And right there above is one of the keys to their success...Cornerback, Robert Blanton, who has been one of the defense's most consistent players this season, had a hell of a game against Michigan State...Blanton had 6 tackles, 3 for a loss, 1 sack, 3 passes broken up, and an interception her returned 82 yards, deep into Michigan State territory...

Saturday afternoon, in South Bend, the Irish defense finally nutted up, and took control of the game...Safety Harrison Smith was all over the place making plays...And the defensive line looked great...Lead by Freshman Aaron Lynch...Yeah, remember I mentioned him in my season PREVIEW...18 years old, 6'6" 265 lbs. and the kid was putting pressure on MSU Quarterback Kurt Cousins all day long...

he Irish gave up too many yards through the air for my liking, but holding a team to 29 yards on the ground is nice...

The Irish offense got two touchdowns from Cierre Wood, who has been rock solid for them now through 3 games...QB Tommy Rees did not put up flashy numbers like he did the last two weeks, but he has been consistent with turning the ball over...Adding another interception and another fumble to his tally...5 INT's and 3 Fumbles in two and a half games...So he has 6 TD's...5 INT's...and 3 Fumbles...Okay, Irish fans, lets stop acting like he's the greatest thing since Tony Rice...

Then the Special Teams...The Irish got a 89 yard kickoff return from Freshman George Atkinson III...I've been waiting to see this kid, and what a way to get people's attention...But then sure handed punt returner John Goodman fumbled a fair catch at his own 21 yard line...Luckily after that was when Blanton made his pick...

These guys need to seriously work on fielding punts...

I'll be honest, I kept my hopes in check this week...Even when the Irish seemed in control, I waited...After the first two games, I had no reason to be confident...Now I hope the Irish can build on this...But I'm not going to get my hopes up for next weeks game against Pitt...There are still plenty of things that need to get cleaned up...This is a good team, with plenty of talent...They just need to cool it with the brain farts!

Later, The Beeze.

Thoughts from an Island Girl

We have seen a lot of talk about change over the last few years and that change is now making it to college sports.  But before we talk about that, we have also seen the term change bandied about in other areas.   In politics,  Barack Obama was talking about change,  so advertisers followed suit.

And then Dominoes decided to do the change things too.

With Obama's campaign,  it was 'Yes, We Can'.  So Dominoes when it started it's new pizza options, had a slogan,  'Yes, We did.'

Change is a constant and the helmets used by football players clearly indicates this.    

 This was a helmet used by the Green Bay Packers.  It was made of leather and is hardly even remotely like the helmets of today.   And I can imagine there were detractors of the new style helmets.   The newer helmets would prove to be safer in preventing injuries to the head,  but traditionalists may have disagreed.
  Baseball has incorporated changes in their batting helmets because of the safety issue,  so change has happened there also.  As you can see here,  the face mask was added for even more safety.   Notice the plastic top.   I can imagine that some would comment that the face guard would be dangerous because some players might yank on it.   There will always be critics.

Even how fans watched the games have changed.   I find it amusing how TVs have changed.    You guys had knobs?   No remote controls?  Really?   You didn't have cable?  hahaha.. 

Every few years the expressions used by youth change and then confused parents try to copy those fads. One term that has not changed appreciably is the term 'cool',  though other expressions have come and went.    Recently I heard a family member use the expression, 'Really?'  She is over 50 and it is funny to listen to.   All the while expressions continue to change.   My point is,  things will change and this includes the traditional uniforms of bygone years,  to some of the more outlandish,  like at Oregon and Maryland.

Gotta love the gigantic flags on display at the various venues Sunday...this one in Washington

Greetings from the Hoodwood, where the patriotism isn’t limited to one or two day out of the the year!

Lots to discuss this week, then I got to get to work on the picks which will be seen on Friday. But first our national anthem. Hats off, please!

Few people can belt it out like Jim Cornelison, he and Wayne Messmer have done some of the most inspirational anthems that I have ever heard. Ok now lets chat

NFL Showshockers

Leave it to the NFL to turn out a few games that no one saw coming. You are damned liar if you said you saw Ryan Fitzpatrick throwing 4 TD’s against the Chiefs in Arrowhead. Its been decades since Ive seen Arrowhead that quiet. I think most everyone saw the Texans beating the Colts but could a team look so fucking bad getting its ass beat like the Colts did. Gary Kubiak obviously called the dogs off in the second half, cause they could have hung fifty on the hapless Colts. Never has a team needed one player for its psyche more than the Colts need Peyton Manning. The thing that irritates me the most watching that game is being reminded that Kerry Collins had the game of his life against my beloved Vikings in the 2000 NFC title game and has been little more than the vice president of the bum of the month QB club. (Rex Grossman is the president, but more on him in a minute) Collins looked old and slow and if the Colts want to have any kind of chance at being a contender they have to right the ship and fast.

The Ravens and Steelers were supposed to be in a slugfest, problem is the Ravens did all the slugging. It has been a long time since I’ve seen the Steelers so punked out . I was quite annoyed though at listening to Mike & Mike this morning chide the Ravens for running up the score, warning that the Steelers would remember that and it could come back to bite them. What a crock of bullshit. Teams like the Cowboys and Steelers give off this “Be afraid of us” aura and when they run up the score and whomp on hapless opponents, its expected and they lord it out loud how “dominant” that they are. But when they get took back of the woodshed, the wonks cluck their tongues and whine that teams are running up the score and that they should have some respect. No one says shit when the Steelers are running up 51-0 scores or when the Pokes are winning 44-14. If they can dish it out, law of averages will come back around.

The Bengals were supposed to be the punch line to the start of a promising Browns season but instead turned the joke on the Browns by rallying to beat the Browns. Andy Dalton may not survive the season but what he showed early may give Bengal fans some hope.

But the real showshocking rookie was Cam Newton who acted a damn fool in his debut 421 yards 2 TD’s in the air and one rushing. He made some grown ass man throws on Sunday. I was shocked to say the least. He’s still got some awful mechanics and he made some ill-timed throws but Carolina had to be happy with their first pick. Newton is showing a lot of promise. On other side of the field Kevin Kolb made a strong debut for the Cards, their offense will have no trouble scoring points but their defense is paper thin. They were able to get away with it because the Panthers are still well the Panthers. But they wont get away playing defense like they did for very long.  I knocked Rex Grossman but he was quite respectable in the Redskins upset of the Giants…and yes that was an upset. The Giants should be ashamed, they were favored to win easily and Eli Manning just stunk it up. Im still annoyed that I thought the Eli was ready to make a name for himself and be the Manning who was winning games that they  were supposed to win, instead he looked so much like the lost little boy making dumb throws. The Giants are in real danger of fading away from the collective consciousness of the New York football fan. Speaking of New York…

The overratedness of Romo…

Ive been called a hater, but Im just don’t buy into the collective thought of Tony Romo being anymore than a so-so QB. Yeah, yeah I know he had a monster 2007 throwing for over 4200 yards and 36 TD’s and a monster 2009 with over 4400 yards and yeah I know his 95.6 QB rating is outta sight. But he’s no winner.  The man-gina that is Colin Cowherd has an unabashed bromance/man-crush on Romo and vociferously defends him. I think of him as a poor mans Eli Manning, Manning at least has a Super Bowl ring and has won big games. More often than not, Manning will make the dumb head scratcher throw. Romo is the same way but without the backing pedigree of big wins. His interception late in Sunday’s loss to the Jets left many asking “Why???” Romo is living in the large shadow of Troy Aikman, someone Ive never been a fan of but was someone who more often than not could be counted on in the clutch. I cant say that about Tony Romo, gaudy numbers or not, he has not proved to be an elite QB to me. People keep trying to make excuses for him, but the fact remains that he’s not a young buck QB anymore. At 31, he has had too many excuses made for him and why he cant get over the hump as an elite QB. Look at the tape, would Rodgers, Brees or Brady made that dumb throw? I doubt it. Come on you Romo boosters defend your man and his lack of game. I double dog dare you.

Speaking of overrated…Notre Dame’s nightmare

I am not shy about my loathing of Notre Dame and its coach Brian Kelly. Yes, I am bitter that he jilted my alma mater before the biggest game in school history for that self-righteous group of fakes in South Bend. I wont apologize for being gleeful at the fact the Notre Dame is not only 0-2, but blew a 24-7 lead to Michigan and lost 35-31 before a record crowd at the first night kickoff at the Big House. Do I feel sorry for Kelly? Hell, no. He gets what he deserves and the uppity Irish fans who acted insulted that they weren’t a top ten team are now in real danger of being 0-5. They get Michigan State who are a lot better than when they pulled the okey-doke on the Irish last year to knock them off in OT. They then go to Pitt and Purdue before getting a lollipop game against Air Force. If you thought BK’s head was going to pop like an overripe melon in the first two weeks, how do you think he will be if the Irish are 1-4 or 0-5? Notre Dame fans are fickle and will turn fast. Ask Fat Charlie who went from a step from sainthood to finding For Sale signs in his front yard outside of two years. BK will find how easy he had it in Cincinnati real fast and Im enjoying every minute of it.

I Don’t Hate but…that song gets on my nerves

I made a roadie over the weekend to see my alma mater play at Tennessee and for a brief moment, it looked as if my beloved Bearcats were going to stand toe to toe with the Volunteers and slug it out. The jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead behind an electrifying run by Isaiah Pead and despite being caught asleep at the switch on an onside kick after the Vols first touchdown, were very much in the game having rallied smartly to knot the score at 14 at the end of the first. Unfortunately the Vols did most of the punching in the 2^ndand 3^rdquarters and the Bearcats fell 45-23. Tyler Bray shredded the Cats for 405 yards passing and the Vols outscored the Cats 31-9 in the final 3 quarters. The thing that I expected but didn’t figure it would irritate me as much was the almost continous playing of Rocky Top. I mean geez they play that fucking song at every turn. I’ve been to Neyland Stadium for a few games and know that Rocky Top is the schools fight song, but I guess I blocked it out most of the time for the other games cause it seemed like it was on a continual loop. If anyone plays that song anywhere in my vicinity they might get cut…

MLB’s suddenly frantic races

In cities like Detroit, Philly, Phoenix and Milwaukee they are marking time till they book playoff spots. Though the Brewers are quietly hoping this last charge by the Cards is more bothersome for the Braves  in the wild card race than for a NL Central pennant. There are some still tight races. In the AL West the Angels are trying to stay within arms length of the defending AL champ Rangers. They want to make that last three game series in Anaheim be a winner take all showdown for the division crown. Meanwhile the Yankees are trying to shake the Red Sox and Rays, the latter just coming on relentlessly enough to make the Red Sox panic. You usually see Sox Nation panic when they play the Yanks but the Rays have pushed them hard enough where a playoff berth is no longer the foregone conclusion that it was six weeks ago. And don’t think that the Bombers are secretly hoping that the Rays not the Sox get the Wild Card so that they can avoid their nemesis who has owned has a decided 11-4 on them and get the Rays who they have played more evenly this season going 6-5 and having 7 more games to play them. The Red Sox are clearly panicking as they see the Yanks pull away from them and the Rays creep closer. The margin is 3 ½ on both sides. This will be an interesting 3 weeks to be sure

Phat Dap/ Head Slap

Phat Dap

Dap to Alan Moore who kicked an extra point for NAIA Faulker’s 41-19 win over Ave Maria. This wasn’t just some pimply faced walk on living a dream. Moore is a 61 year old grandfather of five. Here’s a real old schooler for you, he made his kick straight on not soccer style which is the norm nowadays. Moore is the oldest player to not only get into a college game but score. The Vietnam vet actually played for Jones College in Mississippi in 1968 before joining the Army. He served his country then worked in construction before retiring  in 2009. He decided to try his hand at kicking after watching his alma mater play last year. Hats off to an old vet still making good kicks.

Head Slap

Head slap goes to Serena Williams, not for her straight set loss to heretofore unknown Samantha Stosur of Australia in the US Open final Sunday but for her needless tantrum at chair ref Eva Asderaki  who cited Williams for a code violation during the early part of the match with Stosur. After ripping what she thought was a winner and yelling “Come on!” to herself, Asderaki awarded Stosur the point ruling that she was reaching for a backhand shot and was distracted. Now was the call a bit suspect? Yes, but Williams melted down, yelling at the chair and throwing insults at Asderaki calling her a hater and telling her to “Don’t look at me.” Now this wasn’t on the level of Williams’ tantrum in the 2009 US Open where she blistered a line judge with a profanity laced tirade after being called for a foot fault in her loss to Kim Clijsters. She got docked $82K for that. Instead she got a minor $2K fine for this outburst. I understand being intense and wanting to win, but Serena just looked like a sore loser. Though it was early in the match, it was clear that the call bothered her enough to rattle her off her game and give the unheralded Stosur enough of an edge to win her first major, something that deserves dap in itself. Serena should know better and really made an ass of herself…no pun intended.   

And Finally your Bandits Football Update!

The Chocolate City Bandits got their 2 time GMFL title defense off and winging with a 114-64 win over the Tourch. Tourch head coach Montez Watson openly bragged that there was a new sheriff in town and the Bandits wer e yesterdays news, but behind 41 points from Drew Bledsoe and 25 points from Kenny Britt, the Bandits were never threatened. “Guess it’s the same old bad guys in Black, beating the pants off the pretenders…old news”

The Butler County Bandits were defeated by Team Butters 81-57 as Wess Welker had 25 points. The Bandits will hopefully bounce back in the HHFL.

As stated earlier, the weeks picks will be posted on Friday and hopefully will be better than last week…until next post fellow sports fans!

Thoughts from an Island Girl

It is really amazing to me just how ignorant and lazy,   a good portion of the media are. They are not really interested in people but in taking advantage of those in a tough situation.    This goes from Michael Vick to the floods in New York,  in the wake of Tropical Storm Lee.   It turns out this less celebrated storm was a slow mover with plenty to say.

So this was not Irene.   It was not a big hurricane,  but a colossal,   game changing event.   Instead of one wayward athlete,  this storm changed lives.   There are no investigations by Congress or crackpots.   There are not truthers,  birthers or salacious gossip to add extra gloss.   In fact,  the media cares little about the outcomes.   They tell people to send donations but this is only upstate New York to them.    No political advantage to be had by pundits and purveyors of doom.    

In sports, it is much the same.   Arkansas,  who has received begrudging respect was not given it's due.   Ryan Mallet and Coach Bobby Petrino put the Razorbacks back on the map.   I even love what they did with helmets,  making the hogs,  Red,  white and Blue.    Nice touch.    But the real story here is that Tyler Wilson picked up the slack as if Mallet was still there.    He and his backup threw for 377 yards against New Mexico State.   Even the running game has come along.

Joe Adams continued to impress,  even though his 75 yard TD reception was called back.  He was a player that had initially committed to USC.  

 When Petrino was signed as coach, he immediately went out to get Mallet to sign with the Hogs after he was to transfer from Michigan and Joe Adams too from USC.  

Coach Petrino knows talent.   Adams was a 4-star recruit but most of those guys you see performing out there are 3-star players.   Those 3-star players look like blue chip players to me and they are because they buy into working hard and erasing the recruiting services comments.  Almost every single time a big player is to commit to a school,  you can pretty be assured they are not coming to the Razorbacks.    So,  as schools like Arkansas and even Wisconsin get a run of good luck and sign a premier quarterback,  it is far from the norm.   In fact,  the Badgers recruiting efforts sign even less talent than the Hogs.     I will break this down very soon,  so everyone can see what I am getting at.  In the meantime,  good luck to the overachievers.    Like Tropical Storm Lee,  they are under appreciated but major stories in themselves.

I am cranking this one out a little late this evening, I just watched (simultaneously) the Arizona Diamondbacks best the San Diego Padres 3-2 and also the Arizona State Sun Devils eke out a 37-30 overtime win over the Missouri Tigers.  The Diamondbacks were in their throwback uniforms that they wore when they defeated the New York Yankees in game seven of the World Series ten years ago.  I much prefer the new Sedona Red and Sonoran Sand colors to the old Teal and Purple that they had back in 2001.  Coincidentally (or maybe not) the Sun Devils were sporting their new all black uniforms tonight, which I thought looked pretty snazzy.  Do you believe that uniforms do not mean much in recruiting high school players?  Think again.  ASU’s recruiting class for 2012 is already at 24 players, and the school reports that many of the kids are signing up because they are excited about the new uniforms.  Go figure.   Attendance was great at both events, 32000 at the baseball game and 73000 in Sun Devil Stadium.  Bully for the home teams. 

Notre Dame is traveling to Ann Arbor tonight to take on Michigan in the first night game to ever be played at Michigan Stadium, which is mind-blowing to me.  How can this be?  Light bulbs have been around for well over 100 years. This fact is even more puzzling than the knowledge that Wrigley Field did not have its first night game until 1988.  To make matters even worse, Michigan will be wearing throwback uniforms from some ugly time in the past and Notre Dame will be wearing new Shamrock Green and Light Gold uniforms with a three leaf clover on the helmets and pants.  They should have made it a four leaf clover, because they are going to need the luck of the Irish to avoid a 0-2 start to this season.

By Monday evening the first week of the NFL season will be in the books and the fans of the 1-0 teams will be flying on a football high and the fans of the 0-1 teams will be seeking advice from their psychiatrists on how to cope with supreme depression.  Yet by the end of the season most of the teams will be close to .500, welcome to the world of football parity.  Sure there will probably be four teams with great records and four with horrible records, but the other 24 will have just about identical 8-8 records.  Whichever teams are out of the playoff race early will surely be tanking it, because at the end of the worst record will be the lottery rainbow of the last ten years, as Andrew Luck from Stanford promises to be the NFL’s next great quarterback.

One of my favorite Internet sites is YouTube, after all I use videos from the site every week in compiling my posts.  Here are a couple of my favorite videos that do not have a sports bent.