quarter23cd

That's a fun little gizmo there. The best are the handful of WTFs out there, like Pinkel hating on the non-BCSers or Ty Willingham ranking Mizzou about 10 points higher than anybody else did.

That's good to hear. I liked the sound clip from Dr. Dog there, although its not exactly what I thought they sounded like, somehow. Maybe I'll check them out. I never could get into the Bon Iver record. Calexico I can take in small doses.

This list seems suspect to me since there has never been a year in which I have listened to less new music than this one and even I have heard most of these records. Mostly because many of the artists are hold-overs from when I used to actually listen to new music. Beck? Malkmus? Portishead?? Thanks for making me feel like I'm still "hip", but while those records were pleasant enough "veteran" offerings (excpet maybe that Portishead record), even I didn't get all that excited over them. Is there really nothing more exciting out there this year? Incidentally, I have long been a reader o

I dunno, this is a weird year for me in that I don't think I have ever rooted against my alma mater making a BCS bowl, but OSU could have really benefited from a year out of the spotlight. Sure, by the end of the season, Pryor was getting comfortable and the team as a unit was finally starting to gel. But I gotta be honest, they are not on Texas' level this year. I've said it before, but I would have rather watched them compete in a more winnable bowl and continue building their momentum into next year, rather than playing a team that's probably over their heads and getting publicly whacked

Heh. I won't even try to deny that one, but can't imagine it is that much different than what UM or PSU had to offer.

You're not alone. I couldn't for the life of me figure out why a guy with this sort of athleticism would come to a program so thoroughly committed to under-utilizing its offensive talent. (I say that with love, of course) But, really, mostly its just awesome that Michigan wanted/needed him so badly and he turned them down. That, by itselt, is enough to make him my favorite Buckeye of the last 5 years.

Coop is available, last I checked. You could try seeing if his tendency for guaranteeing UM wins vs OSU holds up if he's on your sideline.

If Rod doesn't work out for you, take our offensive coordinator. Please.

No, there isn't. Cinci has strung together some impressive seasons recently under Dantonio and Kelly and they play in a conference that lacks a true juggernaut program (depending on how long WVU stays down), so they are in a great position going forward. But I just have a hard time believing that if a big-name program came calling, the coach wouldn't jump. Dantonio did it when Sparty had an opening--partially proving that he's a glutton for punishment , but also that the allure of playing in a bigger-name conference is hard to turn down.

New facilities are nice and all, but realistically, Cinci is hardly thought of as a "football school" even in its own state, let alone nationally. In recent years it has become a nice "stepping stone" job for coaches on their way to bigger things. Kudos to him if he really wants to stick around and try to build the program long term, but man.......Auburn. That would be a tough call to turn down.

Nah, I disagree. USC is the better team, but I don't think it will be quite the shellacking that those two games you referenced were. Illinois overachieved last year and was overmatched in their bowl game, OSU meanwhile has sleepwalked through the last couple seasons and seem perennially unprepared for a fight, despite having enough talent to play with anybody. Penn State is a good team this year--ranked right about where they should be, and they'll come into it with confidence (and without the mental baggage that OSU carries around these days). I'm not saying JoePa's boys will win, but I

Its a "what have you done for me lately?" thing. No question the league has been "down" for several years now--every league goes through this periodically and still manages to get the "benefit of the doubt" as you mentioned--but OSU's current streak of high-profile meltdowns has earned the whole league a boatload of ill will. Until somebody from the Big Ten makes a major statement on a national stage (preferably OSU, but a big PSU bowl win would help, too) the league will continue to get shat on. It goes in cycles. 10 years ago the Big Ten was was doing the "woe-is-me" thing about how imp

That seems fair. Most years it will be a non-issue as usually the conference champs will finish high enough to warrant a spot anyway, but this year is a good Exhibit A for a case where it doesn't make sense to guarantee spots.

I've always found the whole concept of bowls kind of dumb, to be honest. I mean, when I was a kid I marveled at the idea that on New Years Day it was possible to do nothing but watch football for like 16 hours straight. And when I was in college and the bowls were starting to get more spread out, I guess it was cool to go to a bar any night of the week and there was always a game on. But that's it--bowls are a novelty gig. I mean, really, in what other sport will you find a bunch of teams playing a random exhibition game a month or more after their season ends and have people make a big d

Player of the game might be overstating it just because he didn't play enough to have that kind of impact, but he came in remarkably sharp for a guy who hasn't seen action in weeks. It was great to see him make the most of the opportunity, and for the first time this year he looked genuinely happy during the post-game interviews. I felt really good for him there. His demotion must have been a devastating thing to handle this year--and I'll admit I was among those who was calling for Pryor early this year--but I actually got a bit choked up for the guy when he came off the bench and fired th

Just at my house, or in Columbus overall? Actually, I hear that campus was relatively "quiet"--which means the couch-massacre total probably didn't hit triple-digits. Good luck with the freshman QBs. Growing pains can be difficult to watch sometimes, but maybe not so much after the season you guys just endured. Our frosh QB has worked out pretty well for us, but it has definitely been a season-long process. Kind of a shame that there are no more games, because around here it feels like things were just starting to get good. Oh well. BTW, speaking of QBs ever seeing playing time again

Indeed. I watched the end of the game yesterday from a restaurant in the Columbus burbs and it is fair to say that the patrons there were almost kind of half-excited about it.

Has Rich-Rod been scouting the intramural flag-football teams for a new QB? Seriously, something's gotta happen there. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the hell out of the score the other day, but there is something anticlimactic about the regular season being over now. Really? That was it??

Penn State and Ohio State are already lined up for the holiday buffet line. I don't see anything too "good" happening to either one this year while sitting on the couch. PSU had a nice season, but part of what helped OSU shoot up the rankings last season is that they had spent the whole year at the top of the rankings, so there was kind of a sense of inevitability to it when everyone else started losing. I don't think PSU will shoot up quite that high, even if teams start falling. And I'm fine with OSU getting squeezed out of the BCS this year. It took a whole season for this team to sha

Wuss. That's what you have that big on-campus hospital for. (that and alcohol-poisoning) Kids today...

I disagree.

Is the company outfitting you with the shoes? I have a pair of steel-toed, electroshock-rated Doc Martens that a company hooked me up with years ago when I was running network cable for them and I still wear them. They are surprisingly comfortable. Best free shoes I've ever gotten. I should go back to that job. Whoever suggested to me that writing software in the financial services sector was a good idea, I'd like to kick them in the head right now.(possibly with those steel-toed boots) Only minor losses so far in the last year where I work, but several of our biggest customers are lay

No way, dude. The Crew rulz!!! Actually, I have no idea. I went to one Crew game this year but by no means do I follow them really closely. Would be nice to see somebody win a championship in this town, though, with our perennially crappy hockey team and college football team that recently likes to choke on the big stage. This city needs this win to boost its sporting self-esteem.

Yeah,my point was just that you can throw that "$" at pretty much any major program. I dunno, I was just pointing out that it was a silly argument. Nevermind, carry on. Oh, come on. Its OSU/Michigan week--if you can't work up the energy to make a few wild pre-game boasts with no basis in reality, then things must be even worse up there than I thought!