First off, I think I like Yahoo!'s draft setup better than ESPN.com's. We had some weird freeze ups where people couldn't draft players and the draft had to be paused and edited, and the whole thing just seemed like a hassle. Anyway, on to the draft results. I had the 10th pick (in a 14 team league); here's how I drafted:
Round 1 (#10 overall): Marion Barber, RB
Round 2 (#19): Reggie Wayne, WR
Round 3 (#38): Carson Palmer, QB
Round 4 (#47): Earnest Graham, RB
Round 5 (#66): Laveranues Coles, WR
Round 6 (#75): Dwayne Bowe, WR
Round 7 (#94): Deuce McAllister, RB
Round 8 (#103): David Garrard, QB
Round 9 (#122): Alge Crumpler, TE
Round 10 (#131): Chris Johnson, RB
Round 11 (#150): Vincent Jackson, WR
Round 12 (#159): Patriots, DEF
Round 13 (#178): Arnaz Battle, WR
Round 14 (#187): Michael Bush, RB
Round 15 (#206): Limas Sweed, WR
Round 16 (#215): Lawrence Tynes, K
Overall draft thoughts:
-I like having 14 teams. It requires using backups and thrid- and fourth-tier guys to win the league and not just relying on the 3 stud players you picked up because your league's only 10 teams deep. Sometimes this means getting lucky with a pick; hey, that happens and its part of the game.
-As usual, not everyone could make it to the live draft (though our man in Belgium made it for the first half, some 6 hours ahead of EDT; that's dedication). And as usual, the autodraft makes things interesting, especially when some people pre-rank their players (like Honester Ciphers, the Asylum's Pacific Northwest Correspondent) and some don't. For example, picks #1 and #2 weren't at the live draft and didn't pre-rank their players (at least, it didn't appear they did); that meant every time the draft snaked around to the top, there were 4 automatic picks that were based on the best available players left, according to ESPN's rankings. So if there was a guy you wanted to take in the next round but he was near the top of the "best available" list, you had to take him early because by the time it snaked back to you, the autodraft would have taken him. Makes for interesting (and sometimes questionable) draft strategy.
Now to look at my draft:
-Barber and Wayne in Rounds 1 and 2. Top of the draft, take the best available. I think these are pretty solid picks. Looking at the guys taken in Rounds 1 and 2, I don't think I could have done much better given where I was picking (at #10 and #19).
-Palmer and Garrard in Rounds 3 and 8. Homer pick? A little, but it makes it easier on Sundays since I'm going to rooting for him and the Bengals anyway. And I think I have a more than capable backup in David Garrard. I like Garrard. I got him last year at about the same time in the draft and he ended up being my starter most of the season. Hopefully Carson has a great year and I don't have to use Garrard. If not, I think I'm still okay at QB.
-Graham in Round 4. Graham had a quietly solid year last year. Hopefully he can do the same this year.
-Coles and Bowe in Rounds 5 and 6. Two things I'm hoping for here. One, I hope that Coles gets over his man-crush of Chad Pennington and realizes that Brett Favre, while old, is still better than Pennington ever was. And two, I hope they find someone in Kansas City who can get the ball to Bowe. If those things happen, I think these guys could have pretty good years.
-McAllister in Round 7. I was targeting Felix Jones here to have the Barber/Jones backfield combo, and he was available at the start of the round, but was taken 6 picks before I could get him. So since I had my backfield duo broken up, I took McAllister to break up someone else's Saints backfield combo.
-Crumpler in Round 9. He's best years were when he had Michael Vick at QB. Here's hoping he can put up comparable numbers now that he's with a comparable QB in Vince Young.
-Johnson in Round 10. I think every fantasy football publication has Chris Johnson listed as a potential "sleeper pick" this year. I don't know about that, but Round 10 seemed like a good place to take a chance.
-Patriots defense in Round 12. Too soon for a defense? Probably. I was actually looking at taking a shot at DeSean Jackson here (matching him with Johnson as "potential rookie sleepers"), but I thought there might be a run on defenses (because my league can be weird like that) and that I could wait on Jackson until the next round. Wrong and wrong. I could have easily gotten the Pats D (or a comparable one) later on and DeSean Jackson was taken six picks later. Oh well.
-Jackson, Battle, Bush, and Sweed in Rounds 11, 13, 14, and 15. Just looking to fill out the roster with skill position guys. I think Limas Sweed will end up being a pretty good receiver in the NFL. I thought that Sweed would have been a good second round pick for the Bengals in this year's draft (hell, DeSean Jackson would've been good, too). Instead, they took Jerome Simpson from Coastal Carolina, had every wideout on the roster get hurt, and then resigned Chris Henry. Well done, Mike Brown, well done.
-Tynes in Round 16. Okay, big mistake here. I didn't know that Tynes was coming off of exploratory knee surgery (I don't do much scouting on kickers). So I'm going to drop him and pick up Matt Stover (ie- the Ravens main offensive weapon) on Friday when the waiver wire opens. Actually, I was looking at Rob Bironas here (was solid for me last year, including the 8 field goal game), but he was taken 2 picks before me. Oh well- its just a kicker.
Overall thoughts on my team right now: I think its a good team, not a great one. I feel pretty good about my starting guys, but I've got some serious doubt about my bench. But we'll see how it turns out. I'll be previewing my Week 1 match up next week, once everyone's done tweaking their rosters.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Fantasy Football Failure: Pre-Draft
Okay, new running segment; my (soon-to-be-assembled) fantasy football team.
Let me start off my saying that I am what you would consider an above-casual fantasy football player (I play fantasy baseball, too, and by "play" I mean "someone has to finish last"). I'd say I'm an average (in terms of "ability") fantasy football player, and I generally tend to fare pretty well, but when it comes to fantasy sports, I find it easier just to assume failure (hence the title of the post). I mean, I like fantasy football, but I'm not obsessive about it. I don't go overboard with the analysis, but I like to think I have some idea of what I'm talking about. I like that fantasy football gives me a reason to care about games like Raiders-49ers. I like the distraction from work. I like that its football. But between my fantasy team and my real team (the Bengals), the real team wins out every time.
I guess this will be mainly a weekly update, most likely on Tuesday or Wednesday, reviewing the past week's games, looking at player performance, discussing possible roster moves, and planning ahead to for week. I'll also take any advice any readers (all 4 or 5 of you) might have about my team.
So my live draft is just under an hour from now (we draft on-line; the league I play in consists of friends from college, and with players in places like Texas, Seattle, and Belgium, its kinda tough to get together for a live, in person draft). We've spent the last few years playing over at Yahoo! Sports, but we've made the jump over the ESPN.com this year. I'm not really sure why, I never had a problem with Yahoo!, but I guess some people complained about not having live scoring (as if that really matters), so ESPN.com is it. Over at Yahoo!, I ended up with the #1 pick something like 3 out of the last 5 years, so we'll see what happens this year. Time for some last minute cramming.
Let me start off my saying that I am what you would consider an above-casual fantasy football player (I play fantasy baseball, too, and by "play" I mean "someone has to finish last"). I'd say I'm an average (in terms of "ability") fantasy football player, and I generally tend to fare pretty well, but when it comes to fantasy sports, I find it easier just to assume failure (hence the title of the post). I mean, I like fantasy football, but I'm not obsessive about it. I don't go overboard with the analysis, but I like to think I have some idea of what I'm talking about. I like that fantasy football gives me a reason to care about games like Raiders-49ers. I like the distraction from work. I like that its football. But between my fantasy team and my real team (the Bengals), the real team wins out every time.
I guess this will be mainly a weekly update, most likely on Tuesday or Wednesday, reviewing the past week's games, looking at player performance, discussing possible roster moves, and planning ahead to for week. I'll also take any advice any readers (all 4 or 5 of you) might have about my team.
So my live draft is just under an hour from now (we draft on-line; the league I play in consists of friends from college, and with players in places like Texas, Seattle, and Belgium, its kinda tough to get together for a live, in person draft). We've spent the last few years playing over at Yahoo! Sports, but we've made the jump over the ESPN.com this year. I'm not really sure why, I never had a problem with Yahoo!, but I guess some people complained about not having live scoring (as if that really matters), so ESPN.com is it. Over at Yahoo!, I ended up with the #1 pick something like 3 out of the last 5 years, so we'll see what happens this year. Time for some last minute cramming.
Monday, August 25, 2008
Final Thoughts On The Olympics
-First, I got one prediction right- the US won the most medals (110) but China won the most golds (51). What does it mean? I don't know. I just know that it means more in China than it does here in the states.
-Michael Phelps has said that his goal is to change the sport of swimming, and part of that, he's said, it changing the American perception of swimming from a once-every-four-years sport to a year-round sport. And while that seems like a ginormous task, it looks like he's at least going to get a chance to try. NBC, banking on the massive ratings Phelps brought them, has acquired the rights to next year's swimming world championships and the next three years of the swimming national championships. I think its possible that some people at NBC were mislead into thinking that audiences tuning in to see Michael Phelps was the same as audiences tuning in to see swimming. But more power to them. If Phelps wants to change swimming, he's going to have to convince people to watch swimming when a)he's not in the pool and b)not swimming for 8 gold medals. If he can pull that off, he might be able to change swimming.
-Speaking of changing one's sport, I don't think anyone did that more so than Usain Bolt. Bolt, unlike Phelps, actually changed his sport. What did we hear about Phelps from day 1? "He's got the perfect body for swimming. If you were to build a swimmer from scratch, it would look exactly like Michael Phelps." Everyone knew he was physically capable of swimming all those races, it was just a matter of whether he would win them all. And what did we hear about Usain Bolt pre-race? "He doesn't look like how we have typically pictured sprinters in the past. He doesn't have the body of a sprinter. You wouldn't think this guy is that fast." Uh, looks like those old notions of what a sprinter "looked like" were wrong. The other guys Bolt raced against were "typical sprinters" and they had no chance. Time to go back to the drawing board. Old way gets you 9.9 in the 100. New way gets you 9.5 (assuming Bolt hadn't eased up to post a pokey 9.69). I wonder how he'd do in the 400- do you think his speed would translate? Gut reaction would say no, but that was with the old way of thinking. Michael Johnson is the only man to sweep the 200 and 400; how cool would it be to see someone try and sweep the 100, 200, and 400? Those three, plus the 4X100 and 4X400 relays? Why, he'd be the Michael Phelps of running.
-One more thing on Usain Bolt- enough with the "lightning" references (ie- "Lightning strikes twice at the Bird's Nest!"). Yes, that's his nickname, but with a last name like "Bolt," it has to be. If he were a 347-pound shot putter who ran the 100 in 15.83 seconds, he's nickname would still be "Lightning."
-Much love to the US volleyball teams, both indoor and beach. Swept the golds on the beach and took gold (men) and silver (women) in indoor. The indoor results were particularly amazing, given the tragic circumstances surrounding those teams. But boo NBC for not showing the women's gold medal match live. They'll show a bronze medal game live at 12:30 am, but a gold medal game at 8 am is out of the question. So what if you're going to show it later on tape-delay; the game's over at that point and people will now the score, whether they watched it live early or read about it online.
-You get a lot of new commercials during the Olympics, most of which aren't any good (see: McDonald's chicken for breakfast crap- what, have these people never heard of Chick-fil-A or, I don't know, the South? Moreover, how do those ads even play in the South? They can't, can they?). But my favorite was the Nike ad featuring Marvin Gaye. Here's his entire performance from the 1983 NBA All-Star Game:
Lots of singers try and add personal style to The Star-Spangled Banner and the vast majority of them fail miserably. Not Marvin Gaye. This is hands down the greatest performance of The Star-Spangled Banner of all time. You can have Whitney Houston at Super Bowl XXV; I'll take Marvin Gaye at the '83 All-Star Game.
-Winning a gold medal in anything has to be an incredible feeling, but how much cooler is it if you're the men's marathon champion? Not only are you the final medal ceremony of the entire Olympics, but you get your medal during the closing ceremonies, in front of a packed house which includes all of the other athletes. The last anthem everyone hears in your country's. That's got to be pretty special.
-Trampoline is still doesn't belong in the Olympics. I know its not a sport, but now I'm not even certain if its even a competition. It just doesn't make any sense.
-Gymnastics "judging" is an absolute joke. Sure, its always been a joke, but this Olympics went to "Ludicrous Speed." Take the women's (girl's?) vault final (yes, I watched). From my limited understanding of this event, this is what I can determine: you get 2 vaults, and in each, you have run down the mat, jump off the springboard, hit the vault with both hands, flip through the air, then land on your feet, between the lines. It would seem to me that if you failed to do any of these things in either one of your vaults, you wouldn't have a chance to medal. Naturally, that assumption is completely wrong. The gold medalist failed to land in bounds. The bronze medalist failed to even land on her feet (let alone not hitting the vault correctly). Clearly, none of this mattered because those mistakes were offset by better second vaults. We're supposed to believe that one good vault and one shitty vault is better than two good vaults? I know I don't classify gymnastics a sport, but it can be taken seriously, and this just undermines all of that. And yes, this joke of a scoring system meant that an American, Alicia Sacramone, got screwed out of medal (it also means I get to link to her throwing a left cross at the chin of some dude with a glass jaw). Also of note in the vault final is the fact the silver medalist was a 33-year old woman. 33! That's like 3x the age of the gymnasts China put out there! Crazy.
-Jimmy Page and Leona Lewis performing Whole Lotta Love during the Closing Ceremonies? Horribly awkward. Like, painly awkward. Not even funny awkward. Just, bad awkward.
Okay, enough Olympics for now. Football's about the start, and I've already jinxed St. X (my bad, Coach Specht).
-Michael Phelps has said that his goal is to change the sport of swimming, and part of that, he's said, it changing the American perception of swimming from a once-every-four-years sport to a year-round sport. And while that seems like a ginormous task, it looks like he's at least going to get a chance to try. NBC, banking on the massive ratings Phelps brought them, has acquired the rights to next year's swimming world championships and the next three years of the swimming national championships. I think its possible that some people at NBC were mislead into thinking that audiences tuning in to see Michael Phelps was the same as audiences tuning in to see swimming. But more power to them. If Phelps wants to change swimming, he's going to have to convince people to watch swimming when a)he's not in the pool and b)not swimming for 8 gold medals. If he can pull that off, he might be able to change swimming.
-Speaking of changing one's sport, I don't think anyone did that more so than Usain Bolt. Bolt, unlike Phelps, actually changed his sport. What did we hear about Phelps from day 1? "He's got the perfect body for swimming. If you were to build a swimmer from scratch, it would look exactly like Michael Phelps." Everyone knew he was physically capable of swimming all those races, it was just a matter of whether he would win them all. And what did we hear about Usain Bolt pre-race? "He doesn't look like how we have typically pictured sprinters in the past. He doesn't have the body of a sprinter. You wouldn't think this guy is that fast." Uh, looks like those old notions of what a sprinter "looked like" were wrong. The other guys Bolt raced against were "typical sprinters" and they had no chance. Time to go back to the drawing board. Old way gets you 9.9 in the 100. New way gets you 9.5 (assuming Bolt hadn't eased up to post a pokey 9.69). I wonder how he'd do in the 400- do you think his speed would translate? Gut reaction would say no, but that was with the old way of thinking. Michael Johnson is the only man to sweep the 200 and 400; how cool would it be to see someone try and sweep the 100, 200, and 400? Those three, plus the 4X100 and 4X400 relays? Why, he'd be the Michael Phelps of running.
-One more thing on Usain Bolt- enough with the "lightning" references (ie- "Lightning strikes twice at the Bird's Nest!"). Yes, that's his nickname, but with a last name like "Bolt," it has to be. If he were a 347-pound shot putter who ran the 100 in 15.83 seconds, he's nickname would still be "Lightning."
-Much love to the US volleyball teams, both indoor and beach. Swept the golds on the beach and took gold (men) and silver (women) in indoor. The indoor results were particularly amazing, given the tragic circumstances surrounding those teams. But boo NBC for not showing the women's gold medal match live. They'll show a bronze medal game live at 12:30 am, but a gold medal game at 8 am is out of the question. So what if you're going to show it later on tape-delay; the game's over at that point and people will now the score, whether they watched it live early or read about it online.
-You get a lot of new commercials during the Olympics, most of which aren't any good (see: McDonald's chicken for breakfast crap- what, have these people never heard of Chick-fil-A or, I don't know, the South? Moreover, how do those ads even play in the South? They can't, can they?). But my favorite was the Nike ad featuring Marvin Gaye. Here's his entire performance from the 1983 NBA All-Star Game:
Lots of singers try and add personal style to The Star-Spangled Banner and the vast majority of them fail miserably. Not Marvin Gaye. This is hands down the greatest performance of The Star-Spangled Banner of all time. You can have Whitney Houston at Super Bowl XXV; I'll take Marvin Gaye at the '83 All-Star Game.
-Winning a gold medal in anything has to be an incredible feeling, but how much cooler is it if you're the men's marathon champion? Not only are you the final medal ceremony of the entire Olympics, but you get your medal during the closing ceremonies, in front of a packed house which includes all of the other athletes. The last anthem everyone hears in your country's. That's got to be pretty special.
-Trampoline is still doesn't belong in the Olympics. I know its not a sport, but now I'm not even certain if its even a competition. It just doesn't make any sense.
-Gymnastics "judging" is an absolute joke. Sure, its always been a joke, but this Olympics went to "Ludicrous Speed." Take the women's (girl's?) vault final (yes, I watched). From my limited understanding of this event, this is what I can determine: you get 2 vaults, and in each, you have run down the mat, jump off the springboard, hit the vault with both hands, flip through the air, then land on your feet, between the lines. It would seem to me that if you failed to do any of these things in either one of your vaults, you wouldn't have a chance to medal. Naturally, that assumption is completely wrong. The gold medalist failed to land in bounds. The bronze medalist failed to even land on her feet (let alone not hitting the vault correctly). Clearly, none of this mattered because those mistakes were offset by better second vaults. We're supposed to believe that one good vault and one shitty vault is better than two good vaults? I know I don't classify gymnastics a sport, but it can be taken seriously, and this just undermines all of that. And yes, this joke of a scoring system meant that an American, Alicia Sacramone, got screwed out of medal (it also means I get to link to her throwing a left cross at the chin of some dude with a glass jaw). Also of note in the vault final is the fact the silver medalist was a 33-year old woman. 33! That's like 3x the age of the gymnasts China put out there! Crazy.
-Jimmy Page and Leona Lewis performing Whole Lotta Love during the Closing Ceremonies? Horribly awkward. Like, painly awkward. Not even funny awkward. Just, bad awkward.
Okay, enough Olympics for now. Football's about the start, and I've already jinxed St. X (my bad, Coach Specht).
Friday, August 22, 2008
Essential Videos 5 - Two-Ton Block Of Cheese
One of my favorite TV shows of all time (if not the favorite) is The West Wing. The following is a great scene where Chief of Staff Leo McGarry (the late, great John Spencer) talks about President Andrew Jackson and his two-ton block of cheese:
I could probably fill an entire blog with clips from this show, ranging from the ridiculous to the poignant, so I'll try and be judicious about the ones I include in the "Essential Videos" line so as to not incur West Wing overload.
I could probably fill an entire blog with clips from this show, ranging from the ridiculous to the poignant, so I'll try and be judicious about the ones I include in the "Essential Videos" line so as to not incur West Wing overload.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
My Only Hope For Football Success This Year (And All Years, Really).
While I look forward to the coming football season with great anticipation, I'm not expecting much from my teams this year. The Bengals? 7-9, 8-8 if they get lucky (which is doubtful). Virginia? 6-6, maybe, and no bowl game (not even the Poulan Weedeater.com Salsa Dip Bowl presented by AT&T). So that pretty much leaves me with my high school alma mater, St. X. Good thing they kick ass.
St. X (as in Cincinnati St. Xavier, not Louisville) is the defending D-1 state champs, they start the year #1 in Cincinnati, and are ranked nationally in a number of polls (whatever that means). Now, I've already written about the mess that is college football rankings (especially preseason rankings). But national high school football rankings? Ludicrous. There is no way anyone can legitimately rank high school teams from across the entire country. Now, its probably fairly easy to identify the best teams from each state (or even region- I can almost believe regional rankings, but a lot of those teams do play each other), but how can you possibly compare a team from New Jersey with a team from California? Texas with Montana? You just can't, and yet that doesn't stop people from trying.
I found 5 different national high school football rankings (CNN/SI has rankings as well, but I guess not in the preseason): USA Today Super 25, PrepNation.com, ESPNRISE.com, Rivals.com, and the Massey Ratings (which appears to be a computer ranking, like the BCS or the RPI, that I was unaware before today). A quick scan of these rankings show wildly different teams present throughout, top to bottom. Yeah, a few teams seem to be present in all the rankings (with Trinity, Euless, TX being a consistent choice at either #1 or #2 across the board), but some have teams in the top 10 of their rankings that don't crack the top 25 in another. St. X ranges from #1 in the Massey Rankings to #18 in both USA Today and PrepNation (note: St. X did finish last season at #1 in the PrepNation poll to win a "mythical" national championship)- how does that work? It just doesn't make any sense.
Look, I love high school football. Its huge here in Cincinnati, as big as it is anywhere in the country. Yeah, everyone talks about high school football in Texas and Friday Night Lights (I should put a picture of Minka Kelly here for Puddin', but I won't), blah, blah, blah- I don't care. The best football in the country is played in Ohio, and the best football in Ohio is played in Cincinnati. But high school football on a national scale has to stop. It not good for the game. Sure it was cool to watch X beat DeMatha (D.C.) last year on ESPN, but that doesn't it should have happened. Yeah its good competition for X to play teams from Indiana (Indianapolis Cathedral), Kentucky (Louisville Trinity), Alabama (Prattville), and New Jersey (Don Bosco Prep) this year, but what you lose is the localness and familiarity that is so much a part of the atmosphere of the high school game. Even playing teams from up north, like Cleveland St. Ignatius and Lakewood St. Edward's, is a stretch (seeing as how both Louisville and Indianapolis are closer to Cincinnati that Cleveland is) We can't be having high school athletes travel the country to play games like college athletes do,- its just not right. And this nationalization of the game doesn't help with rankings either because with so few games between teams from different parts of the country, you're left to rank teams using the transitive property (A beat B, B beat C, thus A can beat C), and that never works.
As I said before, the high school game is fueled by familiarity and proximity of the schools to one another. Road games are "road" only in name because the fan turnout is the same for every school home and away. How many fans from Prattville or Don Bosco Prep do you think will travel to Cincinnati for their games? The game may be better, but the atmosphere and aura around the game suffers. And its too bad.
Okay, rant over. Football is almost here. About damn time.
Go Bombers! Who Dey! Wahoowa! Don't suck!
St. X (as in Cincinnati St. Xavier, not Louisville) is the defending D-1 state champs, they start the year #1 in Cincinnati, and are ranked nationally in a number of polls (whatever that means). Now, I've already written about the mess that is college football rankings (especially preseason rankings). But national high school football rankings? Ludicrous. There is no way anyone can legitimately rank high school teams from across the entire country. Now, its probably fairly easy to identify the best teams from each state (or even region- I can almost believe regional rankings, but a lot of those teams do play each other), but how can you possibly compare a team from New Jersey with a team from California? Texas with Montana? You just can't, and yet that doesn't stop people from trying.
I found 5 different national high school football rankings (CNN/SI has rankings as well, but I guess not in the preseason): USA Today Super 25, PrepNation.com, ESPNRISE.com, Rivals.com, and the Massey Ratings (which appears to be a computer ranking, like the BCS or the RPI, that I was unaware before today). A quick scan of these rankings show wildly different teams present throughout, top to bottom. Yeah, a few teams seem to be present in all the rankings (with Trinity, Euless, TX being a consistent choice at either #1 or #2 across the board), but some have teams in the top 10 of their rankings that don't crack the top 25 in another. St. X ranges from #1 in the Massey Rankings to #18 in both USA Today and PrepNation (note: St. X did finish last season at #1 in the PrepNation poll to win a "mythical" national championship)- how does that work? It just doesn't make any sense.
Look, I love high school football. Its huge here in Cincinnati, as big as it is anywhere in the country. Yeah, everyone talks about high school football in Texas and Friday Night Lights (I should put a picture of Minka Kelly here for Puddin', but I won't), blah, blah, blah- I don't care. The best football in the country is played in Ohio, and the best football in Ohio is played in Cincinnati. But high school football on a national scale has to stop. It not good for the game. Sure it was cool to watch X beat DeMatha (D.C.) last year on ESPN, but that doesn't it should have happened. Yeah its good competition for X to play teams from Indiana (Indianapolis Cathedral), Kentucky (Louisville Trinity), Alabama (Prattville), and New Jersey (Don Bosco Prep) this year, but what you lose is the localness and familiarity that is so much a part of the atmosphere of the high school game. Even playing teams from up north, like Cleveland St. Ignatius and Lakewood St. Edward's, is a stretch (seeing as how both Louisville and Indianapolis are closer to Cincinnati that Cleveland is) We can't be having high school athletes travel the country to play games like college athletes do,- its just not right. And this nationalization of the game doesn't help with rankings either because with so few games between teams from different parts of the country, you're left to rank teams using the transitive property (A beat B, B beat C, thus A can beat C), and that never works.
As I said before, the high school game is fueled by familiarity and proximity of the schools to one another. Road games are "road" only in name because the fan turnout is the same for every school home and away. How many fans from Prattville or Don Bosco Prep do you think will travel to Cincinnati for their games? The game may be better, but the atmosphere and aura around the game suffers. And its too bad.
Okay, rant over. Football is almost here. About damn time.
Go Bombers! Who Dey! Wahoowa! Don't suck!
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Huzzah!
Western Bowl lives on!
As you may recall, a few months ago, the Westside mainstay was in danger of being bought out and demolished to make way for a new development. Well, Westsiders (and all Cincinnatians, really) can now breathe a sigh of relief knowing that Western Bowl and, more importantly, the Hoinke Classic, are safe for the time being. There is a God, and he is fair and just, for he has saved Western Bowl.
As you may recall, a few months ago, the Westside mainstay was in danger of being bought out and demolished to make way for a new development. Well, Westsiders (and all Cincinnatians, really) can now breathe a sigh of relief knowing that Western Bowl and, more importantly, the Hoinke Classic, are safe for the time being. There is a God, and he is fair and just, for he has saved Western Bowl.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Do It Rockapella!
Where in the world are people reading this poor excuse for a blog? How about Central District, Hong Kong, 8,012 miles away from Southwest Ohio. Sorry, Puddin', but I've somehow managed to out-distance you and your visitor from Ahmadabad, Gujarat, India. Didn't mean to steal your thunder, man. My bad.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Citius. Altius. Fortius. - Epic Fail Edition
Halfway home, let's look back on those pre-Olympic predictions I made last week (hint- poorly):
-Michael Phelps does not win 8 gold medals. I want him to, I really do, but I don't think its going to happen. Either one of the relays lets him down or Ryan Lochte finally snaps after another second place finish and gnaws off Phelps's left arm (to which Phelps goes on to win a few silvers, swimming with one arm).
Wrong.
-Dara Torres wins gold. At this point, how can she not?
Wrong.
-Lui Xiang crumbles under the weight of a billion Chinese and does not repeat as gold medalist in the 110 hurdles (which is too bad for him because he'll probably have to go into exile after the games).
n/a*
-After the 4th day of coverage, the media will be so focused on the games that they will forget to talk about the pollution in Beijing or China's track record on human rights. Except for Bob Costas. He'll find a way ever so often to slip in some backhanded compliment to China, and he'll get away with it because he's Bob Costas. Odds that at some point Costas shouts, "You're excited? Feel these nipples!"- 1084 to 1.
Wrong, mostly.
-Tyson Gay breaks the 100 meter world record. I mean, I already jinxed him once; it can't happen again, can it?
Wrong.
-At least one other US athlete will be tossed out for doping ('cause we're nothing but a bunch of dirty cheaters now).
Wrong, for now.
-Despite Lui Xiang's imminent failure, China uses the home field advantage to win the most gold medals for the games, but the US will still dominate the overall medal count.
Right, for now.
Wow- 1 for 6 with a push. Sure can pick 'em, huh? A closer look:
-Michael Phelps: I honestly thought a relay would let him down. Really, I did. I thought the added pressure to not be the guy who lost the record for Phelps would get to someone. And I guess it almost did; it doesn't get much closer than the finish for the 4X100 relay (well, you know, except for the 100 fly...). I thought someone would crack, and I'm glad no one did. Eight gold medals is astounding.
[Note: Keeping in the tradition of spot on predictions, I said a few hours before the 100 fly finals- and Puddin' can verify this- that I thought Phelps would break the world record and win going away. Wrong and wrong. Unless, of course, you define "going away" as 0.01 seconds.]
-Dara Torres: Speaking of 0.01 seconds....
-Lui Xiang: Push. Hasn't run yet, so there's still a chance for me not to be wrong (yeah, right....). [see edit below]
-Pollution/Human Rights: The mention the pollution/smog/haze every damn day, so I got that one wrong. Talk specifically about human rights has died down (keeping the focus more on the game and less on the politics), but I have noticed that every time anyone praises the Chinese people for anything, like their hospitality, enthusiasm, artistry, etc., they make a point to temper it with something like, "Though there are many things we may disagree with philosophically..." or "Its a different culture here in Beijing..." I feel like its the elephant in the room.
-Tyson Gay: Damn. Didn't even make the finals. Though that doesn't really matter anymore since Usain Bolt decimated the field. Maybe it was better to not qualify for the finals than to get blown away by a guy that really only ran 85% of the race. 9.69 seconds- crazy. And I agree with the commentators about Bolt; if he had run out the final 15 meters of the race instead of looking around, holding out his arms, and pounding his chest, he would have broken 9.6 seconds.
-Doping: Haven't heard anything yet.
-Medal Count: Finally, something I'm getting right! As I write this, the US has a 57-49 edge in the overall medal count, but China's up 27-17 in the gold medal count. Ten's a lot to make up in the last week, but you would have to think that the US has the advantage in potential gold medals in track and field and the team sports. And since I said China would have more golds, you're pretty much guaranteed that the US will pull ahead. Just how it goes with me.
[*Monday morning edit: Lui Xiang's out with an Achilles injury. I don't know if I can chalk this one up as a win because the spirit of the prediction was that he would race and lose, and not that he wouldn't race at all. It was all about failing to live up to expectations. Since he doesn't even have the chance to fail, I think this has to remain a "push" (which, given my track record, is like a win).]
-Michael Phelps does not win 8 gold medals. I want him to, I really do, but I don't think its going to happen. Either one of the relays lets him down or Ryan Lochte finally snaps after another second place finish and gnaws off Phelps's left arm (to which Phelps goes on to win a few silvers, swimming with one arm).
Wrong.
-Dara Torres wins gold. At this point, how can she not?
Wrong.
-Lui Xiang crumbles under the weight of a billion Chinese and does not repeat as gold medalist in the 110 hurdles (which is too bad for him because he'll probably have to go into exile after the games).
n/a*
-After the 4th day of coverage, the media will be so focused on the games that they will forget to talk about the pollution in Beijing or China's track record on human rights. Except for Bob Costas. He'll find a way ever so often to slip in some backhanded compliment to China, and he'll get away with it because he's Bob Costas. Odds that at some point Costas shouts, "You're excited? Feel these nipples!"- 1084 to 1.
Wrong, mostly.
-Tyson Gay breaks the 100 meter world record. I mean, I already jinxed him once; it can't happen again, can it?
Wrong.
-At least one other US athlete will be tossed out for doping ('cause we're nothing but a bunch of dirty cheaters now).
Wrong, for now.
-Despite Lui Xiang's imminent failure, China uses the home field advantage to win the most gold medals for the games, but the US will still dominate the overall medal count.
Right, for now.
Wow- 1 for 6 with a push. Sure can pick 'em, huh? A closer look:
-Michael Phelps: I honestly thought a relay would let him down. Really, I did. I thought the added pressure to not be the guy who lost the record for Phelps would get to someone. And I guess it almost did; it doesn't get much closer than the finish for the 4X100 relay (well, you know, except for the 100 fly...). I thought someone would crack, and I'm glad no one did. Eight gold medals is astounding.
[Note: Keeping in the tradition of spot on predictions, I said a few hours before the 100 fly finals- and Puddin' can verify this- that I thought Phelps would break the world record and win going away. Wrong and wrong. Unless, of course, you define "going away" as 0.01 seconds.]
-Dara Torres: Speaking of 0.01 seconds....
-Lui Xiang: Push. Hasn't run yet, so there's still a chance for me not to be wrong (yeah, right....). [see edit below]
-Pollution/Human Rights: The mention the pollution/smog/haze every damn day, so I got that one wrong. Talk specifically about human rights has died down (keeping the focus more on the game and less on the politics), but I have noticed that every time anyone praises the Chinese people for anything, like their hospitality, enthusiasm, artistry, etc., they make a point to temper it with something like, "Though there are many things we may disagree with philosophically..." or "Its a different culture here in Beijing..." I feel like its the elephant in the room.
-Tyson Gay: Damn. Didn't even make the finals. Though that doesn't really matter anymore since Usain Bolt decimated the field. Maybe it was better to not qualify for the finals than to get blown away by a guy that really only ran 85% of the race. 9.69 seconds- crazy. And I agree with the commentators about Bolt; if he had run out the final 15 meters of the race instead of looking around, holding out his arms, and pounding his chest, he would have broken 9.6 seconds.
-Doping: Haven't heard anything yet.
-Medal Count: Finally, something I'm getting right! As I write this, the US has a 57-49 edge in the overall medal count, but China's up 27-17 in the gold medal count. Ten's a lot to make up in the last week, but you would have to think that the US has the advantage in potential gold medals in track and field and the team sports. And since I said China would have more golds, you're pretty much guaranteed that the US will pull ahead. Just how it goes with me.
[*Monday morning edit: Lui Xiang's out with an Achilles injury. I don't know if I can chalk this one up as a win because the spirit of the prediction was that he would race and lose, and not that he wouldn't race at all. It was all about failing to live up to expectations. Since he doesn't even have the chance to fail, I think this has to remain a "push" (which, given my track record, is like a win).]
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Essential Videos 4 - Tiny Dancer
Elton John credits Cameron Crowe with reviving this song. Before Almost Famous, he rarely played it in concert; now, its one of his most popular songs.
I love how at first, it seems like the song is just underscoring the scene, but as it progresses, it becomes clear that the song is the scene. Simply the greatest movie-music scene in film history (though, this scene is a close second).
I love how at first, it seems like the song is just underscoring the scene, but as it progresses, it becomes clear that the song is the scene. Simply the greatest movie-music scene in film history (though, this scene is a close second).
Monday, August 11, 2008
Random Thoughts From A Weekend Of Sports Television
-The Opening Ceremonies for the Olympics were insane. There's no other country in the world that could have put on a show like that; no one else has either a)the discipline or b)the man power the Chinese have. Favorite part: the tai chi segment. As someone who's tried (and failed) to get 75 people to line up and create coherent formations, seeing 2,008 people do it near flawlessly was crazy impressive. Least favorite part (aside from hearing Bob Costas and Matt Lauer give ridiculous factoids about countries no one can find on a map): the torch lighting. I know, I know, it was pretty cool to see the guy get hoisted up to the top of the stadium and all, but did he really have to run around the whole damn thing? By the time he got all the way around, the actual lighting was kind of anticlimactic.
-The Reds suck.
-Fuck the French. The men's 4X100 meter freestyle relay final was absolutely incredible. If Michael Phelps goes on and wins 8 gold medals and gets that million dollar check from Visa, I hope he sends a good chunk of it to Jason Lezak. For about 375 meters, I was looking pretty good on my call that one of the relays would end Phelps's quest for 8 golds. And I'm glad I was wrong (at least on this one), especially after hearing the smack talk from the French (specifically from the guy that choked away the race at the end). Haven't there been enough examples, particularly in sports, of guys having to eat crow because they couldn't back it up when the time came? Fuck Alain Bernard. He deserved to lose that race, in that way, with him being the goat.
-I really like watching volleyball. Sure, everyone loves (women's) beach volleyball, but I've been getting into the indoor game as well (and if you watching for the, uh, talent- Puddin', I'm looking at you- check out Logan Tom; the camera loves her, and with good reason). I knew a guy back in Virginia, who we'll call Game Genie, that always sang the praises of volleyball (only guy I knew that played in volleyball rec leagues and such); I think I'm beginning to catch on. Love the beach volleyball, but I'm going to try and catch some more of indoor as well.
-Brock Lesner impressed me a little. I don't think he was great, but he was better than I expected. Granted, I wasn't expecting much, given how he lost his first match, but he fared better against Herring than I thought he would (in that he won the match by decision). Also thought GSP would've ended the fight before it went the distance. But I'm still learning the MMA world.
-Koreans are good at shooting things, particularly arrows. If there's such as thing as an archery powerhouse, South Korea is it.
-Speaking of Koreans, big ups to Park Taehwan for winning the country's first ever swimming medal, and for it to be gold. Dude's like 18 or 19 and he'll never have to pay for anything ever again back in Korea. I know he's young, but he needs to retire NOW and open up a swimming academy in Seoul. In terms of competition, there's no where to go but down for this kid; this is one case where I say quit while you're ahead and rest on these laurels for the rest of your life.
-The Reds suck big time.
-Melissa Stark, still hot. I think people forget that she was Erin Andrews before Erin Andrews was Erin Andrews (I'll leave it to Puddin' for the side-by-side picture analysis). And when it comes down to it, I'll take the fellow Wahoo (Stark) over the Florida Gator (Andrews). [Edit: Puddin' comes through, as I knew he would. Head over to Dollar Hot Dogs and cast your vote for history!]
-What the fuck is Cris Collinsworth doing in Beijing?
-Favorite Bob Costas moment thus far: after Mary Carillo showed a piece on a Chinese acrobat school, Bob said something to the effect of: [facing Mary] "Great story, Mary, thanks for stopping by... [turns to face camera]... as if she just dropped in to, 'Hi.'"
-I don't like gymnastics, but I will watch the still rings (men) and the balance beam (women) because no matter how many times I see them, it still amazes me that any human could perform those tricks. I know that to be an elite gymnast you have to have an incredible amount of strength and athleticism, but in my mind, these two events are just beyond the realm human ability.
-Tiger who? What a finish to the PGA Championship. I hope people don't end up labeling Padrig Harrington the "Houston Rockets of golf" because these last two majors have come with Woods on the sidelines; remember, he won the '07 Open Championship with Tiger in the field, so he's beaten him. The putts he made on 16, 17, and 18 were crazy. Tiger-esque, if you will. He's easily the favorite going into Augusta next year. As for Sergio ("You know Sergio?!"), I do think he'll eventually win a major. Step one is flat out not playing well in majors, step two is gut-wrenching loses (see: Mickelson, Phil). With this loss and last year's Open Championship, Sergio's only on step two.
-And speaking of Phil, he had a great line of commercials for Crowne Plaza Hotels and Resorts during the PGA, best of which was this one:
That just about covers the weekend. Still got 2 weeks of Olympic coverage- great way to distract me from the epic fail that is the Reds. And from preseason football. Hate preseason football.
-The Reds suck.
-Fuck the French. The men's 4X100 meter freestyle relay final was absolutely incredible. If Michael Phelps goes on and wins 8 gold medals and gets that million dollar check from Visa, I hope he sends a good chunk of it to Jason Lezak. For about 375 meters, I was looking pretty good on my call that one of the relays would end Phelps's quest for 8 golds. And I'm glad I was wrong (at least on this one), especially after hearing the smack talk from the French (specifically from the guy that choked away the race at the end). Haven't there been enough examples, particularly in sports, of guys having to eat crow because they couldn't back it up when the time came? Fuck Alain Bernard. He deserved to lose that race, in that way, with him being the goat.
-I really like watching volleyball. Sure, everyone loves (women's) beach volleyball, but I've been getting into the indoor game as well (and if you watching for the, uh, talent- Puddin', I'm looking at you- check out Logan Tom; the camera loves her, and with good reason). I knew a guy back in Virginia, who we'll call Game Genie, that always sang the praises of volleyball (only guy I knew that played in volleyball rec leagues and such); I think I'm beginning to catch on. Love the beach volleyball, but I'm going to try and catch some more of indoor as well.
-Brock Lesner impressed me a little. I don't think he was great, but he was better than I expected. Granted, I wasn't expecting much, given how he lost his first match, but he fared better against Herring than I thought he would (in that he won the match by decision). Also thought GSP would've ended the fight before it went the distance. But I'm still learning the MMA world.
-Koreans are good at shooting things, particularly arrows. If there's such as thing as an archery powerhouse, South Korea is it.
-Speaking of Koreans, big ups to Park Taehwan for winning the country's first ever swimming medal, and for it to be gold. Dude's like 18 or 19 and he'll never have to pay for anything ever again back in Korea. I know he's young, but he needs to retire NOW and open up a swimming academy in Seoul. In terms of competition, there's no where to go but down for this kid; this is one case where I say quit while you're ahead and rest on these laurels for the rest of your life.
-The Reds suck big time.
-Melissa Stark, still hot. I think people forget that she was Erin Andrews before Erin Andrews was Erin Andrews (I'll leave it to Puddin' for the side-by-side picture analysis). And when it comes down to it, I'll take the fellow Wahoo (Stark) over the Florida Gator (Andrews). [Edit: Puddin' comes through, as I knew he would. Head over to Dollar Hot Dogs and cast your vote for history!]
-What the fuck is Cris Collinsworth doing in Beijing?
-Favorite Bob Costas moment thus far: after Mary Carillo showed a piece on a Chinese acrobat school, Bob said something to the effect of: [facing Mary] "Great story, Mary, thanks for stopping by... [turns to face camera]... as if she just dropped in to, 'Hi.'"
-I don't like gymnastics, but I will watch the still rings (men) and the balance beam (women) because no matter how many times I see them, it still amazes me that any human could perform those tricks. I know that to be an elite gymnast you have to have an incredible amount of strength and athleticism, but in my mind, these two events are just beyond the realm human ability.
-Tiger who? What a finish to the PGA Championship. I hope people don't end up labeling Padrig Harrington the "Houston Rockets of golf" because these last two majors have come with Woods on the sidelines; remember, he won the '07 Open Championship with Tiger in the field, so he's beaten him. The putts he made on 16, 17, and 18 were crazy. Tiger-esque, if you will. He's easily the favorite going into Augusta next year. As for Sergio ("You know Sergio?!"), I do think he'll eventually win a major. Step one is flat out not playing well in majors, step two is gut-wrenching loses (see: Mickelson, Phil). With this loss and last year's Open Championship, Sergio's only on step two.
-And speaking of Phil, he had a great line of commercials for Crowne Plaza Hotels and Resorts during the PGA, best of which was this one:
That just about covers the weekend. Still got 2 weeks of Olympic coverage- great way to distract me from the epic fail that is the Reds. And from preseason football. Hate preseason football.
Manly Man Candle Review
After a long delay, my candles from the Manly Man Candle Company finally arrived over the weekend. And after a couple days of burning each candle for a few hours, my basement smells weird. I probably should have spaced the candles burns out a little longer, or at least tested them in different parts of the house, but whatever. My review of each candle:
Cedar Forest- Subtle, not too strong. I grew up in a cedar house, so I this one takes me back. Of course, I could just make the 5 minute drive and actually go back, but that's neither here nor there.
Coffee Shop- Best one of the group, easily. It smells like a cup of regular black coffee, not like something you get at Starbucks.
Frozen Mountain Air- Not what I was expecting from this candle, but its good none the less. Its supposed to replicate taking a deep breath on a really cold day, when the air is really crisp. Instead, its kind of like taking a deep breath into an a box of Altoids. Again, but bad, but not what I was expecting.
Leather- A little disappointed with this one. On the plus side, its a really subtle scent (as opposed to Frozen Mountain Air, which is pretty strong) that doesn't overpower the room. But its a little more "luxury sedan interior" and a little less "broken in baseball glove," if you know what I mean. I would have preferred a little more of the latter.
Wild Alaska- Pretty much as described on the site; its a good, strong pine scent.
Yarkwork- Holy shit. They weren't messing around when they say "Hayfever and allergy victims beware." This was insanely strong, though that could be my allergies talking. I love the smell of cut grass, but not when its this strong; then, it just drives me crazy.
So that's how my first order from the Manly Man Candle Company shook out. Because of the delay in processing, I got a discount to use with my next order, which I am definitely going to make. Along with larger size orders of Coffee Shop and Wild Alaska, I think I'm going to also try Irish Springtime, Clean Laundry, and Manilla. That is, once my basement loses the coffee-grass-leather-cedar-pine-peppermint scent.
Cedar Forest- Subtle, not too strong. I grew up in a cedar house, so I this one takes me back. Of course, I could just make the 5 minute drive and actually go back, but that's neither here nor there.
Coffee Shop- Best one of the group, easily. It smells like a cup of regular black coffee, not like something you get at Starbucks.
Frozen Mountain Air- Not what I was expecting from this candle, but its good none the less. Its supposed to replicate taking a deep breath on a really cold day, when the air is really crisp. Instead, its kind of like taking a deep breath into an a box of Altoids. Again, but bad, but not what I was expecting.
Leather- A little disappointed with this one. On the plus side, its a really subtle scent (as opposed to Frozen Mountain Air, which is pretty strong) that doesn't overpower the room. But its a little more "luxury sedan interior" and a little less "broken in baseball glove," if you know what I mean. I would have preferred a little more of the latter.
Wild Alaska- Pretty much as described on the site; its a good, strong pine scent.
Yarkwork- Holy shit. They weren't messing around when they say "Hayfever and allergy victims beware." This was insanely strong, though that could be my allergies talking. I love the smell of cut grass, but not when its this strong; then, it just drives me crazy.
So that's how my first order from the Manly Man Candle Company shook out. Because of the delay in processing, I got a discount to use with my next order, which I am definitely going to make. Along with larger size orders of Coffee Shop and Wild Alaska, I think I'm going to also try Irish Springtime, Clean Laundry, and Manilla. That is, once my basement loses the coffee-grass-leather-cedar-pine-peppermint scent.
Friday, August 8, 2008
Essential Videos 3 - Tainted Love
One of my all-time favorite commercials, from the brilliant mind of Spike Jonze:
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Citius. Altius. Fortius.
We're just a few days away from the start of the Olympics (yeah, yeah, technically they've already started with a few soccer matches already in the books), and I couldn't be more stoked. Yeah, I know I just went on and on about how I'm stoked for the start of college football season. Truth is, its still a ways off, and without the Olympics to help fill the time, I'd be left with having to watch the Reds try and put together the all-elusive one-game winning streak. Forget it. Its all about the Olympics for the next two weeks (note: check out Jim Caple's piece on this year's games at ESPN.com; I think he gives some great perspective).
I've already talked about Olympics and why I love watching them. I've got some predictions for the upcoming games, but I'll save those from later in the post. In that earlier post about the Olympics, I eluded to the idea that some of the Olympic "sports," by my definition, aren't sports at all. It never fails; every two years, I have the same argument (usually with a member of the opposite sex)- I say, "Gymnastics (or figure skating, diving, trampoline, etc.) isn't a real sport" and they take offense.
Now, when I say something "isn't a sport," I'm not trying to be demeaning; some people are when they say that, I'm not one of them. I simply believe that things should be organized and classified correctly, and that there should be a stated difference between "sport" and " athletic competition" (for lack of a better term).
First, I loosely define sport as a competitive activity requiring both a physical and mental ability. Games, such as chess or cards, are not sports because there is no physicality involved (well, at least there isn't any physicality required to participate). From there, I define what's not a sport, and whatever is left, is.
So what's makes something not a sport? Simple- judges. If judges are used to decide the winner, its not a sport. If any third-party is required and is essential to the outcome, not a sport. There needs to be a quantitative end for it to be a sport, not a qualitative one. This doesn't include boxing judges (or really any judge in a contact sport) because those judges aren't essential to the outcome of the sport; they're simply used to protect the athletes and regulate the sport. A quick back-of-the-envelope test is asking if it can it be turned in to a pickup game? Baseball? Yes. Football? Yes. Curling? Yes. Gymnastics? No. Figure Skating? No. You can't have a pickup game of gymnastics. It just doesn't work.
[Note: So far, I've only come up with one event that seems to buck my definition of sport- ski jumping. Final scores are a combination of distance jumped (quantitative) and the technique executed in the jump (qualitative). However, I still classify is as a sport by using the justification that you could determine the winner by distance alone, and execution would simply be a tie breaker if needed.]
One more point that I need to mention- non-sport status does not imply that its participants aren't athletes. Sport doesn't imply athlete, athlete doesn't imply sport. Baseball players are athletes, and baseball is a sport. Gymnasts are athletes, but gymnastics is not a sport. Golfers aren't necessarily athletes (some are like Tiger Woods, some are like John Daly), but golf is a sport.
Again, I'm not trying to demean or belittle gymnast, figure skaters, or even trampoliner-ists (whatever the hell they're called) when I say what they do isn't a sport. I'm simply saying that its not a sport. When I say an event is silly, inane, and worthless (like trampoline or rhythmic gymnastics), then I'm being demeaning.
Onto the bold predictions for the Olympics. I know I'm tempting the wrath of the whatever from high atop the thing by making predictions (given my track record on this blog), but I can't be scared of curses. So here they are, stone-cold lock predictions*:
-Michael Phelps does not win 8 gold medals. I want him to, I really do, but I don't think its going to happen. Either one of the relays lets him down or Ryan Lochte finally snaps after another second place finish and gnaws off Phelps's left arm (to which Phelps goes on to win a few silvers, swimming with one arm).
-Dara Torres wins gold. At this point, how can she not?
-Lui Xiang crumbles under the weight of a billion Chinese and does not repeat as gold medalist in the 110 hurdles (which is too bad for him because he'll probably have to go into exile after the games).
-After the 4th day of coverage, the media will be so focused on the games that they will forget to talk about the pollution in Beijing or China's track record on human rights. Except for Bob Costas. He'll find a way ever so often to slip in some backhanded compliment to China, and he'll get away with it because he's Bob Costas. Odds that at some point Costas shouts, "You're excited? Feel these nipples!"- 1084 to 1.
-Tyson Gay breaks the 100 meter world record. I mean, I already jinxed him once; it can't happen again, can it?
-At least one other US athlete will be tossed out for doping ('cause we're nothing but a bunch of dirty cheaters now).
-Despite Jui Xiang's imminent failure, China uses the home field advantage to win the most gold medals for the games, but the US will still dominate the overall medal count.
Okay, I think that's enough jinxing for one day. One last thing, I've read that Lopez Lomong, a 1,500 meter runner and former "Lost Boy" of Sudan, has been chosen to carry the flag for the United States in the Opening Ceremonies. Great choice; he's got a remarkable story. I saw a piece about him on HBO's Real Sports a few days ago and ESPN's got a great article about him as well (it was written before the Olympic trials). Read it, and catch Olympic fever.
[*Meaning they have about a 37% chance of being close to maybe being almost accurate.]
I've already talked about Olympics and why I love watching them. I've got some predictions for the upcoming games, but I'll save those from later in the post. In that earlier post about the Olympics, I eluded to the idea that some of the Olympic "sports," by my definition, aren't sports at all. It never fails; every two years, I have the same argument (usually with a member of the opposite sex)- I say, "Gymnastics (or figure skating, diving, trampoline, etc.) isn't a real sport" and they take offense.
Now, when I say something "isn't a sport," I'm not trying to be demeaning; some people are when they say that, I'm not one of them. I simply believe that things should be organized and classified correctly, and that there should be a stated difference between "sport" and " athletic competition" (for lack of a better term).
First, I loosely define sport as a competitive activity requiring both a physical and mental ability. Games, such as chess or cards, are not sports because there is no physicality involved (well, at least there isn't any physicality required to participate). From there, I define what's not a sport, and whatever is left, is.
So what's makes something not a sport? Simple- judges. If judges are used to decide the winner, its not a sport. If any third-party is required and is essential to the outcome, not a sport. There needs to be a quantitative end for it to be a sport, not a qualitative one. This doesn't include boxing judges (or really any judge in a contact sport) because those judges aren't essential to the outcome of the sport; they're simply used to protect the athletes and regulate the sport. A quick back-of-the-envelope test is asking if it can it be turned in to a pickup game? Baseball? Yes. Football? Yes. Curling? Yes. Gymnastics? No. Figure Skating? No. You can't have a pickup game of gymnastics. It just doesn't work.
[Note: So far, I've only come up with one event that seems to buck my definition of sport- ski jumping. Final scores are a combination of distance jumped (quantitative) and the technique executed in the jump (qualitative). However, I still classify is as a sport by using the justification that you could determine the winner by distance alone, and execution would simply be a tie breaker if needed.]
One more point that I need to mention- non-sport status does not imply that its participants aren't athletes. Sport doesn't imply athlete, athlete doesn't imply sport. Baseball players are athletes, and baseball is a sport. Gymnasts are athletes, but gymnastics is not a sport. Golfers aren't necessarily athletes (some are like Tiger Woods, some are like John Daly), but golf is a sport.
Again, I'm not trying to demean or belittle gymnast, figure skaters, or even trampoliner-ists (whatever the hell they're called) when I say what they do isn't a sport. I'm simply saying that its not a sport. When I say an event is silly, inane, and worthless (like trampoline or rhythmic gymnastics), then I'm being demeaning.
Onto the bold predictions for the Olympics. I know I'm tempting the wrath of the whatever from high atop the thing by making predictions (given my track record on this blog), but I can't be scared of curses. So here they are, stone-cold lock predictions*:
-Michael Phelps does not win 8 gold medals. I want him to, I really do, but I don't think its going to happen. Either one of the relays lets him down or Ryan Lochte finally snaps after another second place finish and gnaws off Phelps's left arm (to which Phelps goes on to win a few silvers, swimming with one arm).
-Dara Torres wins gold. At this point, how can she not?
-Lui Xiang crumbles under the weight of a billion Chinese and does not repeat as gold medalist in the 110 hurdles (which is too bad for him because he'll probably have to go into exile after the games).
-After the 4th day of coverage, the media will be so focused on the games that they will forget to talk about the pollution in Beijing or China's track record on human rights. Except for Bob Costas. He'll find a way ever so often to slip in some backhanded compliment to China, and he'll get away with it because he's Bob Costas. Odds that at some point Costas shouts, "You're excited? Feel these nipples!"- 1084 to 1.
-Tyson Gay breaks the 100 meter world record. I mean, I already jinxed him once; it can't happen again, can it?
-At least one other US athlete will be tossed out for doping ('cause we're nothing but a bunch of dirty cheaters now).
-Despite Jui Xiang's imminent failure, China uses the home field advantage to win the most gold medals for the games, but the US will still dominate the overall medal count.
Okay, I think that's enough jinxing for one day. One last thing, I've read that Lopez Lomong, a 1,500 meter runner and former "Lost Boy" of Sudan, has been chosen to carry the flag for the United States in the Opening Ceremonies. Great choice; he's got a remarkable story. I saw a piece about him on HBO's Real Sports a few days ago and ESPN's got a great article about him as well (it was written before the Olympic trials). Read it, and catch Olympic fever.
[*Meaning they have about a 37% chance of being close to maybe being almost accurate.]
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
College Football Is Close...
We are now inside of a month to the start of college football. Thank God- August 30 can't get here soon enough. I can't wait for my Wahoos to tee it up for the first game of the year against Southern California.
Wait.... what?
Southern California?
Really?
The Southern California?
Like, Pete-Carroll-Snoop-Dogg-National-Championship-contender Southern California?
Shit.
Great, 0-1 start, here we come. Who the hell scheduled that? And what the hell were they thinking? Damn it, Littlepage! If you want to fire Al Groh, just fire him; you don't have to set up him for certain failure simply for justification. Ass clown.
Anyway, enough about my sad-sack alma mater. College football's almost here, and the preseason coach's poll is out, with the Top 5 going Georgia, USC, Ohio State, Oklahoma, and Florida. My 'Hoos are a generous #38 (by votes), one spot behind the Bearcats, of all teams. I was surprised to see that Duke didn't they're usual 1 vote; I guess Steve Spurrier didn't up the Dukies at #25 in the first poll like he has in years past. Too bad for them.
Of course, I look at that poll, and I have no idea what it means. Is Georgia really the best time in the country? Is Virginia really the 38th best? Who the hell knows? I really think college football needs to get rid of the preseason poll. In fact, they should do away with all polls until the 5th or 6th week of the season. They're meaningless and have way too much effect on the end of the season and the BCS (which sucks anyway, but we're stuck with it). Its ridiculous to rank teams based on nothing before the season and then simply adjust those rankings based on wins and loses instead of actually trying to rank teams based on performance.
I understand people like having rankings, especially TV people, because they want to be able to market "a top 5 matchup" to attract viewers. But seriously, USC vs. Ohio State in Week 2 is going to be a huge game, regardless of whether they have little numbers next to their names. If you want to have you're polls, wait at least until some games have been played before you release them. At least then teams would have a chance to legitimately play their way into the rankings.
A speaking of releasing polls, why is there more than one BCS poll? Why are the BCS rankings release at any time before they point at which they are actually needed? The BCS rankings have exactly one purpose- to determine the National Championship game (so-called #1 vs. #2). That doesn't matter until the season's over, so again I ask, what's the point of BCS rankings in October? Who cares who's #1 and #2 in the BCS on November 5th? All that matters is who's #1 and #2 in the BCS at the end of the year.
I would think that it would be in the BCS's best interest not to release rankings until the very end of the year. That way, you don't see how one school might leapfrog another in the final week (or how a team doesn't fall out of the top 2 after a late season loss) and all you get is one set definitive ranking. There would be less for the BCS people to defend because they could point to a single set of rankings and be done with it. Given how screwed up the system is, I would think they would welcome that. They wouldn't have to explain anything (or, at least, they would have less to explain).
But I don't grant the BCS people with an overabundance of intelligence, so I'm sure they'll continue to screw up college football every chance they get. A playoff works on every other level of college football, but Division I-A (or the Football Bowl Subdivision, whatever the fuck that means) refuses to give into reason and remains with its head fully shoved up its ass. Its a shame that such a great sports ends with a game determined by nothing more than monkeys throwing poop against a wall*. Still, I can't wait for the season to start. There's nothing like college football. Wahoowa.
[*Note: This would be way better than the BCS.]
Wait.... what?
Southern California?
Really?
The Southern California?
Like, Pete-Carroll-Snoop-Dogg-National-Championship-contender Southern California?
Shit.
Great, 0-1 start, here we come. Who the hell scheduled that? And what the hell were they thinking? Damn it, Littlepage! If you want to fire Al Groh, just fire him; you don't have to set up him for certain failure simply for justification. Ass clown.
Anyway, enough about my sad-sack alma mater. College football's almost here, and the preseason coach's poll is out, with the Top 5 going Georgia, USC, Ohio State, Oklahoma, and Florida. My 'Hoos are a generous #38 (by votes), one spot behind the Bearcats, of all teams. I was surprised to see that Duke didn't they're usual 1 vote; I guess Steve Spurrier didn't up the Dukies at #25 in the first poll like he has in years past. Too bad for them.
Of course, I look at that poll, and I have no idea what it means. Is Georgia really the best time in the country? Is Virginia really the 38th best? Who the hell knows? I really think college football needs to get rid of the preseason poll. In fact, they should do away with all polls until the 5th or 6th week of the season. They're meaningless and have way too much effect on the end of the season and the BCS (which sucks anyway, but we're stuck with it). Its ridiculous to rank teams based on nothing before the season and then simply adjust those rankings based on wins and loses instead of actually trying to rank teams based on performance.
I understand people like having rankings, especially TV people, because they want to be able to market "a top 5 matchup" to attract viewers. But seriously, USC vs. Ohio State in Week 2 is going to be a huge game, regardless of whether they have little numbers next to their names. If you want to have you're polls, wait at least until some games have been played before you release them. At least then teams would have a chance to legitimately play their way into the rankings.
A speaking of releasing polls, why is there more than one BCS poll? Why are the BCS rankings release at any time before they point at which they are actually needed? The BCS rankings have exactly one purpose- to determine the National Championship game (so-called #1 vs. #2). That doesn't matter until the season's over, so again I ask, what's the point of BCS rankings in October? Who cares who's #1 and #2 in the BCS on November 5th? All that matters is who's #1 and #2 in the BCS at the end of the year.
I would think that it would be in the BCS's best interest not to release rankings until the very end of the year. That way, you don't see how one school might leapfrog another in the final week (or how a team doesn't fall out of the top 2 after a late season loss) and all you get is one set definitive ranking. There would be less for the BCS people to defend because they could point to a single set of rankings and be done with it. Given how screwed up the system is, I would think they would welcome that. They wouldn't have to explain anything (or, at least, they would have less to explain).
But I don't grant the BCS people with an overabundance of intelligence, so I'm sure they'll continue to screw up college football every chance they get. A playoff works on every other level of college football, but Division I-A (or the Football Bowl Subdivision, whatever the fuck that means) refuses to give into reason and remains with its head fully shoved up its ass. Its a shame that such a great sports ends with a game determined by nothing more than monkeys throwing poop against a wall*. Still, I can't wait for the season to start. There's nothing like college football. Wahoowa.
[*Note: This would be way better than the BCS.]
Friday, August 1, 2008
Essential Videos 2 - The Abduction
I have the Jackass DVD box set specifically for this scene:
Greatest. Bit. EVER.
Greatest. Bit. EVER.
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