the season is in the tank. McLane is a stubborn blind old man. I think the scores of empty seats helped convince McLane to approve the moves. McLane always believes the Astros are one or two players away from contention. I believe he also thinks fans love the team so much they will show up on game day no matter what. Fortunately Astros fans are smarter than Cubs fans. Cubs fans show up no matter what and for years gave ownership no incentive to improve the team. Astros fans won't show up to watch a lousy team. McLane build up a lot of goodwill over the years with winning teams. His mismanagement of the team has driven it into the ground. Fans finally see McLane for the snake oil salesman that he is.

If McLane has finally given Wade full run of the team then that is a major step in the right direction. The call ups aren't meant to salvage a season but to give the players major league experience in a lost season. Castro needs the experience calling games from behind the plate and the sooner the better. Pedro Feliz has been a disaster at 3rd. Johnson is expected to split time with Feliz. I think if Johnson outplays Feliz, not a difficult task, then Feliz will be given his outright release.

Of the call ups, I think Bourgeois is the most interesting and might be a signal to a future move. Or not. With an outfield of Carlos Lee, Michael Bourn and Hunter Pence, Bourgeois will languish on the bench. I think the Astros will look to move Lee's bat in return for a prospect or two and try to get as much of his salary off payroll. They probably won't be able to trade Lee without agreeing to absorb part of his salary. Pitcher Roy Oswalt and first basemen Lance Berkman may also end up in other uniforms before the trade deadline.

Cold Weather Super Bowl Revisited

2010-05-24T20:50:00.003-05:00

Tomorrow the NFL owners are expected to announce the host city for the 2014 Super Bowl. Some writers lament the fact that New York might get to host it. Reasons vary from it's to cold, other northern cities will want it and on and on.

I wrote up a piece on SI's Peter King's crying about a cold weather site. Evidently King has changed his mind. Maybe one of his phone buddies called him and told him no more interviews if he didn't change his mind.

Anyway, the latest to chime in is from Sports Illustrated again. This time it is Jeff Pearlman and his touching story of when he was a boy and his father took him to a Giants playoff game. And it was cold. And he was numb. And they left early. And they swore they will never go back.

I'm gonna be pretty blunt about Pearlman. You are just a flat out pussy. I don't use that lightly either. A direct quote from his blog:

Bringing the Super Bowl to New York would be dumb on steroids. First off, in January and February it is cold here. Secondly, in January and February it is freezing here. Thirdly, in January and February it is arctic here. Absolutely, positively arctic.

There you go. In his own words....waaaaahhhh, it's cold.

To take his argument further, he states:

But, well, the weather. From start-to-finish, Super Bowl weeks are meant to take place in warm environments. Miami. San Diego. Arizona. The parties should involve fountains and beach motifs and Kardashian sisters in embarrassingly skimpy outfits. The media days are required to occur beneath a bright sun...

Then we get to the heart of the matter. Pearlman doesn't like the cold because not only is he a pussy but he doesn't want the cold weather interrupting his paid vacation. He doesn't want to work in the cold. He doesn't want to work in the sun. He just wants to tool around and party on the beach.

Of all the lame excuses for not holding a New York Super Bowl, Pearlman's in the lamest. If he keeps writing like this, he'll join my Hack Wall of Shame.

The Rise of Football Sabermetrics?

2010-05-07T22:17:00.000-05:00

The Rise of Football Sabermetrics?

I don’t hate sabermetrics like some purists do. I think numerical analysis gives scouts, general managers and coaches another tool to evaluate a players potential. Several baseball teams live and die by it. The Boston Red Sox won World Series based on a sabermetrics philosophy. The Oakland Athletics continuously try to build and it they have been moderately successful.

In football, especially the pros, there is a rise in sabermetric stats but mostly it is the province of website weekend warriors. I’ve read various stats on different blogs that try to put a numerical value on a player or team’s production. The writers then try to use the numbers to project a player or team’s future production.

Unlike baseball, I’ve yet to read where scouts and personnel evaluators use the numbers. Scouts and coaches will admit nothing tells more about a player than game day film. So many aspects of football can’t be measured and boiled down to a number.

Combine stats are usually overrated but are gobbled up by fans and the media. Teams are more interested in letting doctors, shrinks and other people interview and examine a player at the Combine. A team already has a pretty good idea of a player’s time and strength numbers. At the Combine, they just want to verify what they already know or start looking at the player’s mental make up. They’ve had a whole college career of game film to study.

College pro days are also vastly overrated. Teams show up not to see the star players trying out but to take a look at other players that didn’t get a combine invite. Media and fans fawned over Colt McCoy’s perfect or near perfect completion rate at the Longhorn’s pro day. Coaches and scouts could have cared less. He was throwing in a controlled environment to his own receivers and not chased by a certain Nebraska defensive tackle. The game film of McCoy’s years as the Texas start will weigh more than all the stats of pro days and combines one can imagine.

The same was said of Tim Tebow’s throwing transformation after he changed his mechanics. Other than Josh McDaniels, no one was buying it. I read a quote in Pro Football Weekly from Mike Holmgren in which basically he said it is one thing to change mechanics but he feared Tebow would revert to old habits during game pressure in the NFL. He played one style his career at Florida and he can’t change easily in on off season. Yet McDaniels is banking on it. I’m guessing McDaniels will be unemployed in two seasons.

I just don’t see a switch to a numbers based scouting system in the NFL. There are just to many variables that go into evaluating a player. No one system will be able to capture what coaches are looking for. I’m not saying it can’t be done. Somebody might come up with a few stats that teams can use to filter out players and make the process more efficient. However, I don’t think football scouting will ever be replaced by a numbers game. Sometimes there is just as much art as science to evaluating a player.

LT's Off the Field Problems Continue

2010-05-07T00:09:00.002-05:00

Lawrence Taylor, one of the fiercest linebackers in the NFL who, along with Mike Singletary, revolutionized the position. He played a remarkable career.

Unfortunately, LT (sorry younger fans but there is only one LT and it's Lawrence Taylor) also leaves a trail of off the field issues. Included in his off field incidences are drug and tax evasion charges. Taylor had a well documented drug problem.

Sadly, Taylor is facing more off field allegations. The latest alleges that Taylor solicited a prostitute a middle man. The prostitute supposedly is a 16 year old runaway. Taylor paid $300 for the girls. When she refused, her alleged pimp Rasheed Davis beat her and gave her over to Taylor. He allegedly proceeded to sexually assault the girl.

According the ESPN.com story, Taylor was quoted as saying "I'm not that important" to the reporters gathered around after his release. I find may problems with that statement. In typical ego fashion, Taylor believes all the media reporters are around cause of him. They are but the story isn't all about him. There is a young girl who may have caused physical and mental damage. His apparent attempt at self deprecation falls short. While not out right joking, it's very obvious the severity hasn't set in. His comments can almost be taken as "It's no big deal." Yes, Taylor, it is a big deal.

I'm not passing judgment yet but it doesn't look good for LT. Sexual assault is abhorrent on anyone. No person or child should ever be subjected to it. If reports are true, Taylor was hell bent on having sex and he didn't care with who. He allegedly paid someone $300 to buy him a girl. The pimp allegedly beat her when she refused. Taylor still took her after she refuse and was then beaten. You're right LT, your not that important. The young girl you allegedly assaulted is important though. Check your ego please.

NFL Overtime Rule, Clarification of Networks Paying NFL in Work Stoppage

2010-05-02T22:49:00.002-05:00

The NFL Overtime Rule Change
I wrote in a previous post that I somewhat like the playoff overtime rule change that it didn’t go far enough.

My biggest problem with the change is that teams are playing under a different set of rules in the post season. In the regular season, a coin toss, field position and a kick can win a game. In the post season it won’t. Why different criteria for overtime playoff wins?

I do think the change is a step in the right direction but it needs to extend to regular season and tweaked some more.

At the very least, both teams should be given one possession and a chance to win the game. Regardless of a first possession touchdown, let the other team get a shot at winning the game.

I find one possible change interesting. I would allow a sudden death one possession victory under one circumstance. The current playoff rule will allow a one possession win if a team scores a TD. I say take the one possession rule one step further. A TD alone doesn’t warrant a victory. I propose changing the rule to allowing a sudden death victory only if a TD and successful two point conversion are scored.

A missed two point attempt leaves a six point lead and allows the second team a shot at winning with a TD and one point conversion. I think it is a simple tweak that would make for more interesting finishes. A coach could gamble to seal the deal on a two pointer or play it safe and go for one. It’s a high risk but high reward scenario. If after one possession for each team then the game reverts to sudden death on any score. Even if a team fails to score the two points, they still maintain the advantage and can win the game with a defensive stop.

The downside is given the conservative nature of most coaches the two point conversion may never come into play.

I’m just throwing out some food for thought.

NFL Network Money and Work Stoppage
In Pro Football Weekly’s April 2010 issue, Barry Jackson quotes a network source about television money paid to the NFL in the even of a work stoppage. The source confirmed that the networks will pay the league but the amount of payments will be deducted from any money due once play starts up again.

Basically the networks will advance money to the NFL during a strike/lockout situation to help clubs keep in operations. Despite the stoppage, bills continue to accrue like stadium maintenance, staff payroll and other organizational needs. The money just comes out of the next year’s network payments.

Good to hear that cleared up. I know the networks pay out megabucks to the NFL for broadcast rights. However the payments for no product just didn’t make any sense on any level.

An Exciting Sports Weekend

2010-04-27T11:28:00.002-05:00

The NFL draft. NBA playoffs. NHL playoffs. The only negative? The Astros winning.

I worked all weekend so I didn't get to enjoy the Draft Party at Texans headquarters this year. Plus I would have missed a Penguins vs. Senators match up. Turned out to be an amazing game despite the Pens losing. Ottawa scored the game winner in the third overtime.

I'm a huge fans of the Penguins going back to the Mario Lemieux days. Everybody I knew that followed hockey and wasn't from up north was bandwagonning the Edmonton Oilers and Wayne Gretzky. I looked down the stat sheets and saw Lemieux's stats and decided front that day forth I would be a Pens fan. I'm still here all those years later.

Football and hockey are the only sports I can watch no matter who is playing. NBA basketball is pretty painful to watch these days. I grew up in San Antonio watching the Spurs. If it wasn't for them I doubt I'd watch an NBA game ever again. I'm from Texas, football is in my DNA.

The Spurs disappointed me during the regular season and falling to the 7th seed in the Western Conference. Now that it's playoff time, I'm impressed with the job they've done thus far with the Dallas Mavericks. They lost the first game in Dallas but took game two there and held serve in SA with two wins for a 3-1 series lead. The game swing back tonight to Dallas for a possible Spurs clincher.

Game 4 was brutal and harsh. The Mavericks came unglued when the game turned rough. Tempers flared on sided but the Spurs maintained their composure. The Mavs turned over the ball, missed shots and their offensive timing went haywire. The Spurs turned a deficit into a lead they would never relinquish.

I think a series loss should lead to the demolition of the Mavs current make up and start from scratch. Owner Mark Cuban probably won't do it because past actions show he considers the Mavs one piece away from winning it all.

Everything around Dallas has changed but one key player: Dirk Nowitski. Dallas has changed coaches, made major in season trades and tried to toughen up defensively. Yet here we are again on the brink of another major playoff meltdown. Nothing will ever beat the 2006 Finals choke of being up 2-0 on the edge of 3-0 and losing the series 4-2. The 2007 playoffs exit with the 1st seed against the 8th seed Golden State Warriors ranks a close second. 2010 we are looking at possibly the 3rd worst choke job in Mavs history.

That's all I have time for today. Work, errands and other things are calling.

Dez Bryant - Draft Risk or Over Blown Media Reports?

2010-04-10T22:23:00.003-05:00

All week I've been reading articles and hearing sports reports that Dez Bryant is the next Randy Moss. Reports state teams will be leery of drafting Bryant because of questionable character issues.

After reading Don Bank's article at SI.com, I agree and think it's a bunch of crap.

Many are questioning Bryant's character, commitment and attitude. The first thing they point to is Bryant lying to NCAA about hanging out with Deion Sanders. He made a mistake by lying about it and I agree there needed to be some kind of consequences. However a ten game suspension was to harsh. Like Keyshawn Johnson pointed out, why is Bryant questioned for hanging out with Sanders but Colt McCoy can pal around the Mannings and no one questions him.

Then there are rumors circulating that Bryant didn't attend classes, was late for practice and games while at Oklahoma State. Bryant denies the rumors and no one from the school substantiates the rumors.

In the same article, Cris Carter says there is a big difference between Bryant and Moss:

I look for a background of violence and drugs. I look for breaking the law, and Dez doesn't have those things...remember when Randy came into the league, he had the Notre Dame stuff, the Florida State stuff, and that's a lot right there

Then some made a big deal that Bryant showed up for his OSU pro day without his cleats. Like no one has ever been nervous on a job interview?

I understand why NFL teams want to turn a player inside out. They need to know as much as possible about a player they are going to invest money and coaching. Off the field behavior can be a major detriment to a product on the field. Just ask the NY Giants and Plaxico Burress. It's another thing when the media makes a stretch and uses flimsy logic to draw up conclusions to either another player or a future career.

I'm sure there is some caution surrounding Bryant by some teams. I'm also sure there are few teams that won't draft him despite a need for a receiver.

What has happened is part of the 24-hour news cycle and everybody trying to out scoop or out duel everybody else for information. News stories need publishing. Talking heads need topics. Bloggers need to blog. And facts be damned. Never let facts get in the way of a good story.

I'm the first person to jump on a player for off the field issues, dogging it on the field or being a diva. In this case, I just haven't seen it in Bryant. The only strike I see is lying about his contact with Sanders. To me that's not a major concern. Bryant has no criminal history or any major misconduct issues on or off the field. Give the young man a break and let him prove on the field whether or not he is a professional football player. There will be plenty of time later for judgment.

I'm Back Astros

2010-04-06T01:17:00.002-05:00

Like a jilted lover, I'm back with the Houston Astros. For the last two years I've not only been boycotting the Astros but praying for a complete collapse. I prayed for disaster so people would stop going to games and force Drayton McLane to either sell the team or reexamine the business model.

I've been very critical of McLane and how he's run the Astros lately.

For starters, while many view him as cheap, I think that's a misconception. This years payroll of approximately $92 million ranks 13th in the Major Leagues. In 2009, the Astros ranked 8th with a $102 million payroll. Call it anything you want but don't call it cheap.

What McLane has done has spent his money unwisely. An examination of the 2010 payroll explains what I mean.

Lance Berkman = $14.5 million
Carlos Lee = $19 million
Kazuo Matsui = $5.5 million
Roy Oswalt = $15 million
Wandy Rodriguez = $5 million
Total = $59 million

Damn, I had to double and triple check my math but it's right. $59 million on five players on a twenty five player roster. That's about 64% of salary tied to 20% of the roster. I understand why Berkman, Lee and Oswalt are highly paid. Berkman and Oswalt are icons and McLane knows they are who fans want to see. Lee was a high priced free agent signing that probably hurt the team in the long term. Matsui is a bust and Rodriguez is overpaid for what he's done so far.

That is not good use of team resources. Couple that with the fact that McLane didn't believe in paying signing bonuses to rookies and it further explains the damage. McLane failed to realize the long term savings of locking up a player at a lower cost on the rookie contract. As a result the farm system is in shambles.

So to get back to the point on why I'm back. McLane says he finally gets it and understands drafting and player development. So I'm willing to take the Astros back on a trial basis.

Deep down I'm a sports guy. I like baseball. I don't love baseball. The Astros will never break the pecking order of the Texans, Houston Cougars, San Antonio Spurs or Pittsburgh Penguins. Texans and Cougars will always be my first loves. Spurs are my hometown team and are the only reason I watch any NBA basketball. The Pens I've been in love with since the Super Mario days.

Then come the Astros. I want to enjoy baseball and the fun involved with being in a Major League city. I want to see players develop and blossom into solid major league players. I want to savor the World Series again...this time on the winning side. Baseball is a beautiful game. So with these hopes and dreams, I once again reclaim my rights as a Houston Astros fan.

James Dickey, Peter King's Worthlessness

2010-04-02T11:05:00.003-05:00

Houston Cougars Hire James Dickey
I'm a Houston Cougar. I'm an alumni and fan. I go to as many football games as my work schedule allows. I went to 2 of the last 3 bowl games (one was local). In summary I love my Cougars.

I wanted Tom Penders gone. His act got old. My personal belief is he was cashing one last paycheck before retirement. As long as the University allowed him, he would go through the motions of coaching and recruiting.

The vast majority of Houston fans, despite the late C-USA surge and NCAA Tournament appearance, wanted a change at the helm of Cougar basketball.

Be careful of what you wish for. Cougar fans got the change we wanted. Unfortunately the hiring of former Texas Tech coach James Dickey isn't what most wanted.

Most wanted a splashy headline grabbing coach like Billy Gillespie. I wanted Gillespie too. It didn't happen. Dickey is it.

Now I ask Cougar fans to step away from the ledge and live with the decision. Quit threatening to boycott games and renewing season tickets. First of all, there isn't enough of you to make a difference. Second, while I don't blindly follow the program, give it a chance. The decision was made by AD Mack Rhoades. For better or worse, we have to live with it.

We Cougars can be an insecure group. Many fans use that behemoth in Austin and that ass backward school in Collie Station as benchmarks. Screw them. We don't have the resources those places have. We don't have the fan support they have. UH has screwed the pooch in so many ways it's not even funny.

Instead we must build up the current programs, sustain that growth and position ourselves for future success. Art Briles resuscitated a football program on life support. Kevin Sumlin reaped the benefits and propelled the Cougars to wins over three BCS schools and attained a national ranking. Cougar football is building up and it doesn't appear the school is aiming for quick hitting solutions but sustained success and strength.

Basketball must follow a similar path. Penders did a decent job with basketball. He did nothing great and really didn't appear to put any effort into it. Dickey must now take the program the next step. A C-USA surge and an NCAA tournament are something to build on.

For my part, I'm willing to give Dickey a chance. I think if he puts in the effort and does a decent job recruiting local talent and venture out of state occasionally, he can build a sustainably successful program.

Cougar fans, back away from the ledge and give Dickey a chance.

Peter King's Nonsense
In general I don't like Peter King. He constantly rides Brett Favre's jock. He can't count to ten. I think Tim Tebow will be his new Favre. He also likes to constantly remind us who he texts with and who he talks to on their cell phone. Grow up.

I know it's the off season but write about something relevant or don't write anything. Just because SI.com gives you a column doesn't mean you have to fill it up. Write a line or two if that's all you can find to say.

I read King because occasionally he drops a good piece of info.

This week though it's the usual nonsense.

In his more than "Ten Things I Think I Think" bit, he bitches about cold weather Super Bowls. Talk about "Waaaahh!" Give me one reason why Super Bowls should be played exclusively indoors or in mild climate locations?

A direct quote from his column:

I think the thing about a Super Bowl in New Jersey in February 2014 -- which seems more and more likely with the vote due as early as May --is that too few people are thinking about the precedent it sets for future games in outdoor, cold-weather venues.

Really? Why is this a bad thing? He offers no reason why it would be ill advised to schedule Super Bowls in "bad weather" locations. All he goes on to state is if the it is awarded to New Jersey then Daniel Snyder, Pat Bowlen and Paul Allen will want Super Bowls too. And why shouldn't they want them? Why is Miami, San Diego or New Orleans any better than Washington, Denver or Seattle?

Just because people like the weather? Washington, Denver and Seattle have home field advantage in the elements. So why not give outdoor teams a chance to have an advantage in the Super Bowl. Why let the Colts, Saints or any indoor team have equal footing just because they play away from the elements? These teams and owners made their choices in playing indoors. Why penalize cities from hosting a Super Bowl just because other hosts are in potentially better weather places?

Football isn't a game for pansies. Playing outdoors is a big part of the game. I'd for once like to see teams battle it out in the weather for a title.

What if a Super Bowl is played in a torrential downpour in San Diego? Will King cry for games only in domed stadiums? Get a grip King and quit spewing your typical nonsense.

Jeremy Tyler Leaves Israel, New NFL Playoff Overtime Rules

2010-03-23T18:57:00.003-05:00

I planned on writing up a blog about Jeremy Tyler. Tyler left high school after his junior year to compete professionally in Israel for Maccabi Haifa. He left the team earlier this week.

After searching his name on the web, I found I need to do some more reading before I write a blog. There is more information about him that I want see before I go off half cocked and rip him apart.

New NFL Playoff Rules
I don't get it. A rule change only for the postseason? You play the regular season under one set of overtime rules but change it for the playoffs? It doesn't make any sense.

I like the actual rule just not implementing it exclusively for the postseason.

The rationale behind the rule makes sense. If a team team that wins the overtime coin toss scores a touchdown on their first possession the game is over. If they kick a field goal the other team gets a possession to try to win or tie. If a field goal ties up the game then the game goes sudden death. The NFL reasons that the coin toss win gives the receiving team a higher percentage at a win. Kickers now kick more accurately and from greater distances. A team that wins the toss merely has to play for field position and kick a long field goal. A long kickoff return greatly increases the chance at victory. Now a coach has to decide to try for the field goal and let the other team have a crack at it or go for the win with a touchdown.

According to a story in the Houston Chronicle, there is a chance the owners may vote to implement the rule for the regular season. I hope they do. I'd like to see how it plays out over the course of a season.

Tom Penders Out at Houston

2010-03-21T22:10:00.003-05:00

Earlier today I was pondering the question of Tom Penders and his future as coach of the Houston Cougars basketball team.

Evidently someone answered the question for me. Penders will not return for the 2010-11 season.

Before the Cougars' run to the C-USA Tournament Championship, speculation leaned heavily toward Penders retiring.

I my mind, pure speculation on my part, Penders seemed content on collecting one last paycheck before officially retiring. He was hired to resurrect the Houston program. He helped the team recover from the disastrous run of Clyde McBrooks.

However I believe Penders took the Cougars as far as he could. I thank Penders for his contributions to the Cougar but his effort appeared to fall short. Penders trashed the UH facilities.

He didn't recruit Houston area players under the guise of not wanting to deal with AAU coaches. I think he had the Art Briles attitude that he couldn't compete with the bigger name schools so he went after some lower rated recruits or JUCOs. My problem with that thinking is you don't know unless you try. A glance at Houston roster and I count four players from the Houston area and three of them via junior college. Half the roster is built from transfers and junior college players. JUCO and transfers fit an immediate need but don't build a foundation for a program.

Penders was brought in to return the Cougars to the NCAA tournament. It took Penders six seasons to do it and a miraculous run to do it.

So I thank Penders for his effort. He brought back some pride to the Cougars this season but it was a long time coming. Penders probably reached his pinnacle at UH. Whether he retired or "retired", it is time to move on.

Houston's Return to the NCAAs, Arenas Still Doesn't Get It

2010-03-16T21:27:00.004-05:00

Houston Cougars Return to NCAA Tournament
The last time the Cougars played in the NCAAs I was still a student at the University of Houston. Eighteen years ago and then the Coogs went into the wilderness.

The three headed monster of Clyde McBrooks (Clyde Drexler, Ray McCallum, Alvin Brooks) drove the Coogs into the ground. Drexler wasn't really interested in the job or recruiting so he left after two seasons. Brooks preceded Drexler and only managed one winning season. McCallum could never right the ship so Tom Penders was brought in.

Through all the coaching changes, the Cougars were stuck in reverse. Winning seasons were far and few between. Before the Cougars run in the C-USA tournament, many were calling for Penders' head on a platter.

For now the few souls that wander the hallowed halls of Hofheinz Pavillion are silent. For one year season, albeit a shaky one, the Cougars return from the wilderness and turn to sip the waters of the NCAA Tournament.

Arenas Still Doesn't Get It
Today's edition of the Sporting News Daily features a blurb from Esquire magazine's interview with Gilbert Arenas. Gilbert's quote on his run in with Javaris Crittenton:

We didn't have no problem. It was just some fun that got out of control.

Just some fun? Bringing guns to work and pulling them out after a contentious argument on the team plane? Risking your career and breaking the law over just some fun?

Thank you Arenas for clearing the air. The whole time I was under the impression that you had a beef with Crittenton and you wanted to scare or shoot him. I understand. It's how me and friends have fun when we play poker. If I think a friend cheated, I go to his place of business with a few guns and have fun.

Arenas tries to sound contrite earlier in the article and apologizes to the wife of the Wizard's late owner Abe Pollin. It appears that maybe there is some regret after all. Then he goes to his quote about fun. I think he still can't get his mind around how grave the situation is. Not only is his career in danger but his freedom is too.

I'm no gun control advocate. I don't believe guns need registration with the government. I believe laws should focus on punishing crimes carried out with guns. Making ownership illegal or requiring a permit to do so doesn't keep the guns out of hands of criminals. Gun control laws put an undue burden on law abiding citizens.

On the other hand, I have a very healthy respect for guns. I want to keep my health so I don't play with guns. Guns aren't toys. Arenas had every right to own guns. He crossed the line when he brought it in to practice and allegedly pulled it on Crittenton. Even if he thought he was only having "fun" what happens if he goes into rage during his confrontation? His fun could have cost a life or injured a person.

Despite all the jeopardy Arenas has created for himself, it appears that he still just doesn't get how serious his fun really was.

The Roethlisberger Question

2010-03-09T20:36:00.002-06:00

Again, Fat Ben Roethlisberger stands accused of sexual assault. Last July a woman leveled accusations that Roethlisberger raped her in 2008 at Lake Tahoe. The Lake Tahoe case is pending and no criminal charges have been filed.

The question: Is a troubling pattern emerging in Roethlisberger emerging or is he easily a target for women seeking a payday?

It's no secret Fat Ben likes his parties and does things his own way. His has a bar carousing reputation. He also disregarded the team's prohibition, I believe it's a standard clause in most pro athlete contracts, of engaging in dangerous activities. Roethlisberger went motorcycle riding without a helmet and ended up in the hospital for an while.

On the other hand, Fatso is a young man, two time Super Bowl Champion quarterback, millionaire for one of the most storied NFL franchises. Roethlisberger shouldn't be confined to his home just because of his fame and fortune. Like the rest of us, he should enjoy the fruits of his labors.

What Roethlisberger needs to do is exercise more caution. He can't allow himself to get plastered and up alone with women. Hell I remember a story that Chuck Berry took a Polaroid of women nude before sex in order to show they did it voluntarily and not under duress. I'm not sure how that would have held up. What I'm saying is Fat Ben needs to watch out for himself because no one else will.

What are his options? I really can't answer that. He needs to surround himself with trusted friends and not hanger ons. He also needs to be more selective in the bars he hangs out. He was allegedly in a small college town where he now stands accused. Whatever the answer is, he needs to think long and hard about his habits.

I've read a couple of columnists that jump all over Roethlisberger. They already have condemned him in the media and some have already tried him in the court of public opinion. Unfortunately that's what happens in today's instant gratification, shoot from the hip, 24-hour news cycle and trying to out do the other guy world.

The fact remains we don't know the truth of what happened yet. We don't know if the accuser is telling the truth or if she's making false accusations. Either way she's making very serious claims. The police are right to investigate. The Rooneys would be right to bring him in to Steelers headquarters and ask him what's going on. We also need to remember we need facts and due process before we attempt to hang him in public.

Tiger Woods, NFL Labor Strife

2010-02-20T12:29:00.005-06:00

I picked the two items probably most written about in the sports world. I try not to do that. Sometimes I can't help it.

Eldrick Woods
Who cares? I don't. The man made a mistake. That mistake was getting married. One of the richest athletes on earth and one of the most recognizable faces on the planet messed up when he decided to tie himself to one woman.

By all reports, Woods is a tail hound. Good for him. He's married. Bad for him.

That's the problem with our conformist society. Expectations are for all of us to be pods. We are supposed to go to school, get a job, get married and have children. Basically that's a load of bullshit. Yet just about everybody does it if for no other reason as it's the "norm."

Parents put pressure on adult offspring for grandbabies. To put it bluntly,"Hey Mom and Dad, screw you. It's none of your business."

So Eldrick conformed. On top of the golf world, he married. I'm sure he was a babe hound long before he was married. That's his and the women's rights. He could screw his talent right out if he wanted. What two consenting adults do is their business only.

Instead of conforming, Woods should have just stayed single and enjoyed his carefree bachelor ways. Trust me, it's worth it.

NFL Labor Strife
I've read several articles from both points of view. The NFL owners and players are waging a media PR war on the labor issues. It's hard to see who is telling the truth.

Owners claim that they are losing money and want the players to give up a bigger slice of the revenue pie. The owners also assert that since players benefit from the capital investments, such as new stadiums and operating costs, the players should also contribute to the costs.

The players counter the claims of losing money. They want proof and have asked the NFL to open up the accounting books and prove it. The players don't want to give up money and revenue they've won in previous contract agreements. Players also say that once the salary cap goes away they won't ever agree to a new one.

This is what we all know. NFL is the most popular sport in the U.S. The revenue stream is no where near dry. Franchise values are enormous. Most stadiums are sold out on game day. Fans buy up merchandise and pay for parking spots. They even pay for the right to purchase seats in the form of PSLs.

The real fight is about who gets what percentage of the money. With all the merchandise, sold out stadiums, revenue sharing and outrageous TV money, I don't believe the owners stance that they are losing money.

What I think is there as some big revenue teams like the Cowboys, Giants, Redskins, Patriots and Texans that want to keep a bigger slice of what they bring in. Teams in Buffalo, Jacksonville and Green Bay want to keep the revenue sharing in place for fear of not being able to compete with the larger money teams.

The owners might be showing a united front but I think maybe something else is brewing. Keep in mind it's only my personal theory and it's based on nothing but thin air. The owners might try to get the players to give up a chunk of the revenue and spread some of that around to the medium to small market teams. The big market teams will take a bigger slice of what they bring in but use the players concessions in a contract to make up the loss of revenue to the smaller market teams.

In a work stoppage, the owners will make off like bandits. The owners will still receive TV money in the even of a work stoppage. According to that article, about $5 billion despite not playing a game. Also, clubs are planning cost cutting moves should 2011 schedule get cancelled.

The biggest dupes in this scheme are the television networks. Why the hell are they forking over money for a product that won't exist. Makes no sense.

The biggest losers will be the fans. We pay for the stadiums by social welfare via taxes. We watch the games on TV. We buy the tickets, jerseys and other merchandise. We show up on Sundays. Yet that loyalty will be repaid by a possible lockout or strike and a whole bunch of nothing to show for it.

Thanks NFL owners and players.

WWMED?

2010-01-27T21:23:00.003-06:00

What would my employer do?
That is the question I always ask myself when a public figure such as an athlete gets into trouble.

In this case, I ask the question about the Gilbert Arenas case.

Despite pro sports high profile in the public eye, sports are still privately owned businesses with the goal of making money. Also, like another work place, the leagues and owners retain the right to impose reasonable rules on employees.

Reasonable rules include don't steal from the company, show up on time, don't show up drunk or high and don't bring guns or weapons to work unless you are military or a police.

NBA policy prohibits bringing firearms into an NBA facility. For that violation, NBA commissioner David Stern suspended Arenas and Javaris Crittenton without pay for the rest of the season.

Back to my question, what would my employer do? No ands, ifs or buts about it, they would suspended me immediately and more than likely fire me. I work in an oil refinery. At the entrance gate a list prohibited items is posted. Guns, alcohol, illegal drugs and being under the influence of drugs or alcohol are strictly prohibited. As a union steward I know when cases involving prohibited items are involved. In every case the violator has lost his or her job.

I know my employer's rules as a condition of my employment. Arenas, Crittenton and other NBA players know the NBA's rules. We all know before hand what is expected and required to stay employed and earn a living. We also know the consequences of breaking those rules. For whatever reason, two NBA players ignored those rules and now will sit the remainder of the year without pay.

Arenas will probably be back somewhere because of his talent but probably nowhere near the salary he pulls down now. Crittenton's career might be over. All I can say is I hope they and other players learn from this incident and Plaxico Burress's incident and remember those rules are in place for a reason and the price is steep for breaking them.

Craptacular Shitastic NFL Playoffs

2010-01-24T17:28:00.003-06:00

I've been pretty quiet during the playoffs and for good reason. The majority of games have been unspectacular bores pieces of donkey dung.

The only three games I've enjoyed were the Jets upset win over the Chargers, the Vikings dismantling of the Cowboys and the Colts and Jets conference final. The rest have been boring blowouts with the exception being the Cardinals vs. Packers slugfest. Even that game sucked. Most people will look at the score and think "Wow" what a game. It was anything but good. It was sloppy defense and terrible to watch.

I expect the Vikings vs. Saints game about to kick off to be a shoot out but who knows.

And why a goalie should never lose track of the ball:

NFL Playoff Format Revisited

2010-01-10T16:57:00.002-06:00

This year there has been much more wailing and gnashing of teeth over playoff teams sitting starters late in the season. The current official stance by the NFL is playoff teams earn the right to play whoever they want by clinching early. Some critics maintain that it is unfair for teams to sit starters when it could affect the final playoff teams and seeding.

A few ideas have been floated about how to fix this problem. Among those ideas is awarding draft picks. That may be the stupidest thing I've heard in a while. That's what the NFL really needs to do...reward playoff teams with more draft picks. Commissioner Roger Goodell stated that he will ask the competition committee to look at the issue.

So with that in mind, I thought I'd take a look at how the playoffs would shake out under my proposed playoff system I made last year.

A brief overview of my rules, which really are tweaking the current rules, not drastically changing the current format.

1. The two division winners in each conference get the top two seeds and a first round bye.
2. All other playoff spots determined by record regardless of division finishes.
3. If two or more teams tie with the same record, the division winner advances first.
4. The rest of the NFL tiebreakers go from this point on.

AFC
The top two seeds are 1. Colts and 2. Chargers. N
The wildcard teams are 3. Patriots 4. Bengals and four teams tied at 9-7. Nothing here changes since none are divisional winners. The current NFL tiebreakers apply and result with 5. Ravens and 6. Jets.

NFC
The top two seeds remain 1. Saints and 2. Vikings.
The wildcard teams are 3. Cowboys 4. Packers 5. Eagles 6. Cardinals
In my playoffs, the teams remain the same except for seeding. That would result in first round match ups of Cowboys vs. Cards and Packers vs. Eagles.

So what did this year's exercise accomplish. Nothing really. The only change resulted in a different seeding arrangement for the NFC and none for the AFC.

Why did I do it? Just to test the theory I came up with last year. About the only game that it might have changed would have been the week 17 match up between the Packers and Cardinals. The Cardinals might not have rolled over so easily if home field advantage was still at stake. Under the current system they were guaranteed a home game despite having a worse record than the Pack.

See how it works out next year. I may one of these days go back and back test the theory too.

NFL Week 13

2009-12-09T12:11:00.003-06:00

Like Texans fans that want Bill Cowher to coach the team but have no clue on the implications of such a hire, I love when someone who has no clue about football offers his ignorant opinion.

So much the better when it's a politician giving his opinion on the draft. Florida governor Charlie Crist talked to Jaguars ownership about drafting Tim Tebow in order to sell more tickets. I'm glad the governor took time out from his busy schedule to tell an owner of a private business how to run it. Florida is such a paradise that the governor can spend time constructing a NFL draft board. He is so confident of reelection that forget the campaign for governor. It's a campaign to keep the Jags in Jacksonville. Forget that the Jags already have a quarterback that can run and throw (throw better than Tebow at that), the governor wants to market Tebow.

It's December and like the changing of the leaves, the Cowboys lose. In an important divisional game against a team that has last more games lately than won. It certainly isn't lack of effort on offense. Tony Romo threw 3 touchdowns and no picks. Marion Barber had the only miscue on a rare fumble. Austin Miles, Jason Witten and a Roy Williams appearance all had big days. If there was any knock on the offense it why was Romo putting the ball up 55 times? What's going on with the running game?

If blame is due lay it at the feet of the defense and special teams. The defense allowed Brandon Jacobs to cut loose on a short pass. Jacobs turned the pass into a 74 yard TD. Dominik Dixon ran back a 79 yard punt after he appeared contained. Kicker Nick Polk didn't do anything to help the cause by missing a 42 yard FG attempt.

Steeler Nation must be in full melt down mode. Earlier in the year I expressed some concern about the Steelers and their offense. They started off 1-2 before righting the ship and reeling off five straight. The hit the skids hard with four losses in a row now. The Bengals own the division this year and the Steelers almost pulled off the win. If I'm a fan the two losses that obviously concern me are the KC and Oakland games. Those are two winnable games against bad teams yet the Steelers came up short. They have three tough games against Green Bay, Baltimore and Miami.

On the other hand, Raider Nation must be giddy as school girls. How many wins is that now? Outside of Oakland, who cares? The bottom line is the Raiders are still the same bad team they were when the season started. JeMarcus Russell might be on the bench but Bruce Gradkowski isn't the answer. Until the Godfather Emperor Palpatine dies or brings in a GM with a free strong hand, the Raiders will still suck.

Case in Point: Palpatine's selection of WR Darius Howard-Bey. For the Steeler game he was inactive. The first round pick is inactive. Why? I didn't see him on the injury report. The Raiders screwed the pooch on another first rounder. The Raiders needed all that speed to get all those long balls from Russell. Right? Just look at his game stats for the season. A freaking joke. I guess he and Russell can sit on the bench and eat hot dogs. Look at your future team Raider fans.

Michael Vick had a nice homecoming versus his old team. Unlike others, I want him to succeed. He made his mistake and paid a heavy price. We are all entitled to redemption if it a genuine gesture.

Like I stated last week, the NFL more than likely had caught up with the Patriots. They've been looking stale. Almost like the feel that they should just show up and win. The don't scare anyone. As the losses mount, the intimidation factor diminishes. In fact, I doubt anyone really fears them anymore. This week the Dolphins took them down.

I wonder what Daniel Snyder was hoping for when Jim Zorn was stripped of play calling duties? I know he was trying to get Zorn to quit so Snyder wouldn't be on the hook for his contract. Zorn didn't take the bait. Somebody else is calling plays but the results are the same. Same old Redskins, different Sunday. This time they let the undefeated Saints off the hook. As long as Snyder has owned the team he still doesn't get it. He needs to let someone else run the football operations. He's obviously a smart business man. He wouldn't be loaded otherwise. So why can't he realize that the same aspects apply to running a football team? It's not his personal fantasy team.

In the Sign of Things to come category, the NFL ended the $110 million a year revenue sharing program. The ESPN article doesn't say which revenue program since there are many including TV money, gate receipts and merchandising. I'm assuming the merchandising program is the one ended. Basically all the money from team merchandise sold is pooled and divided up between teams. The article implies that it was used to subsidized lower revenue teams. That is likely false. It's not a subsidy. It's shared revenue. Now it helps those lower revenue teams but the other teams receive the same amount.

What baffles me is that in the commentary and analysis I've read this week, no one has mentioned it. I'm not done with my weekly reading so I don't know what I've missed.

The move could be a sign of how the owners plan on negotiating with the players. The players plan on filing an appeal to an outside arbitrator to rule on the move. The players contend that the revenue sharing is a bargained issue and the league can't unilaterally end it without the NFL Players Association approval. The owners contend that it only applies to cap years. That next year will be uncapped and therefore there is no need for the program to exist.

If the clause ESPN is quoting is correct then the NFLPA will probably win:

"The revenue sharing program described to the NFLPA by memorandum dated March 10, 2006, has been determined by the NFLPA to be satisfactory. Any material modification to that program must also be reasonably satisfactory to the NFLPA.

I'm going to go without name a JeMarcus Russell Player of the Week and a line of the week this issue. It's already a long column....until next week, hopefully.

NFL Week 12 - Bite Me It's Late by a Week Edition

2009-12-09T12:00:00.002-06:00

One of the big problems of trying to write a weekly NFL column is being in actual attendance of an NFL game. When I'm at a Texans game all else ceases to exist. Top that off with shift work and the week gets away from me and I find myself not caught up on the games of the past week. Factor in that work cut my internet access to sports websites and I'm even more clueless.

Basically I can limit my comments to the games that I watched. And to be honest that would leave me only the Patriots vs. the Saint.

What can I say? As much as I think that Saints fans are unbearable and the biggest douchebags (yes even worse that Cowboy bandwagon fans), the Saints are the real deal. They've always had the offense since Drew Brees arrived from San Diego. Now they have the defense to go with it.

They pretty much manhandled the Patriots. In watching the game though, I think the league is catching up with Bill Belichik and the Patriots. It looks like the Pats have become a bit predictable. The play book can be distilled to about three or four plays: Deep to Randy Moss. Underneath to Wes Welker. Draw play to Laurence Maroney. Pass to Kevin Faulk on 3rd down. Teams seem to know what is coming. Stopping the Pats is a different story. They are still a good team but at 7-4 they aren't the All-Universe World Beaters they used to be. The quality teams of the NFL no longer are intimidated or fear the Pats. The Genius Belichik looks pretty stale as of late.

The Cowher Rumor
According the Houston Chronicle's NFL writer John McClain, someone wrote on a blog that Bill Cowher would be interested in the Texans or Bears job. The national media ran with it. Local fans went bonkers and started clamoring for Gary Kubiak's head and do what it takes to get Cowher.
McClain shot down the rumor in last week's Texans online chat session he does for the Chronicle.

This week Profootball Weekly clarified the rumor. PFW quotes inside sources that Bears representatives talked to someone who knows Cowher and asked him to gauge Cowher's interest and requirements to take the job. Cowher never expressed any interest about the Bears or the Texans job. It was the Bears reaching out to him.

Hot Seat
It's that time of year where coaches seats go from warm to hot to scorched. The Bills axed head man Dick Jauron already. Rumors are swirling that Lovie Smith is in deep trouble in Chicago. Jim Zorn and Eric Mangini are almost as good as gone. Jeff Fisher might leave the Titans. I wonder if Jim Mora is feeling some heat in Seattle especially after the GM step down this week. Gary Kubiak is standing on the ledge with owner Bob McNair deciding whether or not to push him off. Wade Phillips and Tom Cable are on the list too. Several more coaches are borderline including John Fox and Jack Del Rio.

While not in any danger of losing their jobs, Mike Singletary, Rex Ryan and Raheem Morris might get a stern talking to by management. The word on Singletary is his intensity and rhetoric are great but he is getting out coached is some games. That he might be a little to hands on and not a great X's and O's guy. Ryan might be told to tone down his mouth. He started off winning three games in a row but came down to earth real quick. As for Morris, there are multiple reports stating that Morris may be in over his head in Tampa. He is getting overwhelmed by the job.

Of course it doesn't help that Super Bowl winning coaches are working in the television booth and not the sidelines. Cowher, Mike Shanahan, Tony Dungy, Brian Billick and Jon Gruden will be on many short lists this off season. Of those names I see Shanahan as the only sure bet to take a job. It's the worst kept secret in football that Cowher wants the Carolina job. Dungy seems more content with his role as a mentor to players and troubled youth. I don't know anything going on with Billick. Gruden just signed an extension to his TV contract so there might be a buy out clause that may keep teams away.

JeMarcus Russell Player of the Week
I have to give it to home town goat Matt Schaub. Even though the Texans let the Colts back into the game they were still in striking distance. At the most inopportune time he threw a pick for TD and then was stripped of the football allowing the Colts a short field.

Line of the Week
Again I have to give it to Green Bay corner Charles Woodson: 7 tackles, 2 interceptions (one for a 38 yard TD return), 1 sack, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery. All that and he was upset that he gave up a TD reception to Calvin Johnson. There is no shame in give up a TD to Johnson.

The Texans are on the road this week so I'll be on my usual seat at Buffalo
Wild Wings in Midtown....

NFL Week 11 - The Open Date

2009-11-28T01:49:00.003-06:00

I strayed off my weekly on field analysis and decided to address a few things about the NFL schedule and rosters.

The Open Date
For starters, it’s not a bye. A bye is when a team earns or is seeded in a tournament or playoff in such a place that they don’t compete in a round. When the top two seeds don’t play in the NFL’s first round of playoffs, that is a bye. A team scheduled off during the season is an open date.

Which brings me to my main point, the nature of the open date is inherently wrong. I think it builds in a late season advantage for some teams to rest up while other teams get the open date as early as the fourth week.

I’d like to see the league either do away with it entirely or make it more equitable. The season is seventeen weeks long to allow for the open week. May as well let half the teams take the week off in week nine and the other half in week ten. That seems fair when compared to the current system.

The Expanded Season
Roger Goodell and the ownership seem hell bent on expanding the season to 18 games. Several issues need to be addressed before this happens. TV contracts will need be adjusted for the extra games, the schedule formula reworked, rosters expanded and player pay also increased for two more game checks.

With the looming potential work stoppage, I personally don’t see how all that will get done in addition to negotiating a new CBA.

As it stands, I’d like to see the NFL expand the rosters for the 16 game season. Teams are allowed to carry 53 players with 46 plus a 3rd quarterback on game day. Teams also carry a practice squad but those players aren’t exclusive to the team. Any team may sign a practice squad player to the 53 man roster.

Instead, the NFL should revamp the current system to allow all 53 players active on game day. No more scratches. The owners pay the players a game day check anyway so why not make the eligible to play? Another route the league could take is to keep the 46 game day roster and expand the designated emergency players. Designate one emergency player at quarterback, running back, offensive lineman, defensive lineman, linebacker, defensive back and receiver. If a player leaves the game and is replaced by the emergency player, then the original player isn’t allowed to return to the game.

The Injured Reserve
While I’m pontificating about the rosters, the owners may as well change up the injured reserve rules. In the past, teams could designate a player on injured reserve and reactivate him during the season. The rule changed to prevent teams from stocking players on injured reserve even though healthy. Now it’s an all or nothing list. A player goes on the list and doesn’t count against the roster limit or he sits out hurt and counts against the roster.

The NFL should take a page from Major League Baseball. They could alter the injured reserve rule for varying periods of time. A player could go on injured reserve for either a 4, 6 or 12 week period or out for the year. Of course there should be limits on the number of players on injured reserve. Maybe two or three players max on the eligible to return list to keep teams from stockpiling players. I’d also suggest limiting the number of times a team can use the injured reserve in a season. Finally, along the lines of the PUP list, once the injury time is up, a team must decide to activate the player or he is out for the season.

NFL Week 10 - The Genius and the Idiot

2009-11-23T12:29:00.001-06:00

Some people, mostly in the New England area, think Bill Belichik is a genius. Others believe he is a cheat. Obviously you don’t win three Super Bowl rings, go undefeated in the regular season and lose a fourth Super Bowl without something working between the ears.

It’s gospel on this blog that I believe that Jack Del Rio inherited the title of Worst NFL Coach upon the retirement of Herm Edwards.

The roles were some what reversed this week.

By now everyone has hashed, rehashed and regurgitated Belichick’s decision to go for the first down against Payton Manning and the Colts Sunday night. My two cents: punt the ball and let Manning earn it. Don’t give him a short field to work with.

On the flipside, Del Rio instructed running back Maurice Drew-Jones not to score in the closing minutes of the Jacksonville Jaguars game against the New York Jets. Drew-Jones took a knee at the one instead of plunging in to the endzone. The Jets had no time outs left and the Jags only needed a field goal to win. They ran out the clock, kicked the FG and won the game.

Those two games show the fine line between genius and idiot. If the Patriots get the first down and win, Belichick is the toast of the town and hailed a gutsy genius. If the Jags miss the field goal, fumble the snap or some other slapstick error, Del Rio probably gets closer to earning his pink slip.

As it stands, the Patriots may have lost any chance at gaining home field advantage through out the playoffs. Unless they collapse completely, they should win their division. The Jags, despite Del Rio, remain in the hunt for a wild card spot and also achieve the tie breaker over the Jets.

Dysfunction Junction, What’s Your Function?

The are bad teams (Chiefs, Lions, Rams) and then there are the problem children of the NFL…Browns, Redskins and Bills.

Incompetence and dysfunction rule the roost in those franchises. The Browns currently hold the lead after firing the GM and Eric Mangini’s antics now catching the eye of the NFL Players Association.

Not to be out done, Ralph Wilson fired Bills head coach Dick Jauron while I started writing this last night. I find the time odd. He had the best opportunity to do so during the open date. Instead Wilson does it on Tuesday, promotes the defensive coordinator to interim coach and expects the team to be prepared to play this Sunday.

I understand pulling the plug on a coach but there are better ways to handle things. Firing a coach during the week isn’t the best way. The move proves the level of chaos going on in Buffalo.

Old Man Wilson styles himself a man of the people. He is the only owner who votes against relocation anytime a team wants to pick up and move. He’s voted against teams moving every time. It’s a nice gesture and pretty meaningless. Remember this is the same owner who is playing regular season games in Toronto and might be rumored to move more games, if not the franchise, to Toronto.

With that kind of doublespeak, it’s no wonder his franchise is swirling down the toilet. Chaos breeds chaos. Wilson, 91, needs to step back and let a younger man run his team. Hands off is generally the best way to go. Just sign the checks and watch the books, Wilson and enjoy your last few years in this life.

And on the Field of Play
Things in Denver seem to hit a wall. After a blazing 6-0 start, the Broncos now have lost the last three. The latest was to division archrival San Diego. The ESPN Football Today podcast, with Mike Green), brought up an interesting point about the Broncos. They pointed out that Denver’s defense isn’t all that young. The tough games they played against the Ravens and Steelers may have taken a toll on the older bodies. Now they really haven’t recovered and will continue to wear down as the season progresses.

Say what you want about the 18-12 score, I still thought it was an entertaining game between the Bengals and the Steelers. No offensive touchdowns usually mean a dull game (Browns 6, Bills 3). Both teams played solid defense and left it out on the field. There was plenty at stake for both teams. Bengals solidified their hold on the AFC North and one game away from sweeping the division. They put themselves in position to compete for a bye in the playoffs. While not out of the divisional race yet, the Steelers must start thinking wildcard. It would take a dramatic Bengals collapse for them to win the division.

Just when you think the Cowboys are making a strong push, the December Boys make a midseason showing. The ‘boys blew a chance to put some distance in the division between themselves and the Giants and Eagles. More curious is why they didn’t use the three headed monster of Tashard Choice, Felix Jones and Marion Barber. Instead the Green Bay defense harassed Tony Romo for the better part of the game.

The free fall continues for the Jets. After opening with a three game win streak and the swagger of coach Rex Ryan, the Jets aren’t looking the like the dark horse playoff team anymore. One scout on I read stated that it would take defensive coaches about three games to figure out rookie Jet quarterback Mark Sanchez. Right on schedule, three games into the season is where the slump begins.

Line of the Week - Charles Woodson CB Green Bay Packers
Two forced fumbles, 9 tackles (2 for a loss), 1 sack, 1 Interception

JeMarcus Russell Player of the Week
This week it goes to a coach. Bill Belichick. Come on man, at least make Payton Manning drive the length of the field.

NFL Week 8

2009-11-05T20:14:00.002-06:00

I slacked off after actually writing this column weekly last season (except for the Sage Rosencopter game). I had my bye week last week. Took some vacation days to unwind from work. Took in the Texans-49ers game and then headed out to the lake for a few days.

My bye is over and here I go again.

I started off with a Hack Roll Call but it got to long so I set it up as a stand alone column.

Going of the Rails on the Crazy Browns Train

First off, I can't help but admire the train wreck the Cleveland Browns are. They went from bad to complete dysfunction in less than one season. Owner Randy Lerner relieved general manager George Kokinis of duties. What isn't clear is the manner of the dismissal. Reports, or rumors, are that Lerner wants Kokinis terminated for cause because Kokinis wasn't achieving goals stated in his contract. Lerner is trying weasel his way out of it because he's still paying previous GM Phil Savage, former coach Romeo Crennel and the old coaching staff. If he can't get out of the contract, he's stuck paying Kokinis for four more years. Not to mention Eric Mangini and his staff if he makes the change at the end of the year.

Lerner has no one to blame but himself. He rashly hired Mangini without conducting much of a search. He hired Kokinis after Mangini hand picked him for GM. The week before the team released director of operations Erin O'brien. Mangini also handpicked O'brien.

SI.com's Dan Banks wrote an excellent column explaining the mess and quoting sources close to Kokinis and the Browns.

Son of Zeus
The anointed Son of Zeus, Vince Young, is starting again for the Tennessee Titans. Yawn. The ESPN Football Today Podcast with Jeremy Green and Pod Vader did a classic bit. To sum it up, they said Young's pass plays were to look at one WR, not go through progressions, and if he was covered to run. Don't look at options 2, 3 or 4. If he did and ended up back at one then he held the ball to long.

Quick Hitters

Ted Ginn found a bit of redemption with the Miami Dolphins. He returned two kick off returns for TDs. I've watched him play a few games and have not been impressed with him as a receiver. I think his staying power in the league will be as a return man. Maybe he can pick up being a real WR soon. He is only in his third year but he needs a lot of hard work.

The amazing thing about the Jets-Dolphins game was that the 'fins scored three TDs without the offense on the field: Ginn's two returns and a fumble returned for a TD.

The Denver Broncos finally lost a game. I'm sure SI.com's hack Andy Perlof is jumping for joy. The Ravens went away from a Joe Flacco passing attack and went back to running the ball. Flacco threw a balled control 175 yards while running the ball and playing stiff defense.

Ryan Clark and the Steelers haven't come to a decision on whether Clark will play this week in Denver. In 2007, the thin air affected Clark and his sickle celled trait. He had his spleen and gall bladder removed. Hines Ward, one of the toughest men in the NFL, says if it were him there would be no question, he wouldn't play. I agree with Ward. Playing football hurt and laying it all on the line is one thing. This is a possible life and death situation. No game is worth that. The Steelers shouldn't even be considering it...just sit him...even if it means taking the loss.

Who dreamed up this match up? Lions and Rams? I know, the NFL has a schedule formula so it was bound to happen. Either way it was a sick game...literally but at least it wasn't a Bills-Browns 6-3 fiasco. At one point it was a 3-2 game though. Ugh.

Line of the Week
Ted Ginn - 6 kickoff returns, 294 yards, 2 TDs of 101 yards and 100 yards

JeMarcus Russell Line of the Week
Kurt Warner - Doing his best Jake Delhomme impersonation, with Delhomme in the house, Warner threw 5 picks and had one fumble in leading the Cardinals to a 34-21 defeat against the Panthers.

Jack Del Rio Coach of the Week
Tom Cable of the Oakland Raiders wins the award this week. Not for being the coach of the Raiders but for the allegations of his off the field behavior. ESPN's show "Outside the Lines" documented his alleged behavior in "Women: Cable Has Violent History".

Closing Thoughts
When was the last time the NFL had this many dysfunctional teams? I'm not talking about bad product on the field but also turmoil behind the scenes. The Washington Redskins have a little Adolf Hitler in Dan Snyder. He stripped head coach Jim Zorn of offensive play calling duties. Why didn't he just cut his balls off at midfield? The Browns are a disaster with all the current upheaval. Al Davis, the Raiders and Tom Cable? Need I say more? Jacksonville can't sell out a home game to lift the local black out and head coach Jack Del Rio is an idiot. The Buffalo Bills are shifting games to Toronto and Dick Jauron is coaching a listless team. Larry Johnson tried to talk his way out of Kansas City but they called his bluff. And reports are that the Bucs coaches are way in over their heads.

The Sheriff Roger Goodell seem intent on the personal conduct policy but maybe he needs to call his deputies in and remind them that ultimately their decisions affect the health of the league. They sink or swim together...

Hack Roll Call

2009-11-05T19:48:00.003-06:00

Hack Roll Call

I'm going to start off with my favorite hack, Peter King. Green Bay hosted the Minnesota Vikings so I imagined that King was in masturbatory heaven. A quick check of his column archive reveals he must have lost feeling in both hands. They played the game on November 1st, so he starts his jack off fest on October 30th. I'm used to King's public blow jobs of Brett Favre. He finds meaningless meanings on senseless topics about Favre. Still I was surprised by his latest Monday Morning Quarterback column. Not only did he take Favre's manhood in his mouth, he bent over and took it his ass and then he turned around and took the full facial. Congrats Kings, you once again solidify your straggle hold on my Official List of Hacks.

Speaking of hacks, Richard Justice out did himself with his blog Yes, the Texans should have taken Vince Young. Vince Young is to Justice as Favre is to King. When Justice isn't administering oral pleasure on Astros owner Drayton McClane, he's busy hurting his chin on Young's tiny nut sack. He still can't get over the fact that the Texans made a football decision and took Mario Williams. He wants Texans owner Bob McNair to run the Texans like McClane runs the Astros. He believes that Young should have been taken in order for the Texans to sell seats. Winning be damned. He conveniently ignores the fact that the Texans have sold out every game since they came into to the league. People might not show up but at least the tickets are sold. Secondly, almost all fans see McClane for what he is...a snake oil salesman. Just take a look at the direction the Astros are going....no thanks, Justice.

At least that other hack, Andy Perloff, shut up about the Broncos. Not even a peep since they lost to the Ravens.

Why We Really Don't Have to Write Aggy Jokes

2009-10-21T15:38:00.003-05:00

....because they do it for us!

Texas A&M is a school with a warped idea of tradition and sense. They believe things were better in 1940s & 1950s than now. They have carried over that mindset into the 21st century. Their response is that outsiders don't understand. They are right. I don't want to understand.

There is no other way to put it than A&M has a bitterness and penis envy of the University of Texas Longhorns. Their obsession with UT is unparalleled in the world of college rivalries.

Besides the UT penis envy, A&M has an inferiority complex to other universities. Cloaked as aggy pride they ridicule the University of Houston (Cougar High), Texas Tech (ITT Tech, tceh) and University of Texas (t.u.) to make themselves feel better.

Aggy can dish it out but not take it. The second someone calls A&M other names like AgroFascists, Nazi Tech or Berlin on the Brazos they explode.

No joke. At work we now have an institutional harassment clause because an aggy got upset when someone responded to his taunts.

While aggys take pride in their school, which is their right, the rest of the Great State of Texas is laughing at them while also embarrassed by them. While the Cougars, Horned Frogs, Red Raiders and Longhorns make their football programs relevant nationally, the aggys are mired in thoughts of yesteryear when they had a program. Welcome to the 21st Century.

Just a few examples of the joke aggys are. And they bring it on themselves.

They dress a few male students to lead the aggys in cheers. It's beyond words. A great example of disrespect aggys have for other schools is this video. The Milkman talking makes some very unflattering comments towards living football legend Joe Paterno:

They actually look like a group of boy band rejects.

Later that weekend an aggy booster goes hunting at the game:

Aggys it is bad enough that your team got cornholed by K-State 62-14 but this is how your Milkmen prepare for a game? How then does your football team prepare for a game.

Props to the Texas Tech Red Raider who put this website up:
The Famous Aggy Yell Leader Video

Poor aggys, everybody pokes fun at them!

NFL Week #5

2009-10-15T13:28:00.004-05:00

Where to start this week?

I'm going with the Dallas Cowboys and the Kansas City Chiefs. It was a valiant try by the Chiefs but they are just not even a decent team. The Chiefs and Raiders are fielding Junior Varsity teams right now.

On the other hand, Dallas, how did you let KC stick around for so long? If it wasn't for the combination of Austin Miles carrier receiving day (10 catches, 250 yards and 2 TDs) and inept Chiefs tackling, we'd all be snickering at the Cowboys. Aw hell, I'm snickering anyway.

JaMarcus Russell had another Russell day at the office. 8 completions on 13 attempts for 100 yards and three fumbles. It's why one of my weekly awards is named after him.

The Bengals! Whodda thunk it? 4-1. Not only 4-1 but the fashion they've done it in. With a strong running game from Cedric Benson, a healthy Carson Palmer and a defense. This week they scored in the closing seconds to stun the Baltimore Ravens. Some fans wanted Marv Lewis gone after last season. Changing coaches is a perilous task.

Speaking of changing coaches, how did that work out for you Cleveland? The Mangenius was shown the door after three seasons in New York. He's working his magic again in Cleveland. There may already be some rebelling among the players. What do you expect when you fine a player $1701 for taking a bottled water from the hotel? If I were Cleveland fan, I'd be pining for the days of Romeo Crennell. They are a disaster...a 6-3 win over Buffalo.

San Francisco returned to earth for a bit. After blasting the Rams in week four, they tables were turned as the Falcons dismantled them this week. They pinned 477 yards on the 49ers and held them to 279.

Stat Line of the Week
Miles Austin - Cowboys vs. Chiefs
10 receptions, 250 yards, 2 TD
Only reason he didn't have more is because he ran out of field because the Chiefs weren't stopping him.

Vince Young/JaMarcus Russell Player of the Week
Derek Anderson - QB Browns
2 completions, 17 attempts, 23 yard, O TD, 1 INT, 15.3 passer rating

Not Man Enough to Write
Andrew Perloff - sportillustrated.com
In his week 4 Against the Grain column, Perloff offered this backhanded praise to the Denver Broncos:

1. Congrats to the Broncos for the 4-0 start. And condolences in advance for your 4-4 record at the midway point (Their next games are New England, at San Diego, at Baltimore and Pittsburgh). A home win over the Cowboys is supposed to be the crowning win that convinces us all they're for real?

Instead of admitting that Denver might be the real deal, in his week five column, he goes to the logic of a three year old.

That being said, if the Pats played Denver in Foxborough, Mass., they would have won by two touchdowns.

It's no wonder Andrew Perloff is forever enshrined in Unkle Monkee's Official List of Hacks.

There was a Vince Young sitting in Tennessee this week. He was actually on the field. Playing! Of course, it was meaningless playing time. I didn't see what point he entered the game as I had quit watching. The cries for Young to start are getting louder in inbred methland. Don't worry inbreds, Young will be starting soon. Not to save the season because it's lost already. No, it will be his dress rehearsal for next season. His escalator clause in his contract kicks in and the Titans need to see if he is worth keeping around, cutting or negotiating to reduce his contract.

That's my story for this week and I'm sticking to it.

Week 5 Results vs. the Spread

2009-10-14T19:17:00.002-05:00

I think I did better than last week.

This week I'll actually try and analyze what went right and what went wrong.

Last week there were five double digit spreads. I've stated in the past that I'm leery of double digit spreads. Still I have to consider the teams involved and over all play before I make the pick. I don't blindly go select a team just because it's a double digit dog.

The Ravens were ten point favorites over the Bengals. I think sometimes the line is based on perceptions and not actual facts. Fact is the Bengals only had one loss, Carson Palmer is healthy and the Ravens gave up a ton of pass yards to Phillip Rivers. On top of that, the Bengals are playing solid defense. I didn't think the Bengals would win straight up but I did believe 10 points was to high a spread for two teams that were playing well.

The Vikings were eleven point favorites over the Rams and the Steelers had the same spread against the Lions. In the Vikings-Rams match up, it was actually a pretty easy pick. The Rams are just that awful. Detroit showed some life against Chicago but the Steelers rediscovered a running game with Rashard Mendenhall. I took the Steelers to dominate the Lions. I was correct with the Vikings but underestimated the Lions.

The other double digit spreads were the sixteen point both the Eagles over the Bucs and the NY Giants over the Raiders. I was a little bit concerned about Donovan McNabb's health in his return but I guessed that the Bucs were just that bad. In the NY Giants-Raider game, I figured if the Texans manhandled the Raiders then the NY Giants were going to destroy them. I was right in both cases.

In the double digit category I went 3-1.

As for the rest of the games I went 9-4, if I did my numbers right.

The biggest shocker was the Broncos upsetting the Patriots. I had the Pats taking care of business in Denver. I think the Broncos are the real deal...for now.

I thought the Seattle vs. Jacksonville match up was going to be a risky play. If I were putting actual money on the line I would pass up on this game. I took the 'hawks but I don't think anyone had a clue they would roll the Jags the way they did.

Chiefs hanging with the Cowboys hurt me. As a Cowboy hater I was pulling for KC but never let emotions get in the way of betting. Dallas pulled out the last minute heroics against a weak Chiefs. Says something about the Cowboys.

The Sick Old Man game of the week was the Bills favored by six over the Browns. I knew both teams were inept but not this bad...wow what a stinker.

Finally, anything less than a TD and I'm not betting on the Titans. They just flat out suck this year.

I'll have week six picks tomorrow.

Peter King's Weekly Brett Favre Blowjob

2009-10-12T14:56:00.002-05:00

Peter King hangs on Brett Favre's left nut like a calf on its mother's udder. King just can't go a week without mentioning Favre and publicly offering some kind of public fellatio.

This week it's Happy Birth, Brett Favre. King fawns over Favre like a love sick high school girl after the prom king. Let is rest King.

Happy birthday, Brett Favre: Favre turned 40 Saturday

when I spoke to him in the tunnel at the Metrodome, an hour or so after the emotional win over the Packers.

He always has to mention that he talked to Favre in person, on the phone or text messaging. He just can't go about his daily business of just reporting. Has to make it know how close he is to his boyfriend.

Think I'm exaggerating?

Favre overcomes nerves to deliver vintage performance

And of course this bit of useful information.

Scroll down to King's Stat of the Week.

Stat of the Week

Forty percent of the Green Bay active roster has never met Brett Favre. Of the 53 players eligible to dress for the Packers in the Metrodome tonight, 21 joined the team after Favre's departure in March 2008.

Add eight practice-squadders and two of three injured-reserve players who weren't on the team in Favre's last season there, and Favre would have a pretty strange time if he walked in to the Green Bay locker room at these days. He wouldn't know 31 of the 64 players in there.

Honestly, who gives a dump how many players on Green Bay's roster never met Favre? How does he in fact know that they didn't meet Favre at some players function? Did he personally go up to each Green Bay player and poll them if they had met Favre? They all do the same thing for a living. Maybe one or two crossed paths with Favre some where else? Maybe one of them is a deacon at Favre's church?

It's that kind of dumb shit writing that makes King an official hack of the Monkee Cage. It's just a made up stat so the King could mention Favre. It's not a blowjob unless it is public.

The scary part? All those Favre references were in the last week.

Go get a room, King!

Week 4 Results, Week 5 Picks

2009-10-11T09:42:00.003-05:00

I don't have much time to do this so it's brief.

This is why I don't gamble. Week 4 I went 4-9 or something like that. Regardless it was an awful week for my selections.

I'll try to do a bit better this week.

Bengals (+10) at Ravens - To many points against the Bengals. Carson Palmer had success against the Steelers. Bengals

Vikings (-11) at Rams - The rams are that pathetic. This is a double digit spread I will take. Vikings

Steelers (-11) at Lions - Going against a double digit spread in choosing the Lions bit my ass. I expect a lot of Rashard Mendenhall this game. Steelers

Cowboys (-8.5) at Chiefs - Dallas offense has been inept. The Chiefs are inept from top to bottom. Cowboys

Raiders (+16) at NY Giants - Wow. A 16 point spread in the pros is almost unheard of. I'm leery of making this pick. Raiders are hopeless but 16? NY Giant

Buccaneers (+16) at Eagles - Donovan McNabb is back but has he fully recovered? I'm wondering. Eagles

Redskins (+4.5) at Panthers - Two teams going no where fast. I'm taking the home team Panthers

Browns (+6) at Bills - Wheels are coming off fast in Buffalo. Cleveland showed some life last week. Browns

Falcons (+2.5) at 49ers - Mike Singletary has niners playing tough defense and Falcons running back Michael Turner isn't a good road back. 49ers

Texans (+5.5)at Cardinals - The Texans can move the ball but have red zone issues. Any, but the Raiders, have moved the ball on the Texans. Has the makings of a shoot out. Texans cover but lose.

Jaguars (-1.5) at Seahawks - Terrible match up. Seattle might get some home cooking going though. Seahawks

Patriots (-3) at Broncos - Could Broncos crash back to Earth? I'll take my chances with the Pats. I higher spread and I would have taken Denver.

Colts (-4) at Titans - Until the Titans defense shows they can stop anyone I can't pick them. Colts

NY Jets (-2) at Dolphins - Jets bounce back against the 'fins.

NFL Week 4

2009-10-07T21:01:00.002-05:00

Finally some time to screw off at work and do what I like to do....nothing.

Don't me wrong, I love going to the Texans games. It's my Hanukah, Christmas, Kwanza and Ramadan rolled into one. "Eight Sundays of Football" should be the title of my biography. There aren't many places I'd rather be than those eight home games. I take that back...there is no place I'd rather be than Reliant Cathedral.

The only draw back to being at home games is I don't get to watch all the other games going on. My second favorite place to be on Sundays is at a sports bar watching all the games. After a Texans home game, by the time I get the sports bar I miss a lot of the action or the games are already a blowout.

All I can say about Dallas is they suck. Maybe they needed that edge T.O. gave them. Nothing makes me laugh harder when the high expectations are brought down to earth by reality. 2-2....no better than the Texans.

I'm actually laughing harder at the Titans than at any Dallas loss. I can't remember where but I read some place that there are two types of Titan fans: those of the team and fans of Vince Young. At 0-4 the VY Fan Club of Tennessee is starting to call for the Wonderlic Genius to start in place of Kerry Collins. Head coach Jeff Fisher insists that Collins isn't the problem. Never mind that Vodka Collins (a name bestowed on him by some Texans fans) didn't complete a pass in his last 13 attempts against Jacksonville. My guess is that VY would throw 30 incompletions in the same span. Or he'd curl up in the fetal position and cry.

At this point it's obvious the Titans woes start with the defense. Is it the loss of Fat Albert Hayensworth? Or the loss of defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz? My guess is it's Schwartz. Other than Fat Albert, it's the same team out there. Pro Bowlers in the secondary and a healthy line upfront from last year still patrol for the defense. What gives? Matt Schaub had a career best 4 TDs and David Garrard looked like an All-Pro last week at against a leaky Titans pass defense. For now I'm putting it on the new coordinator.

As much as I hate to admit it, I think the New Orleans Saints are for real. They dismantled the NY Jets defense and brought Mark Sanchez back to earth. Sanchez had zero TDs and three INTs. Drew Brees, for the second game in a row, didn't throw for a TD. In fact they are winning on strong defense. If the defense can hold up all year then dammit you think douche nozzle Saints are unbearable now....imagine if the win the Super Bowl.

The Pittsburgh Steelers survive another interesting game. This time the offense actually put up some points on the board. The defense and special teams almost gave it away. For this week, Rashard Mendenhall is my hero. And only because he kicked ass and removed any doubt if I would win a fantasy game in one of my leagues. The Steelers are a scary team. They can be scary inept but if they put it back together a repeat isn't out of the question.

Later in the week, I'll have my usual features: the Joe Pisarcik/Vince Young Player of the Week, the Herm Edwards Coach of the Week and the Line of the Week. Also my week four results and week five picks.

NFL Week 4 Picks

2009-10-04T09:34:00.004-05:00

This is on the fly. Better late that never. Last week was pretty busy. I didn't get to post week one results or week two picks.

Kick off is in a few hours so here goes.

Rule modification: Last season, the rule was majority rules on point spreads. I use foxsports.com's NFL odds page. Five books are reported. The rule worked out well until this week. I couldn't make a pick on three games if the rule applied. I'm changing the case of a 2-2-1 tie, 1 wins. Example: In the Chargers vs. Steelers, two books have it Chargers +7, another two have it Chargers +6.5 and one has it Chargers +6. I'll use the +6 in this game.

Detroit(+10) at Chicago - Lions won for the first time in a century. Believe it or not I'm having a tough time making a choice. I'm going out on a limb with Lions losing but covering.

Oakland (+9) at Houston - Another tough one to call. The Texans have twice been home favorites and lost. Oakland covered the one double digit spread against them and are 2-1 against. I'm going with the trend and calling the road dog Raiders to lose but cover.

Titas (-3) at Jacksonville - Titans are in a 0-3 hole while Jacksonville is chaos despite the win against the Texans. Titans

NY Giants (-10) @ Kansas City - I'm usually hesitant to pick for double digit spread. KC is nearly always the exception. NY Giants

Baltimore (+2) at New England - No brainer. Ravens

Seattle (+10)at Indianapolis - The Seahawks are the walking wounded. Again. Colts

Tampa Bay (+7.5) at Washington - Two hapless teams. Bucs cover and maybe win.

Cincinnati (-7) at Cleveland - Bengals

Buffalo at Miami - Pick 'em. Buffalo

NY Jets (+7.5) at New Orleans - two contrasting styles of football. Rough and tumble Jets against the high flying Saints. Jets

Dallas (-3) at Denver - I want to give Denver the benefit of the doubt for now. The Cowboys played crappy at home and now must take the crap show on the road. Broncos

St. Louis (+10) at San Francisco - It's a safe bet to take the double digits in this game. 49ers

San Diego (+6) at Pittsburgh - It's to large a spread against the Chargers.

And Peter King Reinforces His Lead as Hack

2009-09-21T22:39:00.003-05:00

Unfucking believable. There is clueless and then there is dipshit worthlessness. And then there is Peter King.

A brief recap. King loves giving Brett Favre blowjobs in his weekly Monday Morning Quarterback column for Sports Illustrated. He also loves name dropping on who he exchanges after game texts and cell phone calls.

Then he is just flat out incompetent.

To wit, Kings his Top 15 for the NFL.

At No. 15 he has the Tennessee Titans. You know that team that is 0-2. The team that lost to defending champion Steelers. After that game, a top ranking might still be justifiable. But then the Titan defense gets lit up by the Houston Texans.

As a Texans fan, I can understand the Texans not having rank. But to put an 0-2 team on there is just pure ass kissing, incompetent writing. How about one of the other 1-1 teams instead of an 0-2 team. Last I checked one win beats no wins.

King you move to the front of the class as the top hack in the Monkee Cage.

Picks vs. Spread Week One Results, Week Two Picks

2009-09-17T13:24:00.004-05:00

Off to a lousy start. Your favorite Unkle Monkee finished week one with a dismal 7-9 record against the spread. Not good if I wanted to make a living at this. Thank God I don't nor have any desire to.

What went right? As I thought, +6 for the Titans was to much a spread against the Steelers. The difference ended up only three with the game going into OT. I figured the Ravens would roll the Chiefs but was surprised in the points put up by the Chiefs. It was just a friendly reminder on why I don't even try to guess on the over/unders.

One thing I'm trying more is to follow up on trends. One thing I figured on was the Panthers not shaken off the disaster in last year's playoffs. It paid off. Jake Delhomme picked up right where he left off with turnovers and the Eagles netting me a win.

Intense rivalries are hard to pick but I usually bet against a wide spread. Case in point was the Raiders (+9) hosting the Chargers. Games like this one can go either way and the spread was just to big. Raiders lost but covered.

What went wrong? More than went right. I thought the Dolphns would put up a better fight against the Falcons. Wrong. On the other hand, I didn't think the Jags would put up such a hard fight against the Colts. I should have paid more attention to the series history. Jags usually put up a tough game for the Colts.

Three games that really bit me in the ass were Lions-Saints, Bills-Pats and Seahawks-Rams. I figured the season opener would put more spunk into the Lions and Rams. Both teams appear to have picked up where they left off last season. The Rams accomplished the only goose egg on the scoreboard. I thought the Pats would roll the Bills. I thought the Bills firing of the offensive coordinator would hurt them. It didn't.

Double Digit Spreads
There were three double spreads this week. I took two of them and lost. In the Bills-Pats, I discounted the divisional rivalry and lost. I thought the Lions would put up a better fight. Chiefs lived up the bad billing.

Week 2 Picks

As usual, I use the odds posted at FoxSports.com. Picks are in bold.

Carolina (+6) @ Atlanta - The Panthers suffered carry over from last years playoffs and the Falcons beat the other NFL surprise of 2008. The Falcons don't have the defense anywhere near what the Eagles brought last week. This is a tough game to call but I'm think the Panthers cover but lose.

St. Louis (+10) at Washington - Until the Lambs prove they can beat a double digit spread I'm going against them. The shut out doesn't help matters. Redskins

Houston (+6.5) @ Tennessee - The Texans couldn't move the ball or stop the NY Jets last week. It doesn't get any easier against the Titans.

New Orleans @ Philadelphia - two pick 'ems and two no lines. No selection due to no new info on Donovan McNabb or Kevin Kolb gets the start.

New England (-4) @ NY Jets - This line is about right. Patriots

Oakland (+3) @ Kansas City - Plus three for the Raiders. Are you kidding me? Raiders

Arizona (+3) @ Jacksonville - If no one is there to watch, will the game still make a noise. This is a toss up. Cards

Cincinnati (+9) @ Green Bay - To much credit to Green Bay and putting to much stock in last year's Bengals. Bengals

Minnesota (-10) @ Detroit - that the money and run. Vikes

Tampa Bay (+5) @ Buffalo - Bills ready to play and win after putting up a good fight against Pats. Bills

Seattle (+1.5) @ 49ers - This should be a pick em. Toss a coin and go with it. I would give the 49ers (-3) but bookies no more than me. 49ers

Pittsburgh (-3) @ Chicago - I think the line is about right. More than three and I'd go with the Bears but at three I go with the Steelers.

Baltimore (+3) @ San Diego - A toss up. Home field gets the Chargers an automatic (-3). Ravens

Cleveland (+3) @ Denver - A miserable game to pick from. Broncos

NY Giants (+3) @ Dallas - Dallas playing in the new digs for the home opener sets up nicely for the Giants.

Indianapolis (-3) @ Miami - Dolphins and home cooking don't amount to much. Colts

NFL Week #1

2009-09-15T23:41:00.003-05:00

NFL Week #1
Somebody actually got on me for not having this out yet. What the phuk is wrong with you?

Side note: I finally got around to watching Tropic Thunder. Other than Robert Downey playing an Australian who under went a controversial race change operation, it was a pretty crappy movie.

Moving along, Thursday night football with the Titans at the Steelers was a great game. It was a real man’s game, not that Kurt Warner pretty boy scoring bullshit. It was hard hitting defense and running with a pass to keep the defense honest. It was appropriate that it went into overtime. The only draw back was Troy Palomalu going out with an injury. I hate seeing the great ones losing playing time to injury. I had a hard time choosing who to root for given that I hate both teams.

With my cheering dilemma in mind, I came up for a few simple rules on who to pull for in a game not involving your favorite team.
1. Always pull for the team playing the Cowboys.
2. Always cheer against a divisional foe.
3. If two divisional foes are playing, go for the team lowest in the standings.
4. Only root for a divisional opponent if their win enhances your team’s playoff chances or gives your team home field advantage in playoffs.
5. If the game has no affect on your team then go with your gut and cheer for the team you hate the least. For example, I hate the Steelers. I hate Kurt Warner. The question during the Super Bowl was who do I hate more: Steelers or Warner? Considering that I wouldn’t mind seeing Warner carried out in a body bag, I cheered for the Steelers to kill Warner and outcome be damned.

The Weekly Honors

Vince Young/Joe Pisarcik Player of the Week
Michael Crabtree – unsigned rookie
Crabtree, feeling that the 49ers are under bidding him, not only is holding out but is threatening to sit out the year and reentering the draft next year. Crabtree needs to Google baseball player Matt Harrington. The Colorado Rockies drafted Harrington 7th overall. He refused to sign his original rookie contract under the advice of his agent. He reentered the draft four more times. Each time he was selected lower than the previous year. He never signed or played in the major leagues.

Box Score Line of the Week
Drew Brees – 26 completions on 34 attempts for 358 yards and SIX touchdowns with one interception.

Herm Edwards Coach of the Week
Gary Kubiak – The Texans, with playoff aspirations, came out flat on both sides of the ball. The Texans made no adjustments through out the game and let a rookie quarterback making his first start carve up the defense. 15 more games like this and Kubiak will be looking for a new job.

Week 1 Unkle Monkee vs. the Spread

2009-09-10T12:08:00.004-05:00

NFL Week 1 Picks

It’s that time of year again. Me vs. the Spread.

The rules are simple. I’m using the odds posted on Foxsports.com which lists odds from different book makers. I went with the odds posted on Tuesday so if there are any discrepancies it's due to updated odds. Most are usually the same spread but when a difference occurs, I go with the majority. If there is no line posted, I cannot make it a selection and call it a pick ‘em. Pushes don’t count since in Vegas I wouldn’t win or lose.

I didn’t keep a running tally last year but I have it on empirical evidence that I would have lost my ass in Vegas. I will try to keep a running tally this year. I won’t pick straight up. That’s too easy and that’s the reason there are point spreads.

Over/under bets are sucker bets so I don’t pick.

Titans (+6) @ Steelers – Titans may have a chip on their shoulders after posting the best record but failing to advance in the playoffs. Steelers and the home crowd will be fired up. I imagine a defensive battle. Take the Titans and the points.

Dolphins (-4) @ Falcons – The two surprise teams of last season meet first. The Falcons defense has plenty of holes but the “Wildcat” formation became decreasingly productive. I’ll stick with the road favorite Dolphins.

Chiefs (+13) @ Ravens - Double digit spreads are usually a dangerous bet. I think this game is the exception to the rule. The Chiefs are a mess with no apparent offensive direction. Mix in the Ravens defense at home and a happy blowout occurs. Ravens.

Broncos (+4) @ Bengals – Broncos are in bad shape. The Bengals look to return to the playoff hunt with Carson Palmer back at quarterback. Bengals win handily.

Vikings (-4) @ Browns – The point spread was from 3-4.5 but two books have a 4 point spread. Drama Queen Brett Favre makes his Vikings debut. Adrian Peterson runs amok in Cleveland. Another road favorite wins. Vikings.

Jaguars (+7) @ Colts – Plenty of question marks in this game. Was 2008 just an off season for the Jags. Will the loss of Tony Dungy affect Peyton Manning? This much I know, the Colts are much better team than the Jags. Colts.

Lions (+13) @ Saints – Drew Brees in one of the best in the game and the Lions are one of the worst. The Lions though have been purged and a new regime rules the land. While they don’t win, I think an inspired Lions make it a closer than 13 point contest. Lions.

Cowboys (-6) @ Buccaneers – Uh boy, I don’t even have to try on this selection. Bucs have gone from contender to laughing stock in two seasons. Jon Gruden is gone and so is the new offensive coordinator before just days before the season. Cowboys.

Jets (+4.5) @ Texans – Two books had Jets (+5), two had Jets (+4.5) and one had no line. I went with the 4.5 spread to avoid the possibility of a push. Texans plan to unveil their new defense against the Jets rookie quarterback. The Jets will try to pound the ball and the Texans run defense is suspect. The Texans are a good home team. Texans.

Eagles (-2) @ Panthers – Panthers were a disaster in the playoffs and I expect a hangover from that loss. The Eagles though were one game away from the Super Bowl and are reloaded. Eagles.

49ers (+6.5) @ Cardinals – The Cards bulked up the running game with Beanie Wells and still boast the three headed WR monster of Anquan Bolden, Larry Fitzgerald and Steve Breaston. Cards win handily at home.

Rams (+8.5) @ Seahawks – 8.5 points is to much for an opening game. Every team is fired up at some level about the season opener. I think bookies are banking on people remembering last year’s listless Rams. Rams lose but cover the spread.

Redskins (+6.5) @ Giants – Again too many points for a home opener and two division rivals who have an intense rivalry. Redskins make a game of it and cover.

Bears (+3.5) @ Packers – Bookies are giving Green Bay a slight advantage. Usually in a close match up the home team is good for 3 points. This is going to be a good game. I’m going to take the Bears and the points.

Bills (+10.5) @ Patriots – The Bills are another team who fired the offensive coordinator days before the season opener. The Terrell Owens show is in town. Dick Juaron is on the hotseat. Tom Brady returns from his injury ready to prove he’s healthy. Pats roll the Bills on Monday Night Football.

Chargers (-9) @ Raiders – Bookies are counting on people remembering the Raiders of last year and forgetting the Chargers. The Chargers started off slow. This is an intense division rivalry. Raiders lose but cover.

Well there you have it. Remember this is for my entertainment only. If you are making picks based on me then you're one sick fuck.

Houston Cougars 55 Northwestern St. 7

2009-09-07T21:17:00.005-05:00

Honestly it was nothing more than a glorified scrimmage. The Northwestern St. Demons were merely a sacrificial lamb to the College Football Gods.

The Demons visit was a homecoming of sorts for their head coach Bradley Peveto. Peveto served as UH defensive coordinator in another life.

The announced attendance was a little over 22,000. I find it a little disappointing considering the expectations for the Cougars this year. I'd like to see more UH alum and casual fans come out the games. This is nothing new and has been an on going problem since long before I attended UH.

On the field the offense, lead by junior QB Case Keenum, looked ready for the season. Keenum picked up from where he left off last season. He tossed the ball for 355 yards while completing 23 of 30 attempts (76.7%). He threw four touchdown passes and ran another one in. He played the first half and one series into the second half.

The defense pretty much manhandled the hapless Demons all night save for one TD drive and when the back ups started to play.

The only concern going forward is the special teams. One blocked extra point, one missed field goal and a long return late in the game show that there is room for improvement.

As for the back ups, RB Wilson seemed to have a nice night. QB Cotton Turner looked like he had first game jitters but hopefully that's all it is. Right now I'm not to confident on how he'd handle a game should Keenum go down. Heralded true freshman A.J. Dugat burned his redshirt last night and made his debut. He got a late start practicing with the Cougars due to a delay in the NCAA clearing him to play. He had a nice catch on his first play and had a few other attempts thrown his way.

Next up the Coogs travel to Stillwater, OK to take on the Oklahoma St. Cowboys. The No. 9 Cowboys beat the No. 13 Georgia Bulldogs in Stillwater 24-10. The win should move them up in the rankings. The Coogs need to bring the A+++ game to win.

Block "H" Formation

Player Intros

Opening Kick Off

David Wetzel's Questionable Source on Michael Crabtree

2009-08-19T12:10:00.002-05:00

I'm a little late with this but....

I love a writer who never let's facts get in the way of a good story. For instance, take Yahoo.com writer Dan Wetzel. He does a column on San Francisco 49er's holdout Michael Crabtree. The headline reads 49ers’ Crabtree conducts convoluted holdout and the article leads you to believe that Crabtree himself came out and said he will reenter next years draft if he doesn't get his money.

A sampling of Wetzel's comments:

Crabtree has decided that he shouldn’t have to be paid less because – based on all the made-up, predicted drafts – Al Davis made a mistake. He wants to be paid more than Heyward-Bey, demanding his contract reflect that it was actually he who was the higher selected receiver.

We are prepared to do it,” David Wells, a cousin of Crabtree, told ESPN.

Crabtree apparently operates in a world ruled by Mel Kiper Jr.

The second quote points out the flaw logic of Wetzel on Crabtree's flawed logic. Wetzel is taking what someone else said as proof of what's going on behind closed door negotiations.

Look very carefully at the source of the quote. David Wells. A cousin of Crabtree. Not his agent, not his lawyer, not his spokesmen. His cousin.

Now go read the real story on ESPN.com. The headline is Adviser: Crabtree could re-enter draft. If you bother to read the whole article, you'd see that Crabtree's agent, not David Well, states that there is no such threat about holding out for more money or reentering the draft. In fact, the agent, Eugene Parker tells ESPN.com:

You've known me a long time and I'm not a guy who makes threats. Nor am I a guy who negotiates in the public. I don't know where this came from but no such threat has been made.

Wetzel may not be wrong on his assessment. We really don't know what's going on behind closed doors. We don't know how much or how little an amount he 49ers are offering.

Wetzel goes wrong in treating a questionable source as a primary source of information. At best, the advisor/cousin, might know what's going on but he might just be part of Crabree's posse with no real information. I'd tend to believe the quotes more if they came from Crabtree or his agent but not his cousin.

Newsflash: Tiger Woods is Human

2009-08-17T09:14:00.002-05:00

Calm the hell down people. The sky isn't falling. The second coming of Christ hasn't happened. Ming the Merciless isn't outside our solar system fighting Flash Gordon.

Yet some people are reacting like that because, hold your breath, Tiger Woods lost a lead and a tournament.

On the local news, Houston Foxnews 26, the sportscaster made a big deal about a Tiger choke.

ESPN2's First Take lead off with Tiger losing and making drama out of it.

It all boils down to one thing. Last I checked, Tiger Woods is human. He's the greatest golfer of our lifetime (arguably the best ever) but he does lose occasionally. He even can lose a lead.

He doesn't heal the sick. He doesn't walk on water. He doesn't fly. He's human. He's bound to lose every once and a while.

The media, as usual, are just acting like drama queens.

It's called an upset. North Carolina St. over Houston. Villanova over Georgetown. NY Jets over Baltimore. NY Giants over New England. These things happen.

If I'm Woods, I'm sitting at home with my model wife and kids enjoying a beer and laughing at all the media hysterics.

Favre Stays Retired, What's Peter King to Do?

2009-07-29T20:08:00.004-05:00

Drama Queen Brett Farve decided to stay retired. Not without the Minnesota Vikings putting every effort they could into signing Favre. In the end, Favre decided he didn't want to go through the grind of NFL life anymore. Or he remembered how awful he played down the stretch last year.

Now the Vikings are in the awkward position of going back to Plan B aka Tarvaris Jackson and Sage Rosenfails. How do you go to your current quarterbacks and tell them,"Well Favre decided to not play. We love you guys."

To top it off, the front office recruited players to call Favre and try to sell him on signing with the team. No dice. Now either Jackson or Rosenfails will have to look at players in the huddle and think that their own guys tried to sell them down the river for Farve.

Good luck to Jackson. I think he probably wins the battle for quarterback. Rosenpenis is a turnover machine. He turned the ball over as much as Texans starter Matt Schaub in half as many games while filling in.

Congrats Vikings, he's your problem now.

The NFL's Problem Children

2009-07-22T18:48:00.004-05:00

I finally decided to weigh in on the legal woes of three NFL players and the spot commissioner Roger Goodell finds himself in.

When Goodell to the reins of the NFL, he promised more law and order. He worked with players and the players union to come up with a personal conduct code for players, coaches and basically all NFL personnel. In his term he has suspended several players including high profile problem child Adam Pacman Jones. The policy doesn't just include legal problems but an behavior that can tarnish the league's brand. So far I believe Goodell has done a good job of using his judgment.

First, I'm going to go back to a show I heard on ESPN Radio. I can't remember the show but an interesting question was raised around the time Goodell issued an indefinite suspension to WR Donte Stallworth and the postponement of Plaxico Burress's court date. Typically Goodell waits until a case has wound through the legal system before issuing his ruling.

The host asked his callers this question: Should Roger Goodell be judge, jury and executioner and punish a player more severely if the legal system doesn't seem harsh enough? He was referring to Stallworth's case. Stallworth received a relatively light sentence for DUI and manslaughter while Michael Vick received more prison time for killing dogs. Stallworth served 30 days in prison and received probation for killing a pedestrian while intoxicated. The host didn't take sides as the question was posed for discussion.

I started to think about the personal conduct policy and Goodell's duty as commissioner. I think the question boils down to one simple concept. The NFL is a private business enterprise with the goal of making money. Goodell's job is to steer the ship and to maximize the profits of the business. He has the duty to protect the image and marketability of the league. If a players actions hurt the image of the league, then Goodell has the right to punish those players. Players are the most visible employees of the league. How they behave and act off the field can impact the league as much as play on the field.

In the private sector, employees usually have to adhere to some kind of behavior policies at work. Just as a player can get suspended for getting a DUI, an employee in the private sector can be terminated, suspended or other actions. A company, and the NFL, must act to protect its best interest.

While Goodell is under no obligation to come down hard on a player, he has every right to do so in the interest of preserving the integrity of the NFL.

I wrote all that to preface what I think Goodell should do in the cases of Vick, Stallworth and Burress.

Michael Vick took a hard fall. He was on top of the football player financially, in popularity and successfully on and off the field. That was until it was discovered that he funded a dog fighting ring. Vick did federal time for his crimes. He lost all his wealth and filed bankruptcy. In all but a few quarters he is wildly unpopular.

In my opinion, I think Goodell should reinstate Vick. His crimes were horrendous. He lied initially about his activities. In no way, shape or form do I condone what Vick did. What I believe though is Vick paid a huge penalty. I also believe he should have a chance at redemption. The commissioner has stated that Vick must prove that he is sorry for his crimes. If Goodell truly believes that Vick in humble and sorry, I think there is no further reason to not allow him to play. However, Goodell also should make it very clear that any further mishaps may lead to a permanent ban from the NFL. Despite if he is reinstated, Vick must still convince a team owner, GM and coach to sign him. Just because Vick is reinstated doesn't mean he will ever play another down of football again. Teams may choose not to sign him. It's a big public relations risk to sign him. I believe whether or not to sign him should be left up to the individual team.

In the case of Donte Stallworth, Goodell should issue an definite suspension. Unfortunately, I can't judge on what length of suspension is appropriate. Like Vick, I no way condone Stallworth's actions. Stallworth killed a man while driving intoxicated. In an image driven business, perceptions are everything. Some seem to think Stallworth skated with a 30 day sentence and probation. For whatever reason, the judge, prosecutor and probably the victim's family all decided it was enough. Stallworth took responsibility for his actions. He didn't try to run from the law or blame others. He settled up financially with the family. No matter what a price
cannot be put on human life. However, Stallworth paid the family and they seemed content and that is their business on how they handled the situation.

Goodell probably will weigh Stallworth's actions and what appears to be honest behavior and responsibility along with the seriousness of the situation and, of course, the perceptions of Stallworth's legal consequences. In the end, I think Stallworth should be reinstated and allow teams to make their own decisions on to sign him or not.

Finally at the opposite end of the spectrum is Plaxico Burress. Generally Goodell awaits the legal system before making his decisions. In the case of Burress, he imposed an indefinite suspension. I think it's mostly because of Burress actions after the incident that Goodell acted. Burress has done everything but take personal responsibility for his actions. He tried to get others to cover up for him. He used a fake name at the hospital where received treatment. He has not tried to reach a plea agreement. He's putting off settling the case in hopes of playing the 2009 season. Instead of waiting for the case to come to a conclusion, Goodell is being proactive and gathering information on Burress. It is likely Goodell issues his punishment before the a judge and jury do. If being honest, contrite and responsible are traits highly valued by Goodell then Burress is probably gone for the season.

Another Reason I Hate Peter King the Hack

2009-06-21T10:12:00.007-05:00

Sometimes, like Official Hack Little Dickie Justice, Sports Illustrated writer Peter King makes an uninformed observation along the lines of point number 7:

7. I think the Rex Grossman signing in Houston says one thing to me: The honeymoon's over for Dan Orlovsky as the walk-in, no-doubt backup to Matt Schaub.

Granted, King states it as an observation. However, as any observer of the Houston Texans will know, King is simply wrong.

Bigfatdrunk at DGDG&D breaks it down on why Orlovsky is better than the Sex Cannon

There is a further discussion over at the Battle Red Blog comparing the Sex Cannon to the late signing and early release of Quin Gray before camp last season.

So go beat that dead horse at those two blogs if you must. I won't.

The real reasons I hate King are multiple. His constant online blowjob of Brett Farve is tops. I think he even tops John Madden in publicly performing fellatio on Farve.

Also his constant bragging on who he texts with during the off season and after games smacks of elitism.

His Tuesday column reaches a new low in his "I know these people, you don't" attitude. Most writers either talk about "sources in the organization" or something along those lines. King goes out of his way to say who texts him and who he talks to on their cell phone.

The second paragraph is a classic King texting marathon. Three times he brags on his texting skills:

But Monday night, I texted McDaniels, who is a big texter.

Texted his assistant and got back that the coach is laying low

Texted Marshall, who's also a texter.

Enough King. We get it! You know players and coaches. You know their cell phone numbers. Farve is your BFF but you have more than five people in you Circle of Five. Give it a freaking rest now. Farve is supposedly retired. Go blow him on the privacy of his ranch.

As if his texting buddies wasn't enough King has to remind us he's also BFF with a New York judge:

I'm friendly with a judge in the New York area

I honestly wouldn't have a problem with a friend judge and his anonymous comments if it wasn't for the fact that King hadn't rubbed it in my face about all his texting butt buddies.

Then there is finally the obligatory lick to Farve's nut sack when King gives his brief take on Farve's HBO interview.

To get an appreciation of Peter King's magnitude of suckage, one must read the whole body of work over the course of an NFL season. A casual reading doesn't come close to revealing how bad a writer he is. Over a year one notices certain patterns: his constant bragging of texting players and coaches, his tiresome Brett Farve lovefest, his inane observations of teams he has no interest in covering and his Ten Things I Think I Think feature that goes well beyond ten.

Congratulations Peter King. You are now the latest entry in to Unkle Monkee's list of Official Hacks.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Your Stanley Cup Champions Pittsburgh Penguins

2009-06-13T14:07:00.002-05:00

When the dust settled and the horn sounded, the Pittsburgh Penguins stood tall with Sir Lord Stanley's Cup. What a beautiful sight to behold. All Hail the Pens!

I was more nervous than a whore in church. Game seven is it. All the marbles. Winner take all.

Pens goalie Marc-Andre Fleury was unbelievable again. I can't say enough good things about him. The way he rebounded from that 5-0 thrashing in game five was incredible. When the Pens needed Flower the most, he stood tall. He stonewalled shot after shot in games six and seven. In the closing seconds of game seven, he made one last stop to avoid overtime and win the Cup for the Pens.

Maxine Talbot also came up big in game seven. He made the best of two opportunities by putting the puck past Detroit Red Wings goalie Chris Osgood. The first was on a turnover that went off Pens start Evgeni Malkin. Talbot took the rebound and found the back of the net. Latter, on a two on one play, Talbot chose to shoot versus passing the puck. He scored the two goals for the Pens. It was all the scoring they needed.

For the Pens it was the role players that stepped it up a notch. Sidney Crosby only had one goal and two assists during the Finals. In game seven, he was injured on a legal hit in the second. The Pens sucked it up and played on without him. He tried to come back on the ice but wasn't able to move around much. Instead of staying out and becoming a liability, he stayed on the bench and let his teammates finish up.

The Red Wings played strong obviously. They started the series fast by going up 2-0 but were unable to put the Pens away. For his part, goalie Osgood was fantastic. Osgood has his critics but anyone who blames him for the series loss is either blind or doesn't know hockey.

I thank both teams for an incredible back and forth series. It was exciting hockey and a great final series.

As a Pens fan, I'm on cloud nine today. Fans and media began to write the Pens off, as did I, when they were tenth in the play off race. They fired the head coach and made a charge all the way up to the fourth seed. It was a roller coaster season that ended on the ultimate high for Pens fans.

Thank you Pittsburgh Penguins for an outstanding season.

See you all next season.

Go Pens!

More Stanley Cup Finals Goodness

2009-06-10T21:23:00.003-05:00

Honestly, is the NBA Finals really going on? If that snorefest of passing, dribbling, isolation, pass in then out for the three still going on?

Even my beloved Spurs can be heard to watch sometimes. That's bad coming from a diehard.

On the ice, the excitement and action have been much more entertaining that nba.

Not just because I'm a Pittsburgh Penguins fan doesn't skew my view of the leagues. Hockey is all out war for three 20 minute periods. Hits, checking, face offs, power plays, on the fly changes and non stop action. The opposite of the NBA.

The Real Finals
I don't know what the TV numbers are but I'm sure the NBA finals ratings were higher than Sir Lord Stanley's Cup Finals. I do know they were a better entertainment attraction.

Game seven will decide who takes home Sir Lord Stanley's Cup on Friday. Will the Detroit Red Wings keep the Cup one more year or will the upstart but strong Penguins return the favor and hoist the Cup at Joe Louis Arena.

It's been a hell of a Finals. As a Pens fan, it has sent me through the ringer. Games one and two were fun to watch but the results were painful.

I felt down about the next game considering it was a must win for the Pens to avoid going down 3-0. They stormed back to win three and four and leveling the series at two.

What happened next was a reality check. Pens goalie Marc-Andre Fleury gave up five goals in about half a game and was pulled. The score stood as a 5-0 final. Any momentum the Pens had built up slammed against a brick wall.

To say The Flower rebounded in game six is a vast understatement. While the Pens hacked away at Chris Osgood and were stone walled, Fleury held his own when he had to. The game finished 2-1 in favor of Pittsburgh.

Fleury was the hero and Rob Scuderi the savior. Scuderi stopped the puck at least three times on a furious finish in front of the Penguins net. Otherwise overtime and only the Hockey Gods know what would have ensued.

Game seven is Friday night....bring it on and Let's Go Pens!

Moral Victories
After the second period, my friend sent me a text saying the Red Wings have a moral victory in that they were only down 1-0 after being out shot so much. I replied that if anything Pittsburgh has a moral victory after being pound federal prison style 5-0 in game five.

Plus I told him that moral victories are for losers and vaginas who grasp a straws when they can't win. The only thing that matters is the scoreboard.

NHL Conference Finals vs. NBAConference something or other

2009-05-19T21:44:00.003-05:00

The NHL conference are underway. I missed the first game of the Chicago Blackhawks vs. Detroit Red Wings series. I caught game two tonight and last night's opener between my Pittsburgh Penguins and the Carolina Hurricanes.

I find hockey so much more exciting than the NBA playoffs. People who bitch and moan about low scoring have never actually watched a game or taken time to understand it. I got into a discussion at work about NBA vs. NHL. Everybody either groaned or walked away when I brought up how exciting the NHL conference finals were much more exciting than the dullards know as the NBA.

I'll take any NHL game, except for a Spurs game, over the NBA any day. During the regular season I had both NHL Center Ice and NBA League Pass. If the Pens and Spurs played on the same night, I watched the Pens until the game was over and then switched over to the Spurs game.

I can sit and watch any NHL game. I can't stand an NBA game if the Spurs aren't involved.

The other night me and some friends went to Hooters. It was game seven between the Hurricanes and Bruins along with game six for the Rockets and Lakers. I live in Houston. I left after I ate to watch the hockey game.

Those, like my coworkers, that sneer the second hockey is mentioned are just narrow minded. I think if they took the time to learn the game they would appreciate it. Instead the look at the score and scoff at watching a 3-2 game.

Ah well, their loss. I'll enjoy the Pens run and the Stanley Cup Finals even if they don't make it.

Pens Win! Pens Win! Pens Win! Poor Caps!

2009-05-14T13:15:00.003-05:00

What a series the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals played! As a Pens fan, it put me through the ringer of emotions.

First despair. The Penguins behind 2-0 in the series.

Then relief The Penguins tied the series up at 2.

Then elation. The Penguins took the series lead 3-2 in a thrilling overtime win.

The a sinking feeling. The Pens couldn't close out the Caps on home ice.

Then anticipation. Game seven on the road against the Caps who took back the series momentum in game six.

Then joy. Up 2 goals, 4 goals and then more. The blowout was on. The Pens clinched the series and now await the winner of game seven between the Boston Bruins and the Carolina Hurricanes.

For now, I'll enjoy the moment. Next series the emotional roller coaster starts again.

The Religion of Football - A Primer

2009-05-03T01:33:00.003-05:00

The Religion of Football
A Primer

Saturday April 19th was the opening two rounds of the NFL Draft. I’ve always treated football, especially the NFL, as my religion. It’s actually quiet convenient. Instead of every Sunday for church, we meet at a huge Cathedral (there are only 32) and worship only ten times a year. The first two don’t count. The other eight are like Christmas, Thanksgiving and Easter rolled into one Sunday. Worshippers come from all walks of life to celebrate and cheer the gladiators on the field.

Reliant Cathedral

Like many religions, there are various factions, sects and experts on the subjects. Even within the 32 churches there are factions. But one thing rules above all else: support (or lack of) for one of the 32 teams.

Like the Roman Catholic-Protestant split or the Sunni Islam-Shia Islam split, so is the Religion of Football split. Unlike those other religious splits, the football splits are less violent and worshippers may partake of multiple rites in the various denominations. Fans (as worshippers are commonly referred to) my even have loyalties beyond one team. Though worshipping more than one team is frowned upon in some areas, the practice is not uncommon.

The various levels of football are the professional, college, high school down to Pee-Wee for little kids. Professionals are the highest level of play. But even in the various levels there is a hierarchy. Only one team is crowned champion on Super Bowl Sunday. College is split among regional conferences and BCS and non-BCS schools. Even high schools are arranged by division due to the disparities in student populations.

Depending on location, winning programs and competition from other football teams, support for teams varies. In some states, college football rules supreme due to a major college or two and no professional teams in the team. Alabama, Nebraska and Oklahoma are three states that are dominated by the college game. Some states, like Texas, Florida and California, have dominant programs on both levels and loyalties of the fans crosses over levels. It’s not uncommon for a Houston Texans fan also be a worshipper of the Texas Longhorns.

Rivalries play an important part of football too. Watching a rival lose brings as much joy as watching one’s team win. Beating a rival or dominating a rivalry is the second best outcome of a season to winning a championship. Sometimes fans enjoy the success of a rival only so they can take greater joy in watching that team fall short of winning a title.

The Holy Holidays
Like all religions, football to has its holy holidays. The rank of the holy days is usually a personal preference but specific days are recognized as very important no matter the ranking.

The holiest holiday in the NFL varies from follower to follower. Some view Opening Day as the holiest day. It can vary from team to team due to the schedule: Opening Thursday, Opening Sunday and Opening Monday Night Football. In general, two games are celebrated on Opening Thursday and one on Opening Monday Night Football with the remainder on Opening Sunday. Others view the First Home Game as the holiest day as it gives the home fans their first look at the team since the previous season. Obviously for some teams, Opening Day and First Home Game Day coincide.

Others will counter that Super Bowl Sunday is the holiest day of the NFL. They claim since it is the coronation of a Champion to the season it must be the holiest day. Others counter that it is the holiest day only for the two teams competing in the game. Regardless all fans agree that it is a must see event. If nothing else most watch to witness the crowning of the Champion and put a target on the team to knock off for next season.

Many consider Draft Day One to be the second holiest holiday. For many fans it gives hope that new players will help elevate their team to the Playoffs and possibly the Super Bowl.

Like Passover for Jews, Ramadan for Muslims or Holy Week for Christians, the NFL too celebrates its religion over an extended time. The Playoffs is an extended celebration of NFL in which only the Division Champions and Wild Card teams compete for the right to play in the Super Bowl.

To be continued.