Games watched: Western Kentucky-Louisiana Lafayette (Tues); Miami-N.Carolina (Thurs); UCF-Louisville (Fri); South Carolina-Tennessee; Florida-Missouri (flip); UCLA-Stanford (2nd TV); USC-Notre Dame, Florida State-Clemson (2nd TV); Wash St.-Oregon (a little); Utah-Arizona (a little).
I was all ready to write about what an exciting bunch of games we watched on Saturday. Upsets left and right.
And then I ran the math on the P6 game and saw this:
Geez, when I saw all the carnage represented by that red, all I could think of was this scene (start at 1:55):
I thought I was alone in my P6 pain. On Saturday I only had one win (Oregon). UCLA and South Carolina lost on the road, Texas and Nebraska bye'd, and Miami won on Thursday night. But clearly, misery loves company. ("Mizzery" loves winning. More on them in a second.)
Nebrask ... Abide.
Here's the tally: Georgia: -11 and out. Louisville: -10. South Carolina: -9. Texas A&M: -7. LSU: -7. Clemson: -6. Washington: -6 and out. Florida: -3 and out. There's a 100% you have at least one of those teams, because the entire Group "B" quartile lost yesterday. The average score fell this week from 60.3 to 54.3. I can't remember an average six-point drop as long as I've been running this game. Georgia earns the ignominy of being the first Group "A" team to fall out of the Top 25.
While most of those teams deserved their demotions, I must say this "SEC rulez" mentality among the voters is bullshit. I highly doubt Auburn is the 11th best team in the country, just because they beat John "Football" Manziel and his teammates.
As for Mizzou ... wow. I was very wrong when I teased "sadandbritish" that they'd enjoy a one-week stay in the Top 25 with Georgia on deck. All they did was curbstomp the 'Dogs last week and then cruise past Florida yesterday ... all with their backup QB. They might not deserve to be #5, but they have had a nice run. As a mea culpa, here is a somewhat sad and British song from the godfather of sad and British, Stephen Morrissey.
It is a little known fact that MPF004 likes some Smiths and Morrissey. This song was on the "Bona Drag" record that came out while I was in high school. It's also the same record that David Rawlings and Ryan Adams argued about. Somebody out there knows what I'm talking about.
Undefeated watch: Here's what happened to last week's list of 14: American: Louisville (lost to Central Florida). Houston (lost to BYU). ACC: Florida State, Clemson (lost to FSU) Miami. FSU and Miami will play on Nov. 2. Big Ten: Ohio State. Big XII: Texas Tech and Baylor. They play on Nov. 16. Mountain West: Fresno State. Mid-American: Northern Illinois. SEC: Missouri (still!) and Alabama. They would play each other in the conference championship game. Pac 12: Oregon and UCLA (lost to Stanford).
Four down, so the new total is 10.
Best week: Not many options here. "Prince of the Potty" and and Boots were up +6. You know what, I'm just going to go ahead and call out the other players in positive territory: "Will.i.am" +4, "Stanzi City Chiefs" +1. That's it. If your name isn't listed, you either pushed or lost ground.
Enough jibber jabber, who's winning? You would think that with all that losing going on, that maybe we'd have a shakeup at the top. Somebody new has to have that 103 score we saw above. Right? Right .... ?
Nope. "Dirty Diapers" had enough winners to stay in first. The top two stay the same, with some minor movement below them. The only two players with Missouri move into the Top Ten.
Top kitty: Tigger, in 9th Top child: "Lightning McQueen" in 10th. Top dog: "Quarter Dog" down at 15th. I'm in 12th, claiming the household lead for the first time all season.
Games watched: Va. Tech-Ga. Tech (Thurs); Utah St.-San Jose St. (Fri); Ohio State-Wisconsin (4th quarter). Radio: A&M-Arkansas.
I spent Saturday afternoon in the 82-degree heat of Notre Dame Stadium. The game was over before it barely started. After an incompletion and a three-yard run by GAIII to open the game, here were the next two plays from scrimmage:
3-7 N28 REES pass intercepted by Nelson, Corey at the ND24, Nelson, Corey return 24 yard to the ND0, TOUCHDOWN.
--------------- 3 plays, 3 yards, TOP 00:49 ---------------
Hunnicutt, Mike kick attempt good.
========================
OKLAHOMA 7, NOTRE DAME 0
========================
Hodgson, Nick kickoff 60 yards to the ND5, ATKINSON, G. return 29 yards to the ND34 (Colvin, Aaron).
1-10 N34 REES pass intercepted by Shannon, Frank at the ND49, Shannon, Frank return 17 yards to the ND32, out-of-bounds.
--------------- 1 plays, 0 yards, TOP 00:21 ---------------
Four plays later, Oklahoma scored again to make it 14-0. Less than three minutes had expired.
For the final 57 minutes, Notre Dame played Okahoma to a draw. But they never got closer than six points, and it never really felt like the Irish were in the game, because of those two picks by Tommy Turnover.
I'll only say one more thing about this game. I haven't had a ton of time to spend on dissecting Notre Dame football this season (have a busy job and being a dad will do that). But I apparently knew enough to call plays based on formation. For example, on one play I saw WR Daniel Smith come in. I said to TM, "it's gonna be a run." And it was, because Daniel Smith doesn't catch passes, he only blocks. After the play, I said to TM, "if I knew that, you know damn well Bob Stoops knew that." Later on, they brought in running QB Andrew Hendrix and a tight end on the left side. No surprise: ND ran to the left. They play went nowhere.
Notre Dame lost only once in 2012 (and that was in January 2013), to the Nick Saban juggernaut. In five games of September, they lost twice. At least Iowa beat Minnesota and kept Floyd. The day wasn't a total loss.
The poll: Notre Dame and Wisconsin out. Arizona State and Maryland in. Oklahoma and LSU down, Georgia up. No major moves.
Best week: it was "Dirty Diapers." Who, if you are paying attention, is in first place.
Enough jibber jabber, who's winning? There's no suspense here:
Not only did "Dirty Diapers" not lose (five wins and a bye) but he had Oklahoma which bumped him up seven points, widening his lead in the game. It's time we all start rooting against Texas A&M (shouldn't be too hard), Florida State (ditto) and Oklahoma if we want any drama in this year's game. (Of course, "Sidney" and "let's do this thing" dominated the first half of last year's game, and we know how that ended...)
Next week: Michigan-Northwestern will have a lot of interest from Pick Sixers (28 total picks). K-State vs. Oklahoma State is it's own special cripple fight. TCU-Oklahoma is a Group D fight that should shake up the poll. Washington at Stanford should be a great game.
I'll be in Dallas, feeling a lot more pessimistic about Notre Dame's chances against the now-ranked Sun Devils. Wish me luck.
Games Watched: Sacramento St. at Arizona St. (til I got bored), Wake Forest at Boston College; UCF at FIU (look in), Florida vs. Miami (2nd TV), Iowa vs. Southwest Missouri St., Bowling Green vs. Kent St. (look in), Georgia-South Carolina, Oklahoma-West Va (2nd TV), Michigan-Notre Dame, Texas-BYU (2nd TV), USC-Washington State (intermittent).
It was a bit of a rough week. The hometown high school lost on a field goal in the fourth quarter. Iowa only scored 7 points on a I-AA school in the first half. Notre Dame lost badly. And two of my Pick Sixers tanked on national TV.
Let's start with a stat. Last year in the regular season, Notre Dame gave up 0, 3, 3, 6, 6, and 10 in its six best defensive efforts. That's 28 points. Last night in the horror show up in Ann Arbor, the defense gave up 41 points. Let's move on.
In the poll: A lot of people had the teams that bit it: Notre Dame and South Carolina and to a lesser extent Texas and Florida. I had two of 'em. So the average score went down, from 68 to 66. Oklahoma beat a bad West Virginia team by single digits, at home, and Oklahoma moves up? Did any voter actually watch that game?
Welcome: Miami, Mississippi State. Adding the 'Canes takes the sting off of losing Texas. And, the balance of power is complete in the What Ever State Mississippi Is Called State.
Adios: Texas, USC. Boy that 2005 championship game was a long time ago, wasn't it? In Week 1 we lost the first Group E (Oregon State) and Group D (Boise). Now Texas has the honor of being the first Group C to depart.
Best Week: "The A Team" and "Anna" used Michigan to gain nine points this week. I hope you feel dirty.
Enough jibber jabber, who's winning? Speaking of dirty ...
The Pick Six leadership stays in the suburbs of Des Moines for a second week. "No F'n Clue" hands the temporary crown to her husband, "Dirty Diapers." Look for a new champ next week, as Dirty Diapers has both Alabama and A&M, who play each other on Saturday.
Man, what a few weeks it's been. Since I started prepping the Pick Six, all this happened:
* interviewed for a new job with two companies
* accepted a new job
* got laid off (yes, in that order)
* went to Buffalo and Cleveland
* started the new job
* saw Bruuuuce live in concert
* bought a new car
* went to a trade show
Somewhere in there, I found time to make my picks. Now normally, I put a ton of effort into my picks. As the host of the Pick Six, I like to be knowledgeable about teams and players, to make a respectable showing in the standings. Now I don't know if it's being a dad, or all of the stuff above, or the combination of both, but I didn't post my traditional "picks explained" on the opening night of Week 1. Well as they say, better late than never: here are my picks, explained with commentary I wrote before the season but never posted, along with some new analysis based on the first few weeks of the season.
Group A: LSU. Even though Southern Cal is the best team on paper, they still have the 75-scholarship limit. Injuries, when not if they happen, will test their depth. Likewise, I do think Oklahoma has a great chance at the championship game, but any stumble will cost them, without a conference championship game to redeem themselves. Hearing that a redshirt freshman beat out sophomore Brian Bennett for QB wipes out any trust I had in Oregon. Repeating is tough any year, but moreso with Alabama's losses to graduation/eligibility. Plus there's that SEC schedule that includes a trip to LSU. Upon further review: Bama seemed just fine destroying Michigan and Arkansas. LSU and Oregon haven't been tested yet. Southern Cal lost at Stanford tonight.
Group B: Four teams, really, in this grouping to choose from. Usually, you don't see three teams from the same conference, but that's what we've got here. Can't see Florida State improving on that #7 ranking unless they win a BCS bowl. Knile Davis returns at Arkansas, but with all the turmoil around Bobby Petrino and John L. "Slappy" Smith taking over, do you really expect big things?
That leaves Georgia and South Carolina to choose from. Since I've got LSU in Group A from the SEC West and a promising nominee Group E from the SEC East, I'm going to pass on Georgia given the loss of RB Crowell. Until I've got a reason to go against them, I guess I'll stay with South Carolina. Not that I love picking Connor Shaw and the Gamecocks, as I doubt they can repeat last year's success, but that's what I've got.
(I always thought of it as "That School Up North," but at any rate, Woody Hayes acolytes will hopefully appreciate what I did there.)
So this is my flashpoint. Yes, that makes two SEC teams in the top two picks. For me it boils down to, is Florida State really that good? I've rode them to mediocrity the last two years, I'm trying something else. Upon further review: Arkansas is indeed bad, with or without Davis (mostly because they are "with" Slappy). Yes, Florida State appears to be that good, and thus my logic is sunk.
Group C:Wisconsin. Damn good team, will probably win the Big Ten. Michigan State lost all their offensive firepower, Texas hasn't found the magic yet, West Virginia moves to a new conference, and even if I liked Clemson, which I don't, they lost their bowl 70-33. Seventy! Upon further review: Wisconsin strugged with UNI, lost to Oregon State, and barely beat Utah State at home. Ouch. Sparty lost at home to ND; Texas and WVU are so far so good.
Group D: With Florida State out of the "B" spot, I elevated Virginia Tech as my ACC champion. I don't think Nebraska or Ohio State can unseat Wisconsin, and TCU is in a new conference. Oklahoma State was my pick here until I read about all the offense they lose. Upon further review: Avoiding Okie State was a good idea. Choosing Va. Tech over FSU was not. Ohio State looks like the real deal thus far. I like Braxton Miller's improvement under the tutelage of Meyer.
Group E: I'm unimpressed with this batch so I'm going with Florida which yes, that makes three SEC teams. It's highly risky, I admit. I've already got two guaranteed losses (S.Car @ LSU and S.Car @ Florida) plus a potential conference championship game of LSU vs the East winner. But Stanford no longer has Harbaugh or Luck, Kansas State is the sixth best team in a 10-team conference; how much higher can they climb? Boise State will recede into a footnote, and Louisville won't win the Big East. Upon further review: As for K-State, they are up to 15th in the country, so maybe they can actually improve. Stanford beat No. 2 Southern Cal tonight. Boise lost in week 1 to Sparty, and may or may not return to the poll. How the hell would I know who will or won't win the Big East?
Group F: For the first time in a while, both Iowa and Notre Dame were legitimate options for a "F" pick. But Notre Dame has that killer schedule and is at basically USC-level of scholarships after a wave of attrition. Iowa doesn't have a running back, although a very likely 5-0 start makes them a tempting pick. But I poked around the edges of the Phil Steele and found a team that lost a lot of close games, has a senior quarterback, and a coach with a few years under his belt.
Good thing we're talking college football and not geography.
South Florida is underlooked in the Big East, and with B.J. Daniels at the helm, they have the potential to rise up in their conference and into the polls.
Upon further review: Iowa never got off to that 5-0 start. South Florida lost on Thursday, at home. Home teams are NEVER supposed to lose that Thursday game. ND is 3-0 after beating Sparty in East Lansing tonight.
In conclusion, if I could trade FSU for Va. Tech as my leading ACC team, I'd make that trade. Florida is looking nice out of the gate, sitting at 2-0 in the conference after Week 3. As we all know it's a long season, but I've already got buyer's remorse.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- Citing the general downturn in the nation's reading comprehension, the U.S. Supreme Court announced that it would replace its written interpretations of law with captioned photos posted on the Internet.
Supreme Court rulings are often considered the most important texts produced by the country's judiciary system, with observations and precedents that will resonate down through the generations. The photos, known as "LOLcats," are best known for expressing a humorous thought in a single photo and brief text.
The most anticipated case of the current term, the review of the 2010 healthcare act, is expected to be the first ruling issued as a LOLcat. The hearings were in late March, but most court observers now believe the wait for a ruling, coming in late June, was not to write the opinion but to find the perfect photo of a hospital, doctor's office or ambulance.
Dred Scott v. Sandford, 1857.
Legal scholars and observers were split on the court's new direction.
"On the one hand, it creates a new realm of expression and precedent for judicial thought," said Carl Winterborough, the Harold K. Marr Distinguished Professor of Law at Georgetown University. "On the hand, using LOLcats? Lol, whatevs."
Miranda v. Arizona, 1966.
"Citizens used to discuss with each other the impact that Supreme Court rulings had in their lives," noted Deena Bartz, reporter for the Washington Post who covers the Court. "But in an age of reality TV, Twitter and immediate hyper-reaction, this seems like a logical conclusion. Besides, the online judicial commentariat, the so-called 'SCOTUS-bloggers,' will end up making LOLcats about the opinions anyway. The Court is just cutting out the middleman."
Others felt the move had great potential.
"This is fantastic," said Juan Gonzalez, owner of the ScotusRules.com fanblog. "No more tedious reading through dozens of pages of yammering text, this case or that case, this law or that squiggle symbol. Just a good ol' straightforward rendering of constitutionality, with pictures and bad spelling. I hope they use lots of kittens."
Roe v. Wade, 1973.
A poll of current law students showed that 92% favored the change, replying via text message that the visual-based issuances would be "OMG gr8 yesss". However, the recently retired John Paul Stevens was said to be weeping softly in his home, upon hearing the news.
Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, 2010.
Look, I had a good week in the Pick Six, there's no denying that. I had four wins and a bye (Utah lost again, falling to 0-3 in conference. I have written them off; they will be a cap on any future gains I make.) Alabama won big, Florida State won big, Michigan State won an exciting and close prime-time game.
But my "E" team, which was supposed to get crushed by the resurgent Irish, throroughly dominated that game, cruising to a 31-17 win that wasn't even that close.
So yeah, I gained some points. I went from tied for 41st to tied for 13th, one of the largest one-week jumps of the year. I'm now leading my household ("The F Bomb" is just four points and four slots behind me). But it's Monday morning and I'm still kinda grumpy.
In the poll: The biggest winner was Sparty, who gave Wisconsin a tough fight in Bucky's first true road game. It came down to the final play:
Because of that, Michigan State (+7) climbs into the Top Ten at No. 9.On the other side: losing to Syracuse is frowned upon by AP voters, even if Cuse is at home, even if it's a Friday night. So West Virginia takes it on the chin with a big ol' -14. Others getting skunked were Wisconsin -8, who were on the wrong end of MSU's long bomb; Oklahoma -8, losers at home to then-unranked Texas Tech; and Auburn -7, who couldn't hang with LSU.
Most Improved of the Week:
Somewhere between Dayton and Springfield (if I remember correctly, which if I didn't someone will correct me) is the town of Sidney or Sydney Ohio. With a gain of +15, "Sidney" had the best week, on the backs of Stanford, Sparty and Southern Cal. Second place (+12 on the week) was a tie between "Tressel's Tats" (broad-based gains of Stanford, Arkansas, Georgia, Penn State) and MPF004 (Sparty, Southern Cal).
Enough jibber jabber, who's winning?
This is Syndey (or Sidney) Barstow (or Bristow or Bristol) from the ABC TV show "Alias." Which I have now misspelled as "Alais" at least twice now. Notre Dame loses and I can't type or spell. Between the map and the spy chick I'm sure I got it right at least once, because "Sidney" moves into the lead with 81 points. The standings are here.
Like you, we're just biding our time until the Bama-LSU showdown next week. Let's hope a win against Navy helps to heal these wounds.
After starting the season with a Top 10 national ranking, the Iowa Hawkeyes limped to a 7-5 record Saturday, losing to the woeful Minnesota Gophers (more like “WOE-fers”) 27-24.
MPF004:Lee, thanks for taking time to talk with us today.
Elia: Thanks MPF, it’s great to be here.
MPF004:Let’s talk with the disappointment of these last few losses. Iowa fans are really feeling gut-punched.
Elia: It's unbelievable. It really is. It's a disheartening fuckin' situation we're in right now. Anybody who was associated with the Hawkeye organization 10 years ago that came back and sees the multitude of progress that's been made will understand that if they're football people, that 7 and 5 doesn't negate all that work.
MPF004:‘Disheartening’ is a good word for it, I guess. Where would you put the blame? I don’t think anyone is calling for Ferentz to resign or anything, but these losses do point to an inability to make adjustments in close games. Does the coaching staff deserve that criticism?
Elia: Everybody associated with this fuckin’ organization have been winners their whole fuckin' life. Everybody. And the fuckin’ credit is not given in that respect. The fuckin’ changes that have happened in the Hawkeye organization are multifold.
MPF004:If not the coaches then, is it on the players?
Elia: What I'm tryin' to say is don't rip them fuckin' guys out there. But don't rip them fuckin' guys 'cause they're givin' everything they can give. And right now they’re trying to do more than God gave them, and that’s why we make the simple mistakes. That’s exactly why.
MPF004:I understand these are just college kids, yes. But is there hope for the future? Do you see the 2011 team getting better?
Elia: Once we hit that fuckin’ groove, it will flow. And it will flow. The talent's there. I don't know how to make it any clearer to you. I'm frustrated. I'll guarantee you I'm frustrated. It'd be different if I walked in this room every day and saw a bunch of guys that didn't give a shit. They give a shit. And it's a tough Big Ten schedule. It's a tough Big Ten period.
MPF004:Well if it’s not the players or coaches, then what do you make of this collapse? Was this always a 7-5 team, and the fans’ expectations were just too high?
Elia: We got all these so-called fuckin' fans that come out here and say they're Hawk fans that are supposed to be behind you, rippin' every fuckin' thing you do. I'll tell you one fuckin' thing, I hope we get fuckin' hotter than shit, just to stuff it up them fuckin' people that show up every fuckin' day, because if they're the real Hawkeye fuckin' fans, they can kiss my fuckin' ass right downtown and PRINT IT.
They're really, really behind you around here...my fuckin' ass. What the fuck am I supposed to do, go out there and let the fuckin' players get destroyed and be quiet about it? For the fuckin' nickel-dime people that turn up? The motherfuckers don't even work. That's why they're out at the fuckin' game. They oughta go out and get a fuckin' job and find out what it's like to go out and go out and earn a fuckin' living.
Rip them motherfuckers. Rip them fuckin' cocksuckers like the fuckin' players. We got guys bustin' their fuckin' ass, and them fuckin' people boo. They talk about the great fuckin' support the players get around here. I haven't seen it this fuckin' year.
MPF004:Hey Lee, let me just remind you that Iowa plays on Saturday. Most people have that day off work. Getting back to the on-field performance: every single loss came down to Iowa giving up the lead in the fourth quarter. What happened in those crucial drives?
Elia: Don’t ask me about any specific play, I won’t answer it. I’m not going to talk about specific fuckin’ plays. The name of the game is get the fuckin’ job done. Every time we lose a fuckin’ close game, it’s magnified: why did this Stanzi throw that pass, or and that guy drop a pass, or this guy fumble… that’s college football fellas. That’s going to happen, that’s how touchdowns are scored. That’s how the fuckin’ balance goes cock-eyed. That’s the difference between victory and defeat. All these motherfuckin’ editorials about Stanzi and Clayborn and fuckin’ … ah … the “here we go again” and all that shit, it's sickening.
MPF004:Well that about sums it up. Thank you, Lee Elia, for coming onto the blog today.
As a Big Ten fan, you have a complicated relationship with the other conference teams. Some programs/coaches you respect (Penn State, Michigan State until the handling of the Chris L. Rucker situation). Some are legit border rivalries (Minny, Wisky, soon to be Nebraska). Some, to quote Craig Finn, "I couldn't find the hate and I couldn't find the fear" (Indiana, Purdue). Some you just flat out hate 24/7/365.
And then there's Northwestern.
The nerds in purple used to be a reliable "W" on the schedule (season series is a comfortable 45-22-3 lead). During my formative years of watching Hawkeye football, we won 14 straight. And when you live in Chicago, it's so easy to take the Red/Purple up to that dinky little high school stadium of theirs. Back in the good ol' days (2001), I went to a game with Rich and Kary (Hawkeye fans from the hometown) and we won 59-16. We spent the first half of the game actively watching and cheering, and the second half talking, occasionally being interrupted by oh hey look we scored another touchdown. It was fun, and easy to make fun of them as the school we kept in the Big Ten to keep the conference's grades up.
And then Fitzgerald happened.
In the four years he's been coach, he's beaten Iowa three times. And it's not like he's ever had the better team:
In 2009, we were 9-0, ranked No. 8 in the country, high off that amazing win over Indiana, and then Corey Wooton crunched Ricky Stanzi's ankle, and it all went to hell. The pain is still strong, and fuels my motivation to win on Saturday. We finished 11-2 and won the Orange Bowl; they finished 8-5.
In 2008, Shonn Greene had his usual 100-yard game but Iowa had turnover-itis and lost by 5 points. We finished 9-4 and won the Outback Bowl; they were 9-4 and lost their lesser bowl.
In 2006 we were in the middle of a meltdown season, and they came into our house and beat us by two touchdowns. We finished 6-6 and went to a bowl we frankly didn't deserve; they finished 4-8.
Why did this happen? Mostly, because Fitzgerald Hates Iowa. He will never say as much in public, of course, but Hawkeye State aka Patrick Vint explains in this essay that it dates back to his playing days. And while we must acknowledge he has brought the program to Barnett-era levels of achievement, he has a particular hard-on for Iowa, and motivates his team to beat Iowa unlike any other opponent out there.
Basically: they are a smarter, in-conference version of Iowa State. Their whole fucking season revolves around beating Iowa. Despite inferior talent and lesser prestige, they see us as the only metric for their program.
As if the coach wasn't bad enough, NU fans are the nouveau-riche of college football, refusing to acknowledge anything that happened before 1995 (note to NU fans: you sucked). They never fill up that tiny stadium unless Ohio State, Michigan State or Iowa comes to town.They are the hammer and sickle to our Stars and Stripes, the ruble to our dollar. They are dirty communists (elitist, Gucci-wearing commies).
All of which is a way of saying WE'RE GOING STREAKING IN THE QUAD tailgating on enemy turf before the Iowa-justNorthwestern game Saturday. We've got a couple things in our favor. For starters, TM will be at the game, and Iowa is undefeated when she's in attendance.
TM was there. Probably took this picture.
For another, Ricky Stanzi is a senior and has cut down on the Stanziballs. Adam Robinson is back after missing last week with an injury. We need this game to stay in the Big Ten conference championship conversation. And TMMPF is hosting the pregame party.
So if you're anywhere in the Central Time Zone, you're invited to our tailgate Saturday morning. Reach out to any either co-author for contact info. Say "Fitzgerald is a dirty commie bastard" and drink free all morning, on me. The Hawkeyes, and America, will thank you.
You'll figure out why in a minute. Or maybe you already got it figured out.
And with that, here's your Pick Six update.
Big winners: Mizzou got a huge win over over No. 3 Oklahoma, and jumped ahead accordingly. Sadandbritish, as the only player with Mizzou, was poised to take advantange of this, except she also has Oklahoma. Net gain for Sabandbritish: +1.
Big losers: Everyone with the Sooners, Iowa and LSU. All three lost nationally televised games. Larry Sparks had both Oklahoma and LSU, so as mentioned above, he took a hit. Not even Wisconsin's jump could offset those losses. Mo also had the Sooner-Tiger combo, but without any gainers. Both guys dropped 11 points. If you makes any feel any better, last week's average score was 67.5, and 63.5 this week, so collectively, we all kinda bit it.
Wait, what was that about last week's leader? Yeah, Larry took a big hit, opening the door for you-know-who:
Larry's one point lead became a commanding 16-point lead for Mr. Q. Go ahead, take a look at the Top 4 ranked teams: Oregon, Boise, Auburn, TCU. Those four share all the No.1 votes cast in the AP Poll ... and yeah, that's two-thirds of the cat's pickset.
As always, the numbers are here. Check out your standings after eight weeks of football.
Other things to note: I predicted that my vanity would kick me in the cosmic ass. And yeah, sure enough, it did. You would think I would have learned my lesson the first time. You know, there’s an old saying in Tennessee——I know it’s in Texas, probably in Tennessee——that says, fool me once, shame on, shame on you. Fool me, you can’t get fooled again.
So no more pick 'em talk for me, only Pick Six.
Looking ahead: Sadandbritish (Mizzou) faces off against all those Huskers: Du, Fan and Larry. Iowa/Michigan State will be watched closely throughout the Midwest, and also by the six players with the Hawkeyes. Florida and Georgia face off in the World's Largest Cocktail Party, probably the most entertaining matchup of non-ranked teams. Oregon should get a strong test from Southern Cal. Meanwhile, everyone with Boise sits back and watches the points roll in. (You all should feel dirty.)
And if you can't wait til Saturday, remember that this week you've got football on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Enjoy the games everyone!
This was a full weekend, but not of college football. So here's an update heavy on the Pick Sixing impact, and light on the national analysis.
And let me just add a clarification: I might have made it sound last week that Ohio does not have technology. That is not true. Ohio has running water, landline telephones and cable TV. They even got the Internets in the Great Internet Boom of the 1990s. I just was at an obligation in a specific place without TV or radio.
Sorry, Ohio.
Big droppers: Lots of Husker fans were hurt by Nebraska laying an egg against Texas. Other teams to bite it, and take the accompanying hit: Ohio State an unreasonable -10, South Carolina -9, Arkansas -9, Florida -4 and out of the poll.
Big winners: Wisconsin, obviously, for toppling #1 Ohio State. Way to go for the six of you. Also, three of the four new entrants to this week's poll are Pick Sixers who started the season ranked. And the fourth, would you believe it, is a Pick Sixth from a dog. A dog picked Mississippi State, because, I assume, they are the Bulldogs. A team picked LAST in the SEC West by Phil Steele. Not that I'm bitter. (On a totally unrelated note, thanks for nothing UConn.)
Enough jibber jabber, is that cat still winning? As you're painfully aware, a housecat has been leading the game almost from the beginning. It's enough to make any person or panda ask "what the fuck."
No! I don't have a picture of entrant "Larry Sparks," at least not with his permission (yet). Back in the late 1990s, Larry and I walked on the playing field of Memorial Stadium in Lincoln. I'd love to tell you we were starting players on the team, but in reality we were just visiting town and discovered to our luck that the stadium was unlocked. Not sure where those pictures are today, but just envision Larry on the 50-yard line, cause he's your leader at the halfway point.
He rode the success of Wisky and Utah (his Pick Sixth, now ranked 9th) to jump 17 points and into first place. Meanwhile, the cat paid for the South Carolina and Arkansas losses, dropping 14 points and into second. Your "top dog" is still Piece of Cheese, and probably will be all year, so no more canine updates unless warranted.
And just in case he never sees first place this season, here is a pic of last week's human leader:
Finley. There, you finally made my blog. Now send a pic of Mitzu please.
Okay, one piece of analysis. Coming into the Iowa-Michigan game, the make-or-break matchup seemed to be Iowa's stiff defense (ranked fourth nationally) against Michigan's runaway train offense (ranked third nationally). Iowa was allowing 242.2 yards per game; Meech gaining 533.7 per game.
Their grammar sucks like their defense.
By contrast, Iowa's offense gained 426.4ypg, good for 33rd nationally, and the sieve masquerading as a Big Ten defense allowed 450.7 per game, 112th best in the nation. Against Big Ten-caliber offenses, the sieve gave up 535 (Notre Dame), 568 (Indiana) and 536 yards (Little Brother, aka Mitten State). So you knew Iowa would get their yards. But would Michigan get theirs?
Spelling sucks too.
Short answer: yes. Follow those links today and you'll see the Mitten actually jumped up to third against that vaunted Hawkeye defense. After facing the Denard Robinson (and Tate Forcier) Experience, Iowa's D dropped to 13th. So what does all that mean? When a poorly coached team makes numerous mental and physical mistakes, statistics don't mean spit.
What happened with your favorite teams this weekend? Of note in the Pick Six universe:
Oklahoma curb-stomped Florida State, knocking them out of the poll. In other bad news for the ACC, Georgia Tech lost to no-longer-good Kansas, and Virginia Tech lost at home. To James Madison. Who in addition to being dead since 1836, doesn't even play I-A (highest level) football.
Georgia looked offensively inept against South Carolina, and paid for it with their four points. This is what happens when you play the only early game worth a damn on the biggest Saturday of September: everyone sees you suck.
Conversely, South Carolina got an unnecessarily large bump (12 spots/points) for that win over UGa (pronounced "Uggg-uhhh" after how they played).
Other inexplicable jumpers: Auburn for barely beating hapless Mississippi State; LSU for beating the worst team in the SEC; Utah for beating UNLV, who now has two 20+ point losses on the season.
About the only jump that made any damn sense was Oklahoma, who actually beat a ranked opponent.
The other new entries: welcome to Houston, Oregon State, The Hated Mitten, and the Arizona Wildcats, making Saturday's Iowa game the ONLY matchup of ranked teams on the weekend. (Of course ESPN's Gameday will be at Auburn as they face perenial chokers Clemson.)
Enough jibber jabber. Who's winning?
Believe it or not folks, a cat has taken the lead with a whopping 103 points. It's only Week 2, but the peace-loving kitty (his pick rationale will be explained later this season) has Boise, TCU and Oregon, and they're all top 5 this week. The cherry on top is his Arkansas/Auburn/South Carolina combo: that Hillbilly Alley trio are all No. 16 or higher.
If you're wondering about the highest-ranked human being: it's Finley wtih 94 points, Mo and Larry Sparks with 82 points, and at 81 is Bob Mould's old band. No, not Sugar. I'm still having trouble with formatting and Googledocs, but you can see the full spreadsheet here.
Week 3: What to Watch For. Other than me in the bright gold "gameday" shirt at Arizona Stadium? Not much. If your team loses points, you should be worried big-time. After a huge slate last week, no one (besides Iowa and Arizona) faces much of a challenge (unless you believe Georgia will scare Arkansas, and as of about 11:30 am last Saturday, you should not). Expect these scores to hold steady for one more week.
Finally, one piece of house-keeping: Frrrr was denied 1 point for Stanford last week due to a spreadsheet error. That has been corrected, and just in time, too, because Stanford is up to No. 19 (7 points) and that's too much to miss.
I'm going to Arizona this weekend for the Hawkeye game. Hope I don't get thrown in jail (again).
Looking back on it, it's funny to see how much disdain there was, with only one season (and one NCAA investigation) under his belt. If anything, that disgust-bordering-on-hate has grown, because when I see him, all I see is a white hillbilly version of Tyrone Willingham: an outsider who JUST FUCKING DOESN'T GET IT, the "it" in this case being the tradition and history of the program he's running right into the ground. (Not that I mind terribly. But they should fail with one of their own, like ND did with Charlie.)
Anyway, to hell with him. I hope he goes 0-12. (Yes, even Massachusetts, Bowling Green and Indiana.)
New York Times, you used to be a shining light in journalism. A model of success that everyone in the industry looked up to. I don't know what's happened to you in the last few years: first Jayson Blair, then this brain fart that you managed to make twice.
Yeah, I know I've been quiet for a while. Yeah, the reason is mostly this and I definitely owe you some updates. I'm dippin' my toe back into the Internets with this piece here. Enjoy.
For our reader(s) outside Chicago, the Red Eye is a free daily newspaper aimed at stupid people. Now, that's not how they describe it: the paper's mission statement says it reaches "young, urban professionals who are short on time and long on disposable income."
To make sure the target audience doesn't have to think too hard, the articles are nice and short, mostly about bars or celebrities, with a minimum of actual news (economy, oil spill, etc). They don't use big words, and when they talk to celebrities, they don't pry too deep.
If there is anything hard about interviewing Harrison Ford, it’s that the actor has amassed such a varied filmography of legendary highs (“Star Wars,” “Indiana Jones”), genre classics (“Blade Runner,” “The Fugitive”) and some pretty big stinkers (“Firewall”). There are simply too many questions to ask in a 15-minute window.
And this barn-burner of a first question:
Q: Let’s say someone tries to mug you on the street. You’ve got a light saber in one pocket and a whip in the other. Which do you go for?
A: [quiet laugh] I don’t know where to go with that. I think I would run away. As usual.
Q: What do you mean as usual?
A: Well, I mean I’m reaching deep into the depths of my soul and I’m telling you that I’m not playing a guy with a whip or a light saber if somebody’s trying to mug me on the street. It’s not a character; it’s just self-defense. Well, the character choice I would be making is ... You’re asking me, and I would tell you I would run away.
And yet, the Red Eye Guy came back to the issue later. Luckily, Ford was ready.
Q: You have a reputation of being a private guy. Why?
A: Because I am.
Q: Has anyone asked you anything that totally crossed the line?
A: Yeah.
Q: What’s the last thing?
A: Uh, it had something to do with a light saber and a whip.
And yet, if presented with intelligent questions, Ford is more than happy to offer intelligent responses. Tasha Robinson of The Onion's A.V. Club managed to both broach the issue of touchy interviews, and conduct a thoroughly readable Q-and-A.
The first exchange was:
The A.V. Club: You have a reputation for hating doing publicity interviews. Does having that out front help? Do you think it makes people approach you any differently?
Harrison Ford: I didn’t know that I had that reputation. I think that was something that—obviously you’ve done your research, but I think I was characterized that way early on in my career, and it stuck. I don’t mind doing interviews. I don’t mind answering thoughtful questions. But I’m not thrilled about answering questions like “If you were being mugged, and you had a lightsaber in one pocket and a whip in the other, which would you use?”
That line alone makes up for the over-the-top bellowing of "I ALREADY WORK AROUND THE CLOCK!" (which unfortunately, did not take off as a catchphrase quite like I'd hoped.)
This week it's all about Saturday's ND game. An abbreviated W3R/W4P appears below.
This had to be the worst win I've ever experienced. I just felt nervous and pessimistic the entire second half, and did not enjoy the victory at all (okay, a tiny bit). I was so negative the second half because Weis teams don't have a record of comebacks, or winning the fourth quarter. I didn't have any faith that we could outscore them with a gimpy QB (it was evident that Clausen was hurt, plus he sat out the last play of the first half) and without our best receiver (the Floyd rumors were rumbling through the stands at that point). I'll do an analysis if I get the time, but basically: not good at halftime adjustments, not good at comebacks.
The scene: Saturday started great, with a fun tailgate hosted by my friend Steve and his family. Although it was 50-50 ND and MSU fans at the tailgate, the mood was lively and congenial. But once inside the stadium, I found myself seated next to a loud meathead MSU fan. Normally I have nothing against Spartans, but this guy was obnoxious and swinging his elbows and screaming at the smallest things. It put a damper on my experience. Moving on the game.
The game: In 2005 TM and I got tickets to ND vs. Brigham Young, which featured a 3-3-5 defense (means fewer guys up close to the line of scrimmage.) Offensive Genius and Head Coach-in-Training Charlie Weis had a great gameplan for taking advantage of that: the Irish lined up in 4-and-5-wide sets, and Brady Quinn chucked short, lateral passes all over the field. It got boring after a while, but it picked up six or seven yards per play, and you do that often enough, you get in the end zone.
I made a reference to that game at Steve's tailgate. But I didn't realize that offense was exactly what the Irish would come out in against MSU.
It started out great. On ND's second play from scrimmage, Clausen stepped up in the pocket and threw to Kyle Rudolph standing along on the left sideline. "Oh he's a little bit wide open!" I cried with understatement, as Rudolph rambled 52 yards. Two plays later, Armando Allen took a direct snap and went up the gut for a TD. After an MSU field goal, we marched down the field again ending with a TD pass to Michael Floyd. It was looking like an easy afternoon. (Clausen ended that quarter 9-for-9, with the other plays being the Allen Wildcat TD and two QB scrambles out of the 4-or-5-wide set. We never needed third down the whole quarter.)
The second quarter got ugly. After going for it on 4th-and-1 (with Allen getting a generous spot), ND went like this: Tate rush out of the Wildcat, minus-1. 2nd-11: False start on Sam Young. 2nd-16: Holding penalty on Trevor Robinson. 2nd-25: Clausen sacked, injured, walks off. 3rd-35: Crist dump off to Hughes. 4th-way too far: punt. It appeared the punt touched an MSU player, so Kyle McCarthy picked it up and tried to run with it, but officials ruled it had not.
Then: the bullshitiest* drive of the season. From und.com's play-by-play:
1-10 V20 MICHIGAN STATE drive start at 10:42. 1-10 V20 Nichol, Keith rush for 5 yards to the MSU25, out-of-bounds (BLANTON), total bullshit personal foul late hit PENALTY ND (BLANTON) when Nichol tripped out of bounds. 15 yards to the MSU40, 1ST DOWN MSU. 1-10 V40 1st and 10. 1-10 V40 Caper, Larry rush for 6 yards to the MSU46 (SMITH, H.). No penalty called when an MSU guy (hard to tell which one) shoved and crawled over a helmetless ND defender nowhere near the play. 2-4 V46 Nichol, Keith rush for 9 yards to the ND45, 1ST DOWN MSU (BROWN), another total bullshit late hit personal foul PENALTY ND (SMITH, H.) even though it was no different from any other defender running to the pile at the end of a play. 15 yards to the ND30, 1ST DOWN MSU. 1-10 H30 Timeout Notre Dame, clock 10:11. 1-10 H30 1st and 10. 1-10 H30 Martin, Keshawn pass complete to White, Blair on a halfback pass for 30 yards to the ND0, TOUCHDOWN, clock 09:30. Swenson, Brett kick attempt good.
(At this, the meathead fan next to me was cheering like he won the game. Two bullshit penalties and a trick play does not mean your team has accomplished anything, sir.)
Oh, but we weren't done yet, cause triple-first-named coach Mark Dan Tony'O called an onside kick, which MSU recovered. That drive was shortened by an MSU fumble, but on first down, Mike Ragone dropped a pass.
The rest of the way was a lot of back and forth, with neither team dominating. Golden Tate caught the go-ahead TD pass with about 5 minutes left in the game.
Maybe it's been a long day, I dunno, but I thought this was funny.
Ultimately, it took MSU dropping a similar pass that would have won the game, followed by a Kyle McCarthy INT to ice it.
McCarthy celebrates the game-saver with Brian Smith.
Things I noticed watching a second time:The kickoff coverage is bad. On the first two kicks, MSU picked up 34 and 25 yards, giving them field position on the 45 and 32. Luckily they went three-and out-and then held to a field goal, but that will hurt us later in the season.
That said, our return game is pretty good. Theo Riddick made a guy miss and returned a kickoff 38 yards.
The hard running of Armando Allen. He bounces off defenders and forces the second guy to tackle him. He can see the hole and got the first-down conversion at least 7 times on Saturday by my count (on a 4th-and-1, 3rd-and-2, 3rd-and 3, 3rd-and-2, plus a couple 2nd down conversions). I feel like we finally have that dependable guy at running back we haven't had since Darius Walker went pro. Jonas Gray looked good too.
Things I picked up on live:Our defense is not good. We are still quite a ways away from shutting down quality or even average offenses. I predicted a 45-28 WAC-style shootout, on the assumption that they couldn't stop our offense and we would hold their "O" in check. But the reality is we stopped ourselves often enough, and did not do a good enough job getting MSU's "O" off the field after the first quarter success.
Worst play of the game/season: Michael Floyd makes a great grab on a fade route and lands hard on his left side. Even though replays showed he had two feet in, plus possession, Dave Witvoet's Big 10 field official rule "no catch" and Big East replay officials back him up. Watch him catch it at the 1:34 mark here. Bafflingly, Witvoet says "it was a catch" and signals 'catch' when he explains to the stadium that the "no catch" stands. Can you see why I hate this guy at my games?
Best defensive series: After ND's go-ahead touchdown, MSU passed three times. Two were well-defended (we got lucky on third down when Cunningham dropped it).
Remember how I said I had no faith in our defense to make the stop, no playmakers to save the day? On MSU's final drive, Cousins had five straight completions to move them from their 20 to our 30 (nearly field goal range). And then, and then: watch the three-play sequence starting at the 9:49 mark here. (Thanks to NBC for the video.)
Games watched, at least partially: ND-MSU. Fresno-Boise on Friday. The Geo. Tech beatdown on Thursday. W. Virginia-Auburn (on the radio then on TV).
Iowa: beat Arizona, goes to 3-0.
ND: see above.
Pick 6: Wow did I take a hit. Ohio State won in a shutout... and dropped. Georgia Tech got killed by Ghost of 1980's Miami and dropped out. BYU got killed by Ghost of 1980's Florida State and dropped out. Nebraska lost to Virginia Tech and barely stayed in the poll. At least Texas held steady after an unimpressive win and UCLA keeps winning. My 32-point drop may be a single-week record. Quigley was hurt by Nebraska and UCLA losses; Tina had no change. Scores: Quigley 66, Tina 58, MPF 45.
National Roundup: eh. Florida didn't kill Tennessee. Southern Cal lost. Other than that, I dunno.
Week 4 Preview: Rocky Top
GameDay, featuring Fowler, Herky-Head and Herbstreit, will be in State College for the Iowa game. We'll be elsewhere.
This weekend we're going to Knoxville, Tennessee, and legendary Neyland Stadium. This is one of the biggest stadiums in the country and a place I've always wanted to visit. This will be my first SEC stadium and should be a great experience. You may be familar with the opponent.
Enjoy the games, and see you next week with another on-campus report!
* -- my new favorite word. Invented for the purpose of describing that series of plays.
Location: Steve's place for ND-Mich; my couch for everything else.
Games watched, at least partially: Georgia Tech-Clemson; Colorado-Toledo; Iowa-ISU; ND-Michigan; Ohio State-USC; snippets of UCLA-Tennessee.
Iowa: The first half was nerve-wracking, and I felt like we were in for a repeat of Week 1: Iowa's first half drives ended INT, punt, punt, TD, INT, punt, TD (short field off INT), end of half. Yeesh. But the second half: TD, TD, punt, TD, run out the clock/victory formation. (That drive chart is wrong, by the way. Worldwide Leader My Ass.)
I'm not sure this ever gets old.
And if you thought LOLcats were funny, you will crack up at LOLclones. (courtesy BHGP of course)
Interesting stat of the day: Iowa's leading interceptor (Tyler Sash) had more INT return yards than ISU's leading rusher (M. Hamilton) had rush yards.
Annual photo (hopefully) of Hawkeyes defeating Cyclones and claiming the ugly, unnecessary trophy. (AP photo by Charlie Neibergall)
Notre Dame: A lot of people wanted to ask me about the end of the ND game. I don't remember the end of the game too well, because there was drinking and shouting, and that combination tends to fuzzy-up my short-term memory. (It's also why I don't have the FaceSpace or the Tweeter thing or any last names on this blog, so that I can continue to say unprofessional things like that in quasi-anonymity.)
I'll say this. I'm not as pessimistic as Dylan at BGS and I'm not as upbeat as Joshua Vowles of Subway Domer. But I'm leaning towards Dylan. Over the winter, when asked about Weis, I said that he's finally learning that being a college head coach is different from being an NFL offensive coordinator. But it took him FOUR FULL YEARS to figure that out. Now it seems maybe he still hasn't learned, based on the playcalling at the end of the game.
And the fact remains that Weis still has not beaten a team he shouldn't have beaten. There have been plenty of maddening, unexpected losses, but he still can't point to a season-defining or career-defining or upset victory. Michigan appears to have gotten a lot better in just one offseason. Wow. But I'll reserve judgment til they go on the road.
Speaking of Subway Domer, he gets the award for best description of the outcome: "The loss to Michigan (is) sitting there like a festering wound on our ass cheeks."
Pick Six: Everyone has announced their picks. The first two weeks were good for MPF and Kitty, who slowly ticked up on the strength of BYU (me) and Nebraska (both). Tina hit a rough patch with the Oregon Ducks losing out of the gate and the Irish temporarily out of the Top 25. My only loss this week was Ohio State, but they only slipped three spots. Quigley went 6-for-6 and Tina lost with ND and OSU. Her Pick Sixth, Central Mitten, did pull a MAC Attack on Mitten State. (Frequent commenter and Friend of the Blog 83F is allegedly playing too but teams are unknown.) Scores: MPF 77, Quigley 77, TM 58.
National Roundup: Starting with my Pick Sixth: Losing a QB is bad of course, but this appears weather-able. (Eat it Skilling ... I just made up a weather-related word before you could think of it.) The next two opponents are awful K-State and bye. UCLA has a good looking (albeit true) freshman named Richard Brehaut who could step in and manage a game or two until Prince gets healthy.
Yes it's early ... but Gene Chizik has a better record than Iowa State.
Congrats to the Ty-less Huskies, who picked up their first win since Nov. 17, 2007. For context: I'd just moved back to Chicago six weeks earlier.
Back on Opening Day I wrote: "I have never believed in Okie State … I think they are the Kansas of the Big 12 South (ie, totally a mirage)." Thanks Cowpokes for living up to your reputation by losing to unranked and unheralded Houston.
Finally, I'm no fan of Western Kentucky. Their mascot is a scary blob and they denied my alma mater their first and probably only chance at an NCAA basketball tournament win in my lifetime. But I gotta give them credit for this video, particularly the :47 mark. (Thanks to Matt Hinton for finding.)
Week 3 Preview: Cheer, Cheer for Old Notre Dame
This Saturday we'll be in the stands for the first of our two ND games. Both teams are coming off tough losses, and I think this is one of those gut-check moments where we'll see what the Irish are made of. The opponent, well ...
I guess getting rid of John L. Smith isn't a fool-proof plan for mental collapses. And speaking of mental collapse, it's time for the annual listening of Mike Valenti's Total Fucking Meltdown (the MVTFM for insiders). Crank the volume (not at work) and check it out.
Seeing ND live means I'll miss Iowa's most exciting September matchup, vs. Arizona. Whenever you see two non-rival, geographically distant programs play each other, you should wonder what the connection is that brings them together. In this case, it's obvious: their coach is ex-Hawkeye Mike Stoops. In fact the whole family is Hawkeye.
Arizona hasn't appeared too impressive yet, but they do have the No. 2 rusher in the country, Herb Grisgby. Generally we do a good job of shutting down the run, but this year's version needs to prove they can stop top-tier talent like in the King and Kroul years.
Nationally, it appears to be a good Saturday to be away from the TV, since there is only one matchup of nationally ranked teams. And while it's Nebraska-Virginia Tech, it doesn't strike me as a barnburner. (Sorry Kelly.)
Elsewhere: Ohio hosts California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo, a school that really needs a shortened name, and an asskicking in the making so obvious that Vegas refuses to publish a line. (Just kidding, they do that with all I-A vs. I-AA matchups.) Meanwhile, Tennessee is favored to get slaughtered by Florida, meaning that if all holds, 2-1 Ohio would visit 1-2 UT next week. Woo!
Even if your team lost last week, you gotta Stay Positive.
It's not nice to pick on stupid people. Protecting and respecting the weak is one thing that separates us from the rest of the brutes in the animal kingdom.
But it's also ethical to point out dangerous situations that could hurt a great number of people, like calling the police and electric company about a downed power line. In today's case, the latter imperative outweighs the former consideration.
Sunday there was a change of power, when GOP darling Sarah Palin quit her job before finishing her first term as governor. In her parting speech, one that surely had George Washington gritting his wooden teeth, she threw a dart at the media:
“One other thing for the media, our new governor has a very nice family, too, so leave his kids alone,” said the not-quite one-term head of state.
Former Mayor Palin got several things wrong here. First of all, being governor of a small population state does not attract media attention. When she was head of state, her kids were left alone. No one had heard of her, much less her brood. However, running for vice president of the United States, with a light political resume and a 72-year old (on Election Day 2008) running mate, does draw media attention.
Before you (you, Sarah, not the media) made the decision to run for such a public position, one that draws intense scrutiny under the best circumstances, did you discuss the repercussions with your family? I mean, this guy did.
And the media would have been fine to leave your kids alone, except for the fact that one of your kids (not the media, Sarah, but your own unusually-named child) made the adult decision to draw attention to herself. The concept of irony may be lost on someone who reads "all" the newspapers, but the pregnant teenager of a politician who preaches no sex ed in schools and abstinence as the only option ...
"My Mommy is a moron!"
The danger I mentioned comes in the reaction of the audience she directed that comment to (most clearly not the media, who have* no desire to dissect Gov. Parnell's family life). It is the "red" audience: red meat issue-voracious, redneck culturally, red state geographically. They tune out or don't understand the complexities of the Palin situation, noticing only that she ripped off a snappy line at a convenient target. That promotes fear, and distrust, and a breakdown in communication (either this or this), and ultimately weakens our nation.
Sam encourages you to stay vigilant against demagoguery or anything else that harms intelligent discourse in our country.
* -- Occasional proper grammar use is at the sole discretion of the blog proprietor.
