OK, so I'm done mourning the Patriots loss last week. I had to get into my first weekend without any pro football since the summer, and today I concentrated on basketball, more specifically the BC-Duke game. This is another team that BC would've handled if Sean Williams had been on the team, but sans the best defensive player in college basketball, BC got handled pretty easily. The truth is that no one really gets a fair shake when they play in Cameron Indoor Arena, Coach K has some sort of mind control over the officials. This mind control was most evident when he told the official that they really needed a ten minute break because one of their players had hyper-extended his knee. He waved his hand at the ref and said, "We don't need to take him off the court yet." Obi-Wan Kenobi would've been proud. And just so you don;t think I'm a heartless bastard, the first time I had an identical injury I appreciated all the other players in the pick-up game for actually stopping while one of them actually helped me off the court. This wasn;t the only odd situation in the game, by my count Josh McRoberts commited nine fouls, but the refs would go out of their way to call some guard on the periphery of the play for the foul McRoberts commited. I want to come clean and say that I hate Duke, almost always have, if you discount the games when I rooted for them during the Jay Williams era, I've been steadily rooting against them since the Tommy Amaker/Mark Alarie years. Every game they get every call, but that doesn;t stop that douchebag Mike Krzyzewski from arguing the ten times per game that a call doesn;t go their way. I guess thats why the Sean Williams thing makes me so mad, BC really could've smacked Duke around with Williams in the middle. One last note about the game, Duke's players all tend to be the most overrated in the country, but the king of this is point guard Greg Paulus. Paulus made the biggest mistake of his life choosing basketball over football, he was All-American in both sports, he was in fact the top QB recruit in the country. He might want to contact the football coach about playing next year, because I'm not sure there's any room for him on the coaching staff. Steve Wojciechowski and Chris Collins already have those coaching spots filled, and every year that goes by it becomes more clear to me that Johnny Dawkins will never be a successful college coach. Maybe Paulus is listening to all the Duke suck-ups who claim he's a great popint guard, but being outplayed by fellow sophomre Tyrese Rice does not bode well for his future.
I have a lot more venom for Duke but I can;t imagine anyone would be willing to read more right now, especially not my six loyal readers, so I'll move on. The only other sporting event I paid attention to this weekend was the Senior Bowl. I enjoyed watching the game pretending I have a clue about scouting for an NFL team and I would decide exactly who I want the Pats to draft this year, the answer btw is Patrick Willis inside linebacker from Ole Miss, I liked what I saw, and I now have a guy as my target for the team. My stamp of approval means that he could get drafted anywhere from the top 5 down through Mr. irrelevant, because I really have no clue, in fact it may actually be a bad sign if the Pats end up drafting him, because I damn near threw a party when they drafted Andy Katzenmoyer in the 90s. Anyway this is the second to last football game where the players care until next September, it was bittersweet. Can;t wait til the draft so I can predict that the Pats will win the Super Bowl next year.
I actually did follow one other sports story this weekend, Roger Federer, the greatest tennis player of all-time winning the Australian Open. I know I said I'd only followed the two sporting events, so I guess that makes me a liar don;t it? Federer is such a dominant force, nothing would please me more than him winning the Grand Slam this year, it's a long shot mainly because playing on clay is almost a different sport than on grass or hardcourt. I'd really love watching Federer beat Nadal this year, Nadal is very inlikable from my perspective. The main point is, for all the talk we hear about Tiger Woods, you might want to watch the most dominant athlete in any sport next time there's a tennis tournament on TV.
The Red Sox might be acquiring Todd Helton, and I have mixed feelings about it. Helton has a huge contract that doesn;t expire until he's 39, and even though the Rockies would be picking up half of it, it's clear that Helton is on the decline. This contract could become an anchor dragging them down in a couple years, if not sooner. As for Helton's actual ability, there are so many questions, he played in Colorado and his power numbers have taken a nose-dive since the league started steroid testing. Aside from those factors the move just feels wrong, it feels kinda like one of those moces that has done in the Yankees the last few years, going out and acquiring a big name while giving up on young players and character guys (in this case it would be Mike Lowell.) Even if Helton does perform, the move could end up not working out in the long run.
One last sports note, I'm tickled by the debacle that is the Cowboys coaching search. When are these overly involved owners gonna realize that they are actually hurting the value of their franchises? Jerry Jones is joining Al Davis and Daniel Snyder as the biggest meddlers in football. The Cowboys seem to have a choice between Jason Garrett and Norv Turner. Turner might actually be able to coach, but I think the jury is out at best, and Garrett is a complete unkown who probably isn;t ready. Why are these the best options? Mainly because of Jones and his favorite acquisition of the last year TO. No one wants to coach Owens and similarly they don;t really want to work for the type of owner that would bring TO in.
OK, that's all for now, I'll give my Oscar Nomination opinions sometime soon, maybe even make my predictions. But for now...
-Bender Out
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Nothing Left for Me
Well it had to happen at somepoint, the Pats lost a big game when it looked like they had it won. Not only were they way out in front, leading 21-3 and driving for what looked like another score that might have been enough to deflate Indy, but even at the very end all they had to do was get one first down when they were up three with just over two minutes to go, and they had the ball. Anyway, I keep thinking back to the scene in the movie Pleasantville, where William H Macy says "maybe that's where the saying comes from, 'You can't win'em all.' Of course they weren;t really gonna win every big game, but after beating the Chargers you thought that just maybe they would win 'em all. Anyway I was feeling kinda sour yesterday, and every time I tried to talk about the game with someone I was disappointed that they didn;t share my exact [popint of view even though I wasn;t sure exactly how I wanted to react to the game either. I figured out that I wanted to secretly blame the refs by pointing out bad calls, well claiming to be giving all the credit to Indy. So my strategy would be lead off by saying, "I'm not looking to make excuses." Or I'd come up with, "I'm not saying it was the refs fault." But then I felt I had free reign to list the worst calls of the game. Quickly now, Troy Brown's offensive PI, Ellis Hobbs' defensive PI, the no call when Reche Caldwell was tackled in the end zone that should've been PI, and of course the obligatory roughing the passer call which has become a farce this season.
Ok, so now that I've tried to sneak my excuses, without even mentioning that all The Pats players had the flu, and the Colts turned the heat up in the building to the high 80s, I do wanna say that over the years I've grown to appreciate the Colts. I still think Bill Polian is a douchebag, but Tony Dungy strikes me as a great guy, and given what he went through last year I can think of no one else that I's rather root for with the Pats being eliminated. Same goes for Peyton Manning, who has put oput consistently funny commercials for a couple years now, and seems like a nice guy. If tom Brady can be pals with Peyton, I guess I can root for him to win one Super Bowl.
As for the NFC championship, well I quite enjoyed that one. It seemed like evryone had penciled the Saints into the Super Bowl, but the Bears D just shut'em down, The Saints made too many mistakes. Reggie Bush's catch was great and i had no problem with him pointing at Brian Urlacher on his way into the end zone, but after that play everything went right for Chicago. I love it went the real favorite steps up and wins in a game like this, it reminded me of the first time the Pats and colts met in the AFC championship game. The Colts were a lot more glitzy and everyone thought the Colts would run them off the field (similar to the second half of sunday's game) but the Pats D shut'em down, similar to the Bears.
Hopefully the Super Bowl will be great, I'm thinking the Colts will win comfortably, maybe 24-17 or something of that ilk. I think there are just too many weapons for the Bears to hold down, and their offense can;t afford to get into a shootout.
After the super Bowl I'll have nothing to care about sports-wise til March Madness, and with BC out of the mix I probably will have to look toward the NFL Draft for entertainment. I'll be back soon and complain about the Oscars.
til then
-Bender Out
Ok, so now that I've tried to sneak my excuses, without even mentioning that all The Pats players had the flu, and the Colts turned the heat up in the building to the high 80s, I do wanna say that over the years I've grown to appreciate the Colts. I still think Bill Polian is a douchebag, but Tony Dungy strikes me as a great guy, and given what he went through last year I can think of no one else that I's rather root for with the Pats being eliminated. Same goes for Peyton Manning, who has put oput consistently funny commercials for a couple years now, and seems like a nice guy. If tom Brady can be pals with Peyton, I guess I can root for him to win one Super Bowl.
As for the NFC championship, well I quite enjoyed that one. It seemed like evryone had penciled the Saints into the Super Bowl, but the Bears D just shut'em down, The Saints made too many mistakes. Reggie Bush's catch was great and i had no problem with him pointing at Brian Urlacher on his way into the end zone, but after that play everything went right for Chicago. I love it went the real favorite steps up and wins in a game like this, it reminded me of the first time the Pats and colts met in the AFC championship game. The Colts were a lot more glitzy and everyone thought the Colts would run them off the field (similar to the second half of sunday's game) but the Pats D shut'em down, similar to the Bears.
Hopefully the Super Bowl will be great, I'm thinking the Colts will win comfortably, maybe 24-17 or something of that ilk. I think there are just too many weapons for the Bears to hold down, and their offense can;t afford to get into a shootout.
After the super Bowl I'll have nothing to care about sports-wise til March Madness, and with BC out of the mix I probably will have to look toward the NFL Draft for entertainment. I'll be back soon and complain about the Oscars.
til then
-Bender Out
Saturday, January 20, 2007
My Eagles Going Down
Tough week for the Bender. Wednesday night I was minding my own business, patiently waiting for the Pats game this Sunday, when out of nowhere I was blindsided by the news that BCs basketball season was over. BC Kicked Sean Williams and Akida McClain off the team. Sean Williams is perhaps the most talented player they've had since Dana Barros, but I guess his off the court indescretions were too much for Al skinner to put up with, so instead of a possible ACC championship run they'll now be lucky if they make the NCAA tournament. Williams will no doubt go home and get ready for the NBA draft, where he'll still be a firt round choice although his chances at being a lottery pick, whereas Akida McClain will probably transfer somewhere and finish out his college career and head to Europe for a few years. BC isn;t saying exactly what happened, most likely they want to protect the kids' reputations, but speculation is running wild, and I can;t help but think that the rumors will be a lot worse than the reality. So BC will just have to settle for being a team that does things the right way, as opposed to a team who is playing into the sweet sixteen this coming March. They must've done something really wrong to get kicked off, when you consider all the things they put up with from Jermaine Watson, Andrew Bryant and Ryan Sidney, but for now I'm of the opinion that they should've kept them on til the end of the season and told them to move on this summer, if you wanted to protect their reputations, that would be the best way.
OK, onto one of my favorite subjects, steroids. Sammy Sosa is making a comeback, and I'm gonna give my exact theory on why. Sosa was of course one of the most obvious steroid users over the last ten years, and when the MLB put in their supposed tougher policies, he panicked and got off the juice. He wasn;t the only one to do so, Pudge Rodriguez, Bret Boone and Jason Giambi also reacted this way, and quickly they became far inferior to their previous selves. Sammy went from being one of the most feared power hitters of his generation to an undersized left-fielder who looked and hit like a base-stealing second baseman. The smarter players like Barry Bonds and Gary Sheffield, knew that the designer steroids they were using were cutting edge and couldn;t be caught by current tests, so long as the did it correctly. A quick look at the lack of players caught in the NFL showed that the mad scientists making steroids could easily beat a urine test. So the players who had kicked the habit had three choices. First option destroy their reputations by looking smaller and not producing on the field. Second option, walk away from the game and pretend that the problem was they had gotten too old like so many players befoer them. Third option, get back on the juice and reclaim their past glory. So really all that has happened is that Sammy, Like Giambi before him, is back on the juice, and he's gonna have a pretty good year with The Rangers, I'm predicting 30 homers and 90 RBIs, if not better.
I wanted to comment on the recent coaching developments in the NFL. Cam Cameron, the offensive coordiator for The Chargers, was hired by the Dolphins, and this is great news for the rest of the AFC East. If you had to point to the number one reason that The Patriots beat The Chargers last weekend, it was because Cam Cameron didn;t just run the ball all day with saLTy. He went for style points and mixed in the passing game, unltimately opening the door for the Pats to pull off the upset. Really Cameron was a guy who looked like a genius because he had the best running back in the game and the best tight end around as well. I'm not gonna complete write them off, maybe he has really good organizational skills, and he'll hire a great staff, but for now I think the Dolphins have made a big mistake. Of course it could be worse, The Raiders have endured just the latest of their many recent public embarassments. Steve Sarkisian, who by all acounts was a huge stretch as a head coaching choice to begin with, turned them down. The Raiders really need to change the man in charge, Al Davis was once a great team president, but now he's just a bad punchline. Until someone takes over for Al, The Raiders will be stuck at the bottom.
Lastly I had to weigh in on this ridiculous situation in connecticut where a substitute teacher could receive 40 years in prison because some pornographic pop-ups appeared on her screen while she was teaching, which undoubtedly has scarred these middle school students. The worst part of this story was that during the trial, the supposed "expert" gave false information to the jury, which was most likely due to the fact that he wasn't highly educated on the workings of the internet. But because he was brought in as a police expert, his testimony was trusted moreso than an actual expert testifying for the defense. I want to make clear that I don't support the showing of porn to little teens and tweens in school, but the idea that this poor woman will go to jail and will have to register as a sex offender because of internet pop-ups is bullshit.
Ok,
-Bender Out
OK, onto one of my favorite subjects, steroids. Sammy Sosa is making a comeback, and I'm gonna give my exact theory on why. Sosa was of course one of the most obvious steroid users over the last ten years, and when the MLB put in their supposed tougher policies, he panicked and got off the juice. He wasn;t the only one to do so, Pudge Rodriguez, Bret Boone and Jason Giambi also reacted this way, and quickly they became far inferior to their previous selves. Sammy went from being one of the most feared power hitters of his generation to an undersized left-fielder who looked and hit like a base-stealing second baseman. The smarter players like Barry Bonds and Gary Sheffield, knew that the designer steroids they were using were cutting edge and couldn;t be caught by current tests, so long as the did it correctly. A quick look at the lack of players caught in the NFL showed that the mad scientists making steroids could easily beat a urine test. So the players who had kicked the habit had three choices. First option destroy their reputations by looking smaller and not producing on the field. Second option, walk away from the game and pretend that the problem was they had gotten too old like so many players befoer them. Third option, get back on the juice and reclaim their past glory. So really all that has happened is that Sammy, Like Giambi before him, is back on the juice, and he's gonna have a pretty good year with The Rangers, I'm predicting 30 homers and 90 RBIs, if not better.
I wanted to comment on the recent coaching developments in the NFL. Cam Cameron, the offensive coordiator for The Chargers, was hired by the Dolphins, and this is great news for the rest of the AFC East. If you had to point to the number one reason that The Patriots beat The Chargers last weekend, it was because Cam Cameron didn;t just run the ball all day with saLTy. He went for style points and mixed in the passing game, unltimately opening the door for the Pats to pull off the upset. Really Cameron was a guy who looked like a genius because he had the best running back in the game and the best tight end around as well. I'm not gonna complete write them off, maybe he has really good organizational skills, and he'll hire a great staff, but for now I think the Dolphins have made a big mistake. Of course it could be worse, The Raiders have endured just the latest of their many recent public embarassments. Steve Sarkisian, who by all acounts was a huge stretch as a head coaching choice to begin with, turned them down. The Raiders really need to change the man in charge, Al Davis was once a great team president, but now he's just a bad punchline. Until someone takes over for Al, The Raiders will be stuck at the bottom.
Lastly I had to weigh in on this ridiculous situation in connecticut where a substitute teacher could receive 40 years in prison because some pornographic pop-ups appeared on her screen while she was teaching, which undoubtedly has scarred these middle school students. The worst part of this story was that during the trial, the supposed "expert" gave false information to the jury, which was most likely due to the fact that he wasn't highly educated on the workings of the internet. But because he was brought in as a police expert, his testimony was trusted moreso than an actual expert testifying for the defense. I want to make clear that I don't support the showing of porn to little teens and tweens in school, but the idea that this poor woman will go to jail and will have to register as a sex offender because of internet pop-ups is bullshit.
Ok,
-Bender Out
Monday, January 15, 2007
MLK day
First things first, wanted to make sure everyone took some time out to remember Martin Luther King today and the many ways that he improved this country. Sometimes we take things for granted in this country, I talk about things like the history of baseball or basketball going back to the 50s or before and I never really remember how different the world really was back then. These athletes that we all admire weren't always allowed to share the same spaces in public, couldn;t drink at the same water fountains, and were forced to go to inferior school, so just take a moment and appreciate, and if you feel the spirit, make a stand of your own to fight injustice.
Ok, nobody really wants to read my thoughts on serious things, so ...On with the Chlorophyll.
The Patriots did it again. Sometimes I let a small bit of doubt dreep in to my head about how good the Pats really are, but then they beat the best team in football when the chips are down, and I remember how great they really are and have been for the last six years. The Chargers seemed like they should've blown the Pats out by at least 14, but the Pats made enough big plays and the Chargers made just as many big mistakes. The Pats offensive line was able to protect Brady well despite all the hype for Merriman and crew. Merriman was able to do his stupid "juiced up" dance where he mimics putting a needle in his arm, but it only came on an incomplete pass, I guess hurries are a lot more in style than they used to be. The other group that came up big was the much maligned receiving corps. Gaffney and Caldwell both had big games and of course Troy Brown made one of the great plays in recent playoff history by stripping Marlon McCree. And as for LT's little bitch session after the game? Maybe your team should've waited til after you won to celebrate. The whole idea that Merriman has a celebration dance to mimic shows who the real idiot in the scenario is. I wish the Pats could've shown class like Drayton Florence, who cost his team three points with his stupid headbutt of Daniel Graham. Perhaps we can put this whole nickname debate to bed, Lawrence Taylor is the only LT, LaDanian Tomlinson can now be known as saLTy.
The other three games are all a blur to me at this point. The Colts defense has really stepped up in their first two playoff games, but I can;t help but put part of the blame on the offenses that they've faced. Neither of their opponents are known for their offenses and they definitely couldn;t make the Colts pay for keying completely on the run. That being said, I doubt Manning will look as bad next week as he has so far, unless of course he really can't perform in the playoffs. This weeks AFC championship game should be another great game that might as well be referred to as the Super Bowl.
In the NFC, the games were very exciting. I don't necessarily think of the Seahawks or Bears as great teams, but it kept me on the edge of my seat, and they made enough good plays that I could see either of them winning the NFC title. The Bears pulled it out, but I'm still picking the Saints next sunday. The Saints ran oll over the Eagles, and while the Bears had their moments last week, they couldn;t really figure out how to stop Shaun Alexander. So I envision Bush and McCallister having huge days and leading America's new team into the Super Bowl.
As for anything else going on out there, I guess the Chris Webber signing is notable. He claims to be feeling better than he has in years, but unless they're gonna use him as a seventh or eighth man, his softness makes the pont moot. He wasn;t enough to put a team over the top when he was healthy, I can;t imagine that he can help The Pistons now that he's washed up physically.
So everyone has been asking me for a prediction and I'm coming out with one, Wes adn Svetlana will win the challenge this thursday. I of course am speaking of the RW/RR challenge: The Duel. With CT and his meltdown last week, the game is wide open. CT showed his true colors, He seemed to be dangerously close to ending his MTV career by attacking someone. They all laughed and celebrated when Beth was eliminated the same way, and she was apparantly able to handle it with a little more class than the pride of the mass-holes, the local gorilla, CT. It seems like they give CT the same story arc eveytime he does one of these shows, they convince you that he's being nicer and he's a better guy than you realized, and at the last minute he exposes himself as a douchebag. The recurring charcters are just another reason why this is the best reality TV show out there right now. Hopefully the WWE will capitalize in CT and higher him to fight The Miz in a steel cage death match.
on a final note, I saw an old clip of Martha Stewart on the MTV awards when she made it clear that she wanted a piece of Busta Rhymes. This was the same time that Busta was first introducing "What Da Dilly Yo" into the American vernacular, just to give you a point of reference. Anyway, I realized that Martha Stewart is a fun fun lady, and is one of my favorite cougars out there. So, Martha, if you're out there, call me.
So I'll be here by my phone, until later.
-Bender Out
Ok, nobody really wants to read my thoughts on serious things, so ...On with the Chlorophyll.
The Patriots did it again. Sometimes I let a small bit of doubt dreep in to my head about how good the Pats really are, but then they beat the best team in football when the chips are down, and I remember how great they really are and have been for the last six years. The Chargers seemed like they should've blown the Pats out by at least 14, but the Pats made enough big plays and the Chargers made just as many big mistakes. The Pats offensive line was able to protect Brady well despite all the hype for Merriman and crew. Merriman was able to do his stupid "juiced up" dance where he mimics putting a needle in his arm, but it only came on an incomplete pass, I guess hurries are a lot more in style than they used to be. The other group that came up big was the much maligned receiving corps. Gaffney and Caldwell both had big games and of course Troy Brown made one of the great plays in recent playoff history by stripping Marlon McCree. And as for LT's little bitch session after the game? Maybe your team should've waited til after you won to celebrate. The whole idea that Merriman has a celebration dance to mimic shows who the real idiot in the scenario is. I wish the Pats could've shown class like Drayton Florence, who cost his team three points with his stupid headbutt of Daniel Graham. Perhaps we can put this whole nickname debate to bed, Lawrence Taylor is the only LT, LaDanian Tomlinson can now be known as saLTy.
The other three games are all a blur to me at this point. The Colts defense has really stepped up in their first two playoff games, but I can;t help but put part of the blame on the offenses that they've faced. Neither of their opponents are known for their offenses and they definitely couldn;t make the Colts pay for keying completely on the run. That being said, I doubt Manning will look as bad next week as he has so far, unless of course he really can't perform in the playoffs. This weeks AFC championship game should be another great game that might as well be referred to as the Super Bowl.
In the NFC, the games were very exciting. I don't necessarily think of the Seahawks or Bears as great teams, but it kept me on the edge of my seat, and they made enough good plays that I could see either of them winning the NFC title. The Bears pulled it out, but I'm still picking the Saints next sunday. The Saints ran oll over the Eagles, and while the Bears had their moments last week, they couldn;t really figure out how to stop Shaun Alexander. So I envision Bush and McCallister having huge days and leading America's new team into the Super Bowl.
As for anything else going on out there, I guess the Chris Webber signing is notable. He claims to be feeling better than he has in years, but unless they're gonna use him as a seventh or eighth man, his softness makes the pont moot. He wasn;t enough to put a team over the top when he was healthy, I can;t imagine that he can help The Pistons now that he's washed up physically.
So everyone has been asking me for a prediction and I'm coming out with one, Wes adn Svetlana will win the challenge this thursday. I of course am speaking of the RW/RR challenge: The Duel. With CT and his meltdown last week, the game is wide open. CT showed his true colors, He seemed to be dangerously close to ending his MTV career by attacking someone. They all laughed and celebrated when Beth was eliminated the same way, and she was apparantly able to handle it with a little more class than the pride of the mass-holes, the local gorilla, CT. It seems like they give CT the same story arc eveytime he does one of these shows, they convince you that he's being nicer and he's a better guy than you realized, and at the last minute he exposes himself as a douchebag. The recurring charcters are just another reason why this is the best reality TV show out there right now. Hopefully the WWE will capitalize in CT and higher him to fight The Miz in a steel cage death match.
on a final note, I saw an old clip of Martha Stewart on the MTV awards when she made it clear that she wanted a piece of Busta Rhymes. This was the same time that Busta was first introducing "What Da Dilly Yo" into the American vernacular, just to give you a point of reference. Anyway, I realized that Martha Stewart is a fun fun lady, and is one of my favorite cougars out there. So, Martha, if you're out there, call me.
So I'll be here by my phone, until later.
-Bender Out
Saturday, January 13, 2007
Weekend Update
A lot went on this week and there were more than a few things I wanted to touch on.
first off, the Hall of Fame voting for baseball. I can't stand how Mark McGwire is being singled out as the only steroid user in baseball. I think the writers are still ignorant to how widespread steroid use was and still is in baseball. Somehow everyone wants to look at McGwire, and Barry Bonds as the only cheaters in the history of the game. I don;t really mind if McGwire is held out for one year, and then let in, that way all the writers can pat themselves on the back and then make excuses for all the other players who the public hasn;t really pointed the finger at yet. How is it that everyone is just willing to assume that Cal Ripken was completely clean? Sure he never became a complete monster, but he was a pretty big guy and he's also the only guy in history to play every single day for more than 2600 games in a row. And it's safe to assume that while both amphetamines and steroids were prevalent during his career, he was completely clean? There's just as much evidence against Ripken as there is against McGwire. McGwire's biggest mistake was not boldly lying and going on the attack the way Rafael Palmeiro did. Palmeiro would be headed for the hall today if he hadn't messed up his masking agents and subsequently failed a steroid test. I wish the writers would get off their collective pedestals, they all ignored it and made excuses while it was happening, so I wish they would stop trying to cover their own asses by taking the hardline against a select few. where do they draw the line, will Jeff Bagwell get in? What about Craig Biggio? I have suspicions about those guys, so should I start lobbying the writers to keep them out as well when their time comes?
Just a quick steroid anecdote, I remember in the 95 playoffs, Albert Belle hit a homerun and the Red Sox reacted by taking his bat to supposedly check for cork. Belle started shouting at the Red sox bench and he point to his massive bicep, essentially saying "this is how I do it." Looking back now it's ironic that he might as well have been saying, this is is where I'm actually cheating, it's not that I'm corking my bat, it's that I'm juicing my body. Sadly, I doubt Belle will ever make the hall either.
My last note on the Hall of Fame is to say that I am on the side of more players making it. I have long thought it ridiculous that Jim Rice is not in the Hall. From 1975 to 1986 he was the best hitter in baseball, and he's essentially being punished for not being able to hang around for two or three more years and perform as a mediocre DH. Another guy who belongs in is Jack Morris. He was a big game pitcher who never really cared about his stats. If the Tigers had a six nothing lead, he didn;t mind giving up a couple runs so long as it meant he could save the bullpen, a lesson that Pedro Martinez never learned. I also wouldn't mind if Bert Blyleven, Dale Murphy and Goose Gossage were inducted, none of them would be the worst player in the hall, in fact I'd rather have had any of them over Ozzie Smith.
Enough about the Baseball Hall of Fame, I probably won;t even think about it again until the inductions, at which time I'll complain all over again. Wanted to touch on my beloved game of basketball, more specifiaclly the Celtics. Tony Allen went down the other night, and I'm just gonna gloss over the fact that it happened after the whistle on a needless dunk attempt. It's an extra tough situation for Allen who was playing the best basketball of his life, and now is out for the year. The heartbreak was evident when local media member Greg Dickerson was near tears as he analyzed the injury after the game, it looked just like Ron Harper's injury almost 20 years back when he was playing for the Clippers, and Harper was never quite the same. The Celtics are down to nine available players and it is now even more clear that they should be more ocncerned with getting a top 5 draft pick and start looking to the future as opposed to trying to make the playoffs. Tell Paul Pierce to take his time re-habbing whatever injury he has and have Danny Ainge buy season tickets to the Ohio State basketball team.
The most important thing going on this weekend is of course the NFL playoffs. These next two weekends represent the most exciting time in football this weekend's games should be awesome, just awesome, especially in the AFC. I've never really been so ambivalent about two games as these AFC semifinals. I wouldn;t be shocked by any result in either game. I was thinking about going on record with predictions, but I'm too nervous that I could somehow jinx my Pats with such boldness. The NFC games are equally hard to predict, but I will say that the winner of the Saints-Eagles game will be my poick to lose in SuperBowl XLI.
That's all I'm giving today. I'll be back soon to badmouth John Thompson and Chris Webber and may even throw my two cents in on Martha Stewart. Til then...
-Bender Out
first off, the Hall of Fame voting for baseball. I can't stand how Mark McGwire is being singled out as the only steroid user in baseball. I think the writers are still ignorant to how widespread steroid use was and still is in baseball. Somehow everyone wants to look at McGwire, and Barry Bonds as the only cheaters in the history of the game. I don;t really mind if McGwire is held out for one year, and then let in, that way all the writers can pat themselves on the back and then make excuses for all the other players who the public hasn;t really pointed the finger at yet. How is it that everyone is just willing to assume that Cal Ripken was completely clean? Sure he never became a complete monster, but he was a pretty big guy and he's also the only guy in history to play every single day for more than 2600 games in a row. And it's safe to assume that while both amphetamines and steroids were prevalent during his career, he was completely clean? There's just as much evidence against Ripken as there is against McGwire. McGwire's biggest mistake was not boldly lying and going on the attack the way Rafael Palmeiro did. Palmeiro would be headed for the hall today if he hadn't messed up his masking agents and subsequently failed a steroid test. I wish the writers would get off their collective pedestals, they all ignored it and made excuses while it was happening, so I wish they would stop trying to cover their own asses by taking the hardline against a select few. where do they draw the line, will Jeff Bagwell get in? What about Craig Biggio? I have suspicions about those guys, so should I start lobbying the writers to keep them out as well when their time comes?
Just a quick steroid anecdote, I remember in the 95 playoffs, Albert Belle hit a homerun and the Red Sox reacted by taking his bat to supposedly check for cork. Belle started shouting at the Red sox bench and he point to his massive bicep, essentially saying "this is how I do it." Looking back now it's ironic that he might as well have been saying, this is is where I'm actually cheating, it's not that I'm corking my bat, it's that I'm juicing my body. Sadly, I doubt Belle will ever make the hall either.
My last note on the Hall of Fame is to say that I am on the side of more players making it. I have long thought it ridiculous that Jim Rice is not in the Hall. From 1975 to 1986 he was the best hitter in baseball, and he's essentially being punished for not being able to hang around for two or three more years and perform as a mediocre DH. Another guy who belongs in is Jack Morris. He was a big game pitcher who never really cared about his stats. If the Tigers had a six nothing lead, he didn;t mind giving up a couple runs so long as it meant he could save the bullpen, a lesson that Pedro Martinez never learned. I also wouldn't mind if Bert Blyleven, Dale Murphy and Goose Gossage were inducted, none of them would be the worst player in the hall, in fact I'd rather have had any of them over Ozzie Smith.
Enough about the Baseball Hall of Fame, I probably won;t even think about it again until the inductions, at which time I'll complain all over again. Wanted to touch on my beloved game of basketball, more specifiaclly the Celtics. Tony Allen went down the other night, and I'm just gonna gloss over the fact that it happened after the whistle on a needless dunk attempt. It's an extra tough situation for Allen who was playing the best basketball of his life, and now is out for the year. The heartbreak was evident when local media member Greg Dickerson was near tears as he analyzed the injury after the game, it looked just like Ron Harper's injury almost 20 years back when he was playing for the Clippers, and Harper was never quite the same. The Celtics are down to nine available players and it is now even more clear that they should be more ocncerned with getting a top 5 draft pick and start looking to the future as opposed to trying to make the playoffs. Tell Paul Pierce to take his time re-habbing whatever injury he has and have Danny Ainge buy season tickets to the Ohio State basketball team.
The most important thing going on this weekend is of course the NFL playoffs. These next two weekends represent the most exciting time in football this weekend's games should be awesome, just awesome, especially in the AFC. I've never really been so ambivalent about two games as these AFC semifinals. I wouldn;t be shocked by any result in either game. I was thinking about going on record with predictions, but I'm too nervous that I could somehow jinx my Pats with such boldness. The NFC games are equally hard to predict, but I will say that the winner of the Saints-Eagles game will be my poick to lose in SuperBowl XLI.
That's all I'm giving today. I'll be back soon to badmouth John Thompson and Chris Webber and may even throw my two cents in on Martha Stewart. Til then...
-Bender Out
Tuesday, January 09, 2007
Shocker
The obvious thing for me to admit here is that I had no inkling that a Florida blowout was even possible. I can't actually remember a result as shocking as this, I thought back and the closest was the '84 elecetion, when I seven years old I thought for sure that Mondale would win because everyone I knew was supporting him, and then he got blown out of the water. So congratulations to UF, their defense was dominant and it seemed like Thee OSU had no chance of moving the ball, especially with Ted Ginn Jr. on the sidelines. I kinda expected Florida's offense to perform well, if I'd predicted a score it would've been 38-28 Ohio State, so I always had respect for Chris Leak and the offense. I just can;t wait for these receivers to join all their fellow Gators on the Patriots sidelines, maybe Dallas Baker can finally be the big receiver they've been searching for. So long story short, my theory about the SEC was total crap and The Gators and their SEC brethren were every bit as giood as most everyone said all year, if not even better. And while the initial shock of seeing Florida dominate was huge, the game became very boring just after Troy Smith's fumble at the end of the first half, setting up Florida's 20 point halftime lead.
I'm not too pleased to see Florida win, I've never really been a Florida fan, but I think that seeing Ohio State lose may have been the preferential result. I'm still a bit acrimonious after the OSU upset my beloved 'Canes a few years back, and I feel like karma was against them setting them up as the upset victims this time around.
So while this game wasn;t very exciting, I loved Sunday's NFL games. Seeing the Pats handle the Jets with relative ease was very satisfying, and it has a lot of the locals believing again. I thought the Pats had the third best chance to win the Super Bowl going into these playoffs and they really backed it up. Their defensive line has to be considered the best in the league at this point, three guys who are legitimitely pro bowl level, and if anyone has a chance to stop LT, it's this group. I also enjoyed Jabar Gaffney's performance, I've wanted him to have a bigger role since he signed back in week 4 or whenever, and it was nice to see him deliver when given the shot.
Almost equally as satisfying was the demise of The Giants. I've made clear my feelings on this squad, very overrated, and yet still underachieving based on their actual talent. Also i was pleased to hear Quadry Ismail voice a reasonable opinion on Tiki Barber legacy, The Missile said that Tiki didn;t belong in the Hall of Fame and was more on the level of "Ring of honor" player. Maybe he can be remembered as a great Giant, but not an all-time great. On the other side of that game, I continue to be surprised by how much I like the Eagles without McNabb playing. I respect McNabb, but I find the team led by Jeff Garcia so much more likeable.
Before tonight's game I watched a little Deal or No Deal because I couldn;t take anymore talk about the game. and I have a definite method in case I actually make it on the show someday. I'm gonna pick-off the cases based on how hot the model is holding the case. I'd pick the ugliest model first then knock off the uglier models accordingly. so hopefully the ugliest one is holding a million dollar case and then one of the really hot blonded model is holding the 750,000. I'm going on record here just because i couldn;t tell anyone while I was on the show, I wouldn;t want to hurt any of the models' feelings.
One last note, I saw that Queen Latifah will be hosting the People's Choice Awards, which led me to one question, when did she get to be so damn famous? She's likable enough, but I can;t remember one single instance where I was bowled over by her talent. She's just kinda out there and seems to pop up all over the place. The most infuriating thing about her continued climb up the ladder of fame, is that it really decreases the chances of a Living Single reunion special. In lieu of a reunion special, I just don;t know where I can possibly catch another look at Kim Fields, very hot, and I miss her.
Thats all I've got tonight.
Oh wait, I just was contacted by Sean Penn, he gave me this satement to print:
"In response to The Bender's question about 'when did [Queen Latifah] become so damn famous?' I'd say right about the time she made us all laugh, cry, smile and shiver with her immense talents."
-Bender Out
I'm not too pleased to see Florida win, I've never really been a Florida fan, but I think that seeing Ohio State lose may have been the preferential result. I'm still a bit acrimonious after the OSU upset my beloved 'Canes a few years back, and I feel like karma was against them setting them up as the upset victims this time around.
So while this game wasn;t very exciting, I loved Sunday's NFL games. Seeing the Pats handle the Jets with relative ease was very satisfying, and it has a lot of the locals believing again. I thought the Pats had the third best chance to win the Super Bowl going into these playoffs and they really backed it up. Their defensive line has to be considered the best in the league at this point, three guys who are legitimitely pro bowl level, and if anyone has a chance to stop LT, it's this group. I also enjoyed Jabar Gaffney's performance, I've wanted him to have a bigger role since he signed back in week 4 or whenever, and it was nice to see him deliver when given the shot.
Almost equally as satisfying was the demise of The Giants. I've made clear my feelings on this squad, very overrated, and yet still underachieving based on their actual talent. Also i was pleased to hear Quadry Ismail voice a reasonable opinion on Tiki Barber legacy, The Missile said that Tiki didn;t belong in the Hall of Fame and was more on the level of "Ring of honor" player. Maybe he can be remembered as a great Giant, but not an all-time great. On the other side of that game, I continue to be surprised by how much I like the Eagles without McNabb playing. I respect McNabb, but I find the team led by Jeff Garcia so much more likeable.
Before tonight's game I watched a little Deal or No Deal because I couldn;t take anymore talk about the game. and I have a definite method in case I actually make it on the show someday. I'm gonna pick-off the cases based on how hot the model is holding the case. I'd pick the ugliest model first then knock off the uglier models accordingly. so hopefully the ugliest one is holding a million dollar case and then one of the really hot blonded model is holding the 750,000. I'm going on record here just because i couldn;t tell anyone while I was on the show, I wouldn;t want to hurt any of the models' feelings.
One last note, I saw that Queen Latifah will be hosting the People's Choice Awards, which led me to one question, when did she get to be so damn famous? She's likable enough, but I can;t remember one single instance where I was bowled over by her talent. She's just kinda out there and seems to pop up all over the place. The most infuriating thing about her continued climb up the ladder of fame, is that it really decreases the chances of a Living Single reunion special. In lieu of a reunion special, I just don;t know where I can possibly catch another look at Kim Fields, very hot, and I miss her.
Thats all I've got tonight.
Oh wait, I just was contacted by Sean Penn, he gave me this satement to print:
"In response to The Bender's question about 'when did [Queen Latifah] become so damn famous?' I'd say right about the time she made us all laugh, cry, smile and shiver with her immense talents."
-Bender Out
Saturday, January 06, 2007
It's been a while
I've been relaxing a bit too much lately and as a result I haven't mentioned a few of the important things that have been going on.
Our 38th President Gerald Ford died and I didn't mention it, well the reason is that he was just before my time. A lot of people said you really had to be there to appreciate what he did for this country after Watergate, so apparently he did more than pardon Nixon and fall down some stairs. Also contrary to some published reports, he was not eaten by wolves, so President Taft still holds that distinction of being the only Pres to die like that.
On a more serious and sad note, I've been sickened over the whole Darrent Williams situation. Just so senseless that someone so young and talented, and by all accounts a person who wanted to make a difference, would be killed. He apparently had a tough background but had set himself straight and worked to help the youth of Denver take the same path. I don;t know what all happened on new years eve, but it's a senseless tragedy.
Just a quick note, today on CBS they showed women's college basketball all day, and I honestly have no idea who watches this crap. Can we just all agree that basketball sucks when you take away the extraordinary athleticism. I wish I had a little more pull in this world so no one would have to watch this crap on their TV when there are so many men's games that coiuld be on in their place.
Ok, onto the fun stuff, as most of you must know by now, I'm best defined as a hater when it comes to sports. And I was given plenty of ammo for a couple of my favorite targets during the first day of NFL playoff games. I never though much of Herm Edwards as a coach, and his team was an abomination this week. Larry Johnson had fewer carries than anyone could've imagined, especially given the close score, but I'd say that their lackluster performance is far more damning than his play calling. Maybe people understand why he was shown the door in NY.
The other thing that fueled my hateration was Tony Romo's big choke on the possible game-winning field goal. Romo has been so overhyped for so long, (plus he stole my girl Carrie Underwood) so I couldn;t help but smile when he became the goat.
Thats all I'm putting out for today, I'm sure I'll have plenty to say about tomorrow's games, so long as the Pats win. So for now...
-Bender Out
Our 38th President Gerald Ford died and I didn't mention it, well the reason is that he was just before my time. A lot of people said you really had to be there to appreciate what he did for this country after Watergate, so apparently he did more than pardon Nixon and fall down some stairs. Also contrary to some published reports, he was not eaten by wolves, so President Taft still holds that distinction of being the only Pres to die like that.
On a more serious and sad note, I've been sickened over the whole Darrent Williams situation. Just so senseless that someone so young and talented, and by all accounts a person who wanted to make a difference, would be killed. He apparently had a tough background but had set himself straight and worked to help the youth of Denver take the same path. I don;t know what all happened on new years eve, but it's a senseless tragedy.
Just a quick note, today on CBS they showed women's college basketball all day, and I honestly have no idea who watches this crap. Can we just all agree that basketball sucks when you take away the extraordinary athleticism. I wish I had a little more pull in this world so no one would have to watch this crap on their TV when there are so many men's games that coiuld be on in their place.
Ok, onto the fun stuff, as most of you must know by now, I'm best defined as a hater when it comes to sports. And I was given plenty of ammo for a couple of my favorite targets during the first day of NFL playoff games. I never though much of Herm Edwards as a coach, and his team was an abomination this week. Larry Johnson had fewer carries than anyone could've imagined, especially given the close score, but I'd say that their lackluster performance is far more damning than his play calling. Maybe people understand why he was shown the door in NY.
The other thing that fueled my hateration was Tony Romo's big choke on the possible game-winning field goal. Romo has been so overhyped for so long, (plus he stole my girl Carrie Underwood) so I couldn;t help but smile when he became the goat.
Thats all I'm putting out for today, I'm sure I'll have plenty to say about tomorrow's games, so long as the Pats win. So for now...
-Bender Out
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