Jeremy: Welcome Mr. Millen

Hey everybody, please join me in saying congratulations, best of luck and welcome to the club. Please, let's give a warm welcome to the newest member of the Kevin McHale Scapegoaters Club... Matt Millen.
Matt joined the club on Monday after firing Steve Mariucci as the head coach of the Detroit Lions football club. This distinct honor, to be a member of this prestigious club, goes only to (ahem...) men who are so inept at their jobs, so clueless in their off-the-field negotiating, so hapless in how they draft talent for their teams, that in order to cover their behinds they fire very talented and capable coaches, in lieu, and for fear, of losing their own jobs.
It takes a special person to look at all of the factors around them, realize how horrible they are at their job, somehow think of a way to not point the finger at themselves, and instead turn around and fire the next person in charge.
Other members of the Scapegoaters Club (current president Kevin McHale), a firey group of folks never willing to take the blame for the problems which they have created and who come up with creative alternatives for laying blame include Mr. McHale himself, Art Modell, Ricky Williams, Red McCombs, Terrell Owens, Randy Moss, Latrell Spreewell, Norm Green, Glen Mason and every living member of the Pohlad family.
So welcome, Mr. Millen, we have no doubt that your ineptitude, creative scapegoating and subsequent spinning will continue for years to come and make you an active and honored member of the Scapegoaters! And remember, when in doubt, draft a wideout!

Jeremy: Re: The Brad Johnson Era

Well, the Vikings are 4-0 during the current Brad Johnson Era. Please note that I did not say that Brad Johnson is 4-0 as the Vikings starter.
Look, BJ is doing a nice job leading the offense right now, and the coaches have certainly done a good job of tailoring the game plan to fit Johnson's strong points. For that the coaches deserve to be commended, and for the way that he is playing, Brad Johnson should be commended.
But this current streak (5-1 in the last 6 games) is not about Brad Johnson, and it's not about the offense. The offense woke up in the last game and a half, springing Mewelde Moore for 90 yards in the second half against the Pack and allowing BJ to throw three touchdowns to Marcus Robinson against the Browns. Still, even though the offense is beginning to come to life, this winning streak is not about them.
This is about the defense. This is about a defense that has improved incredibly. During the current 4-game winning streak, in comparison to the first 7 games, when the Vikings went 2-5, the defense is giving up 11.6 pts/game fewer, 67 yards/game fewer, 1.5 touchdowns/game fewer, and is taking the ball away from their opponents 2.5 times/game more often than during the first 7 games of the season. A staggering turnaround.
Through 4 full games Brad Johnson has an 85.0 quarterback rating, which is 13 points higher than what Daunte was able to amass during his starts, but still not exactly what you'd call Pro-Bowl numbers. The difference between what Duante wasn't able to do, and what BJ seems to be doing, has to do with decision making, and on a team that needs someone to tell them when to wipe their collective proverbial buttocks, Johnson is making all the difference in the world.
Brad Johnson is old, and he's not agile and he does not have a strong arm, but, having said that, he will not get you beat. He might not win the game for you, but he will not be the one that gets you beat, and that's what he's doing better than Daunte.
So, if Daunte was healthy today, and was cleared to play next week at Detroit, should he be the one to get the start? In my opinion, absolutely. You cannot take away how important it has been for Brad Johnson and the offense, that the defense has been dominating the last four games. And you cannot blame Daunte for how horrible the defense was playing in the first 7 games and how many bad positions he was put into. Now, did Daunte sometimes make those situations worse by forcing passes? Sure. But that doesn't mean he does not deserve the opportunity, as the leader of this team, to take the helm when everyone is clicking on cylinders.
Thankfully, we don't need to worry about that quarterback controversy this season. Brad Johnson is our man right now, and in no way is that sad.

Jeff: Football quick hitters...

- Any questions about why Glen Mason is never going to get the Gophers to that next level? Anyone? What an awful showing Saturday. Just awful. Getting blown out in a game that could have gotten you into a New Year's Day bowl, I mean, aren't those the games you SHOULD show up for, especially knowing you don't play again for a month? Enjoy the Motor City Bowl, Glen.

- The complete opposite was Reggie Bush Saturday night. If you didn't see it, you've probably heard about it, and maybe heard too much about it. Trust me, the performance can not be overstated. Fresno's a legit team, and if they played in a major conference would have been ranked higher than 16. I am just in awe of Bush. His speed to the corner is like nothing I've seen since Bo Jackson. The long run down the sideline where he put the brakes on, let the guy blow by him, and then cut back to the opposite corner to score was one of the plays of the year. Forget about trading up to get Matt Leinert in April's draft: Bush is a once in a generation player. He'll be one of the best running backs AND best receivers from the moment he steps on the NFL gridiron next season. I did not see Gale Sayers play, but from those who have that's who they're comparing him to, which is really saying something. I see him as a faster version of Marshall Faulk, who in his prime was pretty much unstoppable.

- The NCAA needs to mandate that USC and Texas meets in the Rose Bowl. It has to happen.

- Ohio State has every right to be upset if they don't get into the BCS. Their only losses were to undefeated Texas and one-loss Penn State. They're so much better than Notre Dame, who's guaranteed to get in. I know Michigan State was playing much better when they beat Notre Dame, but that loss looks bad now, and Ohio State's schedule is tougher than ND's.

NFL

- The Indy/Cincy game yesterday was unreal. I didn't think the Bengals stood a chance. I felt the Bengals were overrated, since all of their wins were against sub-.500 teams (except for Chicago. more on the BEars in a second). Boy was I wrong. After the Colts scored on 5 straight possessions to open the game, I figured that was it. But Palmer and Johnson & Johnson and the rest came storming back. Against two of the best defenses in the league, it was so enjoyable to watch two incredible offenses march up and down the field.

- I was wrong about Peyton Manning, ok? I was wrong. I always had him pegged as football's Alex Rodriguez. The best player in the sport who folded when it really mattered, and who was more selfish than the media wants you to know. THe guy signed for the most money possible (Tom Brady signed for much less to give the Pats some cap flexibility), and before this season that had hampered the team's ability to build a defense. Although I still think he should have taken less (can you name the last Super Bowl winner with a quarterback with a monster contract? Can you? Answer at the end), I've been impressed with the way he's swallowed his pride this season. I wonder if after all the personal accolades he received last year, that still getting whooped in the playoffs again made him think he's willing to sacrifice it all to win? Teams this season for the most part are making the Colts beat them with Edgerrin James, and Manning has been happy to do it. You know it's killing a guy who's that competitive to hand the ball off as much as he has, but that style has not only made them a good regular season team, but I think they're the team to beat for the playoffs (if they get homefield, it's over. Print the championship t-shirts). Anyway, I don't hate Peyton Manning anymore. Plus the Mastercard commercials are hilarious.

- How tough is the AFC? Either Pittsburgh or San Diego, who would be HANDS DOWN the best teams in the NFC, may not make the playoffs. How incredible is that?

- Oh, and Chiefs fans, I hope you enjoyed yesterday's 45-17 win over Houston because that's probably the last one you'll get this season. KC's final 6 games look like this: home to New England and Denver, at Dallas and the Giants, and finally home to San Diego and Cincinnati. Is that even fair?

- Count me as #9,475,485 who didn't think the Bears were for real. THey absolutely manhandled a very good Carolina team yesterday. All the hype (and rightfully so) was centered on Julius Peppers and the Panther line, but man the Bears front four had Delhomme running for his life all day. Vikings fans, just so you know, THAT"S what a pass rush looks like-- and the Bears did it with just 4 guys all afternoon.

- trivia answer: Denver, with John Elway in 1999 (sorry to bring this up Vikes fans), was the last Super Bowl winner win with a big-money QB. Indy could be an aberation this year if they win, but I don't think their run will last long. There's no way they have enough cap room to keep that D in tact for more than a year or two. Just look at what happened to the Ravens after their Super Bowl win in 2001-- and they didn't have a QB or receiver taking up a huge chunk of their cap.

Jeff: Minnesota Nice

I've never met Minnesota Timberwolves VP Kevin McHale. I have nothing against him as a person. He's probably a nice guy, and as a matter of fact, I'm sure of it, because that's all I hear from anybody who knows him or deals with him. But Timberwolves fans, after this season we may lose Kevin Garnett. The greatest athlete in the history of Minnesota sports could very well ask to be traded because the organization, fans, and media are too "Minnesota Nice" to McHale, the guy whose most responsible for the team's current state. Where's Donald Trump when you need him? Garnett could leave this summer because none of the people around Kevin McHale have had the courage to tell him the two simple words he needs to hear: You're fired.

I like KFAN. I really do. But most of the on-air staff on that station fall all over themselves to heap praise and love on McHale whenever he's on the air or his name is mentioned. On the Sludge & Lake Show last night, I almost drove off the road because of something Sludge said. After my seething anger had subsided, I realized that what he had said was what so many people around the Wolves believe and accept, and I think that's why it made me so mad. A caller had stated that McHale doesn't get enough criticism from Minnesota media and basketball fans for the horrible decisions and non-decisions he's made the last 2 dozen years. Sludge's response was that (and I'm paraphrasing here) "He does get plenty of critisicm (really? from who?) and that yeah he's made a lot of bad moves. He hasn't had many draft picks work out, but you can say that about a lot of teams. Like (Michael) Jordan, a great player doesn't always mean he's going to be a great GM." Here's the part I'm not paraphrasing. This is an exact quote, and is what sent me off the handle:
"But he's such a nice guy."

(let me get a running start at this one...)

WHAT THE HELL DOES BEING A NICE GUY HAVE TO DO WITH RUNNING A PROFESSIONAL BASKETBALL TEAM?!?!?! WHAT DOES BEING NICE HAVE TO DO WITH THE FACT KEVIN MCHALE IS A TERRIBLE GM?!?! YOU JUST SAID HE CAN'T DO HIS JOB, AND COMPARED HIM TO MICHAEL JORDAN, WHO WAS EQUALLY AS BAD AT HIS!!! BUT BECAUSE HE'S NICE WE CANT FIRE HIM?!?!WELL GUESS WHAT? JORDAN'S THE GREATEST PLAYER IN THE HISTORY OF THE @#$%^* SPORT BUT HE GOT FIRED!!!!!! THEY CANNED HIM BECAUSE HE WAS INCAPABLE OF TURNING THE WASHINGTON WIZARDS INTO A WINNER!!!! THIS DOESN'T MAKE JORDAN A TERRIBLE PERSON, IT JUST MEANS THE PEOPLE IN WASHINGTON HAD THE BALLS TO TELL HIM HE SHOULDN'T BE RUNNING THEIR TEAM!!!! I DON'T CARE HOW NICE MCHALE IS OR HOW GOOD A FRIEND HIS IS WITH THOSE IN THE ORGANIZATION OR WITH THE FLAGSHIP STATION!! HOW CAN YOU SAY YOU CARE ABOUT WINNING OR CARE ABOUT THE TEAM WHEN YOU'RE SO BLATANTLY PUTTING FRIENDSHIPS AHEAD OF WINNING?!?!?!?

(...taking a moment to allow redness to leave my face, and for steam to cease from blowing out of my ears...)

Look, McHale's a good guy. I get it. A big hero for the Gophers, a real man's man on and off the basketball court. Old school, doesn't take any crap. One of Minnesota's finest, one of Minnesota's "our guys", a true "Minnesotan" in every sense of the word. Got it. But he's failed running the Wolves. I could fill pages (and Jer and I have in the past) and pages with the blunders the guy's made. Saying he's been a failure at putting a championship team together in Garnett's 11 years is not saying he's a bad guy: it's just saying he shouldn't be a GM. Timberwolves fans are some of the most passionate in the NBA. They care about this team as much or more than any fan base in the Association, and have been through as much or more adversity since the city was awarded a franchise. They DESERVE to cheer for a champion as much as Garnett deserves to be one.

Wolves fans, please, I beg you: stop being Minnesota nice. As much as you don't want to think about, realize losing Garnett is a real possibility here. In a pregame interview with TNT last night, Garnett was the most outspoken he's been on how McHale and owner Glen Taylor have mishandled the team around him. Garnett still answered in more of a "read between the lines" style than calling anyone out, but it's the latest sign that Garnett's patience with the organization is not only running thin, it's running out. Before it's too late Wolves fans, put aside "McHale the Minnesotan" and look at him as "McHale the GM". Realize we could have a GM that can actually makes a solid draft choice more than once or twice a decade, and a GM that actually KEEPS draft picks to make a solid choice. A guy who actually knows how to pick up the phone, and use some creativity to make a deal and get some guys around Garnett that he can win with. McHale got ripped off in the Cassell/Jaric deal by Elgin Baylor, the worse GM in any sport!! So what does that make McHale? For the last 10 seasons, Timberwolves fans have accepted exactly what this current group of players around KG is going to give you: good, but not good enough.

Please, before it's too late, before I have to throw up all over myself watching KG win a championship in another city, call out Kevin McHale. Demand he find a new job. Demand a new guy to run the team. If you don't, the only thing McHale's really doing is helping to pack Garnett's bags this offseason when he demands a trade to a team that cares about winning. And there would be nothing nice about that.

Jeremy: A T'Wolves Perspective

Once in awhile my job affords me some pretty cool opportunities. Last night I got the chance to attend Asian-American night at the Timberwolves game against the Houston Rockets and Yao Ming. Some thoughts...

*First, I have to give it up for the halftime entertainment. A small Asian woman riding a 10-foot tall unicycle while balancing a large white bowl on her head. She then would take more bowls, starting with one and working her way eventually up to five bowls, balance them on one of her legs and then throw her leg up sending all the bowls flying upward and all landing inside of each other on top of her head. Amazing stuff! Major props to the unicycle-riding-bowl-juggling-lady.

*Rashad McCants is smooth! This guy has the offensive talent to be a superstar in this league if he can keep his head on the right way. Lucky for him you don't have to be able to play a lick of defense (ahem, Troy Hudson) to be a good player in the NBA. I'm telling you if he keeps his head right, learns to play some D and continues to hone his offensive game he is going to be fantastic to watch.

*When the Wolves offense catches up to the defense we might be able to topple some good teams and be pretty scary heading into the playoffs, but until that happens .500 ball is probably about all we can hope for.
McCants could explode down the stretch, but he's nowhere near ready to be the main, or even one of the main, scoring threats. He seems to want to play one-on-one, and not always stay within the offense. Wally looked like he was on the verge of a big season, but he can't quite seem to find his shot. T-Hud (note: Thud) simply is NOT the consistently deadly offensive player that we saw in the playoffs two years ago. Marko Jaric seems like he might have some potential to score from the point, but right now he's doing a serviceable job of moving the ball around and that's about what we should expect from him. Trenton Hassell is a defensive guy and is just not built to play offense as well as he defends. Olowokandi at least seems to be giving us about a quarter and a half of good basketball per game, and he did a nice job of playing Yao last night, but at best he's probably going to be a 10-point a night guy, which might be okay if we could count on anyone else to score. This leaves The Man. Unfortunately KG is our only hope. Fortunately, it's KG, so we've got a chance for everyone to rally around and learn to run the offense through him and take advantage of the looks that they get, but until that happens... yep, .500 ball.

*Troy Hudson (who I will now forever call Thud) might possibly be the single worst defensive player in the entire NBA.

*Dwayne Casey definitely has not settled on anything that even resembles a normal rotation. Last night all 12 guys saw playing time and 10 of those guys saw over 10 minutes. That's a lot of rotating to do for a team that is still looking for an identity. I understand that he is trying to find the group of guys that play best together. I also understand that guys 4 through 12 probably all look pretty similar from a coaching standpoint as far as production and talent. But pretty soon Casey is going to need to settle on a starting 5 and on a 7-9 man rotation. Constantly changing the line-ups, the combinations and the number of minutes played will not allow players to get into a rhythm during the season, and without a solid flow, we're going to be looking at... you guessed it... .500 ball.

Jeff: PACKER WEEK!!!!

I think we've pretty much beaten to death the notion that the Vikes were lucky to beat the Giants Sunday. The only real debate was who was worse: the vikes offense or Eli Manning? But lucky or not, it still counts as a win, and in this season, which may go down as one of the strangest in team history, we'll take it. Somehow, someway, the team (4-5) is still in the hunt for the division title. This season has proven league wide there's no such thing as an "easy" game (just ask the Giants), but the Vikings schedule looks favorable from now until the end of the year meeting with the Norris-leading Bears (6-3).
Chicago, on the other hand, has to play four teams with winning records, plus the plucky Packers twice before the New YEar's Day game at the Metrodome. None of their games are considered even remotely easy, but with their tough defense and conservative offense, there's no reason to think the BEars can't continue rolling. THe Vikings need help from these good teams, and even from our hated neighbors the Packers.
But not this week. This is not just Packer week, but it's a Monday Night Packer week at that. This is one of those games where it's fun to be a football fan. "Throw out the records" is a cliche you'll hear far too often, but it's certainly true this season. As much as I hate to hear announcers fighting over who loves Favre more, you can't deny how dangerous this team is. During their win over Atlanta Sunday, I must have heard 537 different times how "this team hasn't quit", and it's true; they haven't. Nobody plays better on the Monday Night stage than Favre, and with 5th string running back Samkon Gado putting some punch back in the Packer running game (my favorite stat of this week: Gado's 3 TD's last week were more than Ahman Green's had in the last calendar year) there will be some fireworks at Lambeau. The Vikes will need to play better (espcially on O) to keep up with an inspired Packers bunch.

So for this week, I'm putting aside all talk about the Love Boat and Tice and Daunte and all the other debacles we're endured. For this week, I'm going to bask in the glow of one of football's best rivalries, of a prime-time stage, of a two-game winning streak in November, and the fact that we're still in the playoff hunt. Hopefully this will continue for a few more weeks to come.

Jeremy: Applause

I had to stand up and bring my Dorito-stained forearms together last night when I heard Donovan McNabb talk about how it's time to move on without T.O. on the Eagles.
It's one thing for owners, managers and even Andy Reid to stand up and publicly say that the Eagles are going on without Owens, but when the players start to do so, especially the team leader, everyone needs to take notice.
From the top of the organization on down to the players everyone in the Eagles corner has been unified on this Terrell Owens saga. To date not one person with a first-person knowledge of the situation has defended Owens' position. T.O.'s agent was is paid to defend him, so his opinion matters little in this situation. And Ralph Nader? Well, apparently this guy's got nothing better to do than attend Green Party Smoke-Ins and defend professional athletes who have overstepped their bounds.
"With him on the field, we do remarkable things. We could have set records. That was something that I looked forward to doing, winning Super Bowls together. But it just continued to go in the wrong direction." This is what McNabb had to say about the situation with T.O. Coming from a guy who has proven that he has the stuff to take a team to the Super Bowl and lead during high and low times, about a guy who has only proven time and time again that he cares more about himself and his bank account than any team, that's a telling statement by McNabb.
So, for what it's worth: I applaude the entire Philadelphia Eagles organization for assessing a bad situation, acting swiftly, and keeping a unified front from top to bottom.

Please direct your attention...

... to the sidebar at the right of your screen.
There you will notice a new link called "Fire Glen Mason."
Dedicated to our strong belief that, despite being a good football coach, Glen Mason is not the coach to take the Golden Gopher Football program to the next level, Fire Glen Mason is a new blog where we can all discuss, debate and commiserate.

Jeff: Brad Johnson Era Begins Again

Allow me to paraphrase The Jer, Vikings fans:
"don't get too excited over yesterday's win. It was, after all, just the Lions."

The Leos hadn't won in Minnesota in 7 seasons before yesterday's game, and when Joey Harrington was announced as the starter, it didn't matter who the Vikes had at quarterback Sunday (as long as it wasn't Joey Harrington), 8 wins in a row in the Dome over the Motor City Kitties was a mortal lock. So to say this was a great win for the Vikings would be false. Regardless of the turmoil surrounding Winter Park, yesterday was a game they should have won, and for a change, they did. Brad Johnson looked like the same guy who played here the first time around, not like the washed-up 37 year-old who replaced Daunte last week against the Panthers. The Vikes offense looked crisp, Michael Bennett also made a resurgence, and low and behold, the defense played better too (and yes that is in direct correlation to a productive offense- and brutal Lions team).

The real tests are coming, however. The next two weeks will be the real litmus test of where this team is at, and what chance, if any, still remains of catching the Bears for first place. The Vikes will be at the Meadowlands this Sunday to face a Giants team that has demolished the Vikings their past few seasons. Following that, it's a Monday Nighter at Lambeau Field. There's no need to elaborate, but I will: injury woes continue for the Pack, to the point they may be pulling drunken cheeseheads out of the crowd to play receiver and tailback. But make no mistake, nobody plays better on Monday Night that Brett Favre, regardless of who he as around him.

Looking at the remaining schedule, the Vikes have a very winnable game at home vs Cleveland, at Detroit, home vs the Rams and then Pittsburgh, a Sunday Night game at Baltimore, and the season ends at home against the Bears. At 3-5, still 2 games behind Chicago (5-3), the Vikes need a heck of a run to make that last regular season game count, especially considering the BEars already won the first meeting. Realistically, you're going to need at least 8 wins and some help, which means winning a minimum of 5 of your last 8. What chance do the Vikes have? Sunday's game at Giants Stadium would be a tough one even if the Vikes were undefeated, so no shame if they lose out there. More important to me is HOW they lose, or how they play. In every loss this year, they've been blown right off the field. If that happens again against the G-Men you can really kiss the year goodbye. A solid showing keeps the hopes up for Green Bay and beyond. Besides NY and the Steelers, how many of the remaining opponents are you afraid of? Exactly. SO it's not entirely out of the question.

We at least know Brad Johnson won't be the reason the Vikes fall short. Yesterday he showed poise, command, and accuracy, none of them qualities embued by Daunte this season. Another comment made by The Jer yesterday, is that if Johnson continues to play well (i.e. continue to make good decisions and keep turnovers at a minimum) things get a LOT more difficult for Daunte whenever he returns next season. But I'll let him elaborate more on that if he wishes.

Jeremy: Whitlock on Weis

Jason Whitlock wrote a great reaction to Charlie Weis' contract extension. He feels the move is a bit racially motivated, which I'm not sure I agree with, but some of his comments not related the the race card are dead on. Here's a few.

On Weis' success so far:
"Notre Dame has beaten a mediocre Michigan team, a Dave Wannstedt-coached Pittsburgh team that is .500 only because the Big East is terrible, the third- or fourth-best team in the Mountain West Conference (BYU), a bad Purdue squad, and a Washington club with one victory (vs. Idaho)....
Weis' greatest accomplishment so far is that he led Notre Dame to a close loss against USC."

On Weis finding success coaching players that Willingham recruited:
"Yes, Weis is doing a nice job working with the offensive talent Willingham recruited. But while Willingham inherited offensive personnel recruited to run the football, Weis inherited players recruited to operate in a pro-style passing offense.
Forgive me for not being shocked that Weis is getting points out of all that mature, experienced talent Willingham left behind."

On Notre Dame's concern about Weis being pursued by NFL teams:
"If the New York Giants or any other NFL team decides it wants Weis as its coach, there's no amount of money that is going to stand in the way of that getting done. Only Weis can stop that deal by saying he'd prefer to remain a college coach.
You think Weis is the only college coach the NFL has ever been interested in?"

On what the truth behind this extension is:
"This is a gigantic overreaction by a school administration that should know better. They watched Willingham experience early success and then struggle. Notre Dame has no clue whether Weis can recruit or sustain success...
Let's call this exactly what it is: greed and stupidity."

Jeremy: Weis is All-In

When I heard that Notre Dame extended Charlie Weis' contract through 2015 earlier this week the only thing that came to mind was: WHAT?
It's been less than a year since Notre Dame was accused of playing the race card in firing Ty Willingham before giving him a five-year chance to be a great coach for the storied program. They followed this up by hiring a white coach, which caused sentiments of "See? I told you so" from those playing the race card.
I never felt like it was a racial issue that Willingham got canned, but I did feel it was unfair to not give him the customary 5 years to try to build a program of players that he had recruited before giving him the boot for not upholding Notre Dame tradition.
For the record Charlie Weis is 5-2 in his first 7 games. After his first 7 games as Irish head coach what was Willingham's record? 7-0.
Is Weis' extension more evidence of old school racism at the top at Notre Dame? Is it evidence of racism at all? Is it motivated by money and a fear that Weis will depart for more money and the NFL?
I don't know the answer to any of those questions, and since I'm not an expert in this field, I don't have to. But personally I don't think the answers to any of those questions matters as much as the answer to this question: Is Weis a better coach than Willingham was? And the answer is that we simply do not know.
Going by wins/losses alone through the same number of games, the answer is no. But if you listen to the Notre Dame faithful Charlie Weis is the second coming of the Touchdown Jesus. In the words of Notre Dame's Athletic Director, Kevin White (ahem): "Charlie has clearly and impressively demonstrated the ability to take the Notre Dame program where we all want it to go." And where is that exactly? As per usual the Notre Dame higher-ups are keeping their reasoning close to the vest.
In my opinion a 10-year extension after just 7 games is absolutely ridiculous. Deciding that someone should be at the head of your program for the next 100+ games based soley on what they've done in only 7 games is not smart business.
It certainly seems to be that Weis is a nice fit for Notre Dame, and it certainly seems to be that Weis is a good college coach. And based on his start, I could see giving him a one or two year extension, as a good-will gesture for the Notre Dame wrinklies to say they are happy with his start, his attitude and his plan for the future.
But 10 years?
Notre Dame has long believed that the way they conduct their football operations is a bit above the cuff. Perhaps the unwritten rules don't apply to Notre Dame.
In a couple of years this contract extension is either going to look horrendously stupid or insightfully forward thinking. Only time will tell which is true, but one thing does seem obvious: the rules that applied to Ty Willingham do not seem to apply to Charlie Weis.

Jeff: The East Part Deux

2ND ROUND OR BUST:

7. WASHINGTON WIZARDS: I probably would have let Caron Butler play a season in DC before giving him a five-year extension. Will he feel he has to earn it every night, or be one of those guys who coasts through? To replace Larry Hughes, the Wiz need a full effort from both Butler and free agent signee Antonio Daniels. With Arenas and Jamison back, at least scoring won't be a problem, and maybe now gunner Jarvis Hayes will get a chance.

6. MILWAUKEE BUCKS: The Bucks stole Jamal McGloire from the Hornets, and suddenly this team goes from the brink of the playoffs to scary. They HAD to overpay for Redd, and he'll be a key, but the most important player in Brewland is TJ Ford. IF he regains his rookie season form, Ford's an all-star and the Bucks are suddenly making the Pistons and Pacers nervous. My favorite thing with this team is that we can finally begin the "Who was a worse pick?" debate between Bogut and Darko. Have fun with that one, and remember: there's really no wrong answer.

5. CLEVELAND CAVALIERS: I'm going to say Lebron has two more years before he starts averaging a triple-double. I don't think he can be better than MJ, but I'm willing to hear the argument. HUghes was a good get, and will flourish with open dunks and shots courtesy of LBJ, as will Damon Jones, Donyell Marshall (maybe the most underrated signing of the offseason), and just about everybody else. Big Z looks more like a Big Distraction to me, but if his feet stay on and he doesn't whine too much about touches, this could work. How good do you think Carlos Boozer's feeling about things right about now? I don't feel sorry for him either.

THE CONTENDERS:

4. DETROIT PISTONS: They're the best team in the conference when it matters, but they coasted through the regular season last year and still made the Finals. Where's the incentive to not do the same this year? Flipnosis has never been a real rah-rah guy, and guys with this kind of track record for winning probably wouldn't listen even if he was. They won't have the best record, but they're still the team to beat come April.

3. INDIANA PACERS: This looks crazy, but hear me out: Ron-Ron will be playing like a house-afire this year, and that's bound to spread to the team. They're right there with the Pistons, but they all play in the toughest division in the league, and that's going to take its toll. It'll keep them from the best record, but anybody from the Central that makes it (at last check I have four of the five) will be playoff tested before the 2nd season even starts. Even more fun than the Darko/Bogut debate will be seeing Don Stern have to present Ron-Ron with both the Defensive Player of the Year award AND Comeback POY. And before you start saying nobody would vote for him for the latter, remember Jason Giambi won the same award in baseball this season- you know, his comeback from STEROID ABUSE.

2. NEW JERSEY NETS: They're a distant 4th in the East, but here's why they finish 2nd: Not only are they the best team in the league's worst division, they're BY FAR the best team in the league's worst division. Nobody in the Atlantic (yes the Raptors have Bosh but they also have absolutely nothing else) has a low-presence to exploit Collins, Krstic, and anything else NJ has in the middle. Kidd and Jefferson will have something to prove after being injured for big chunks of the last two years, and well Vince Carter doesn't have a heart or soul, but since he's getting paid and the guys he's playing with are fun, he's along for the ride. Will this be the year he finally drives the lane with authority, and uses all of his God-given talent? Um no. When it really matters, Vince makes the Vikings D look tough, but hey, if you need a wide open dunk or a fade-away 3, he's your guy. Second round exit coming.

1, MIAMI HEAT: There are no group of people on earth that have bigger egos than NBA players (ok maybe Tom Cruise, but that's about it). The better the player, the bigger the ego, and the bigger the ego, the more the player wants the ball when it matters. Portland and Dallas of a few years back, as well as the Karl Malone/GP Lakers proved this doesn't work. You CAN have too many good players on one team in basketball! In the regular season, talent generally wins, which is why the Heat, along with the fact the Southeast is pretty weak, will cruise to the league's best record. Everybody will play nicey-nice during the year, but when the playoffs begin, that's when the trouble starts. DWade and Shaq not only need the ball in crunchtime, but deserve it, because they've proven they can take over in the clutch. THe problem here are guys like JWill and Antoine Walker, have been selfish players their whole careers (and both are on their third teams, I might add). Why would they change now? What was wrong with keeping Eddie JOnes for one more season and then gaining cap space? Ohhhhhh Pat Riley, that's right. Looks like egos aren't just on the court in the NBA. Despite having the two best players in the league, the HEat won't even make the conference finals, let alone the NBA Finals.

Jeff: NBA East Preview Part I

Wasn’t it just a few years back when this was the worst conference in the history of professional sports? Well the balance has shifted back, with 3 real-deal title contenders, and a slew of teams on the rise. And of course, there’s Toronto and Atlanta to play some 70-65 games as a reminder of how bad it used to be.

LOTTERY LOCKS:

15. TORONTO RAPTORS: Canada does a lot of things well: hockey, beer, hockey, comedians, and of course, hockey. Basketball? Not so much. Sure, the Great White North will turn out a good NBA player or two, like Steve Nash, or the invaluable bearded wonder Bill Wennington, but when basketball and hockey are going at the same time, well, Canadians are going to watch hockey. Especially when the Raptors are this terrible. Mr. Stern: contraction case #2.

14. ATLANTA HAWKS: If I’ve said this once, I’ve said it at least twice: is there a worse pro sports town than Atlanta? I don’t think so. They’ve been spoiled by the Braves winning 14 consecutive division titles, to the point that nobody shows up unless they make the World Series. The only reason they go to Falcons games is because of Vick, and honestly, how’d they get an NHL team? Or how do they still have the Hawks? The mystery remains, as do hordes of empty seats at Phillips Arena for Hawks games.

13. CHARLOTTE BOBCATS: Getting the hometown kids in UNC Alums Raymond Felton and Sean May was a nice idea, but how do you pass on Danny Granger AND Gerald Green twice? Bernie Bickerstaff is taking his time, trying to building slowly but surely. Emeka Okafor starts year 1 of his 10 year all-star tour. The guys around him will work hard, and continue to slowly improve. Oh and they also wear a lot of orange, so, you know, if you’re into that, here’s the team for you.

PLAYOFF CONTENDERS OR PRETENDERS?

12. ORLANDO MAGIC: Stevie Franchise-Killer plays his last season in Orlando. That’s 2 (not included Vancouver where he pouted his way out of town before playing a game) places he’s been run out of town. Can we stop calling him Franchise please? Unless he’s playing in Portland, Atlanta, or Toronto, where the teams there apparently enjoy disfunction, can we drop the nickname please? Dwight Howard deserves better than this. If their teams were better, you’d actually be able to find the Howard/Okafor battles on TV. Like the Vikes and Gophs, Grant Hill continues to find new ways to do the same old things, which is get hurt.

11. CHICAGO BULLS: Cutting ties with Eddy Curry was the right move, although it’ll hurt them in the short-term, i.e. this season. Mike Sweetney could be a nice player, but they’re still a guy short in the middle. Hinrich, Gordon, Dang, and that other Argentinian make for a lethal backcourt rotation. A small step back this year, but they’re close in Chicago, very close.

10. BOSTON CELTICS: This is assuming GM Danny Ainge does the right thing and trades Paul Pierce before the trade deadline. I like Pierce, and he’s been the heart and soul of that team, but he doesn’t fit in the rebuilding process, and he deserves another shot at a title. He’s got value, and could add a couple more pieces for the C’s. Harrington at times looked like a monster-in-the-making, last year, but with added pressure and added minutes, we’ll see how he handles a bigger load. T-minus 3 years and counting before Gerald Green takes off as the best player in the 2005 draft class. Like, the Bulls, they’re on the cusp.

9. PHILADELPHIA 76ERS: Here’s a team that REALLY needs to blow it up completely and start over. They’ve tried every combination of guys around AI, and nothing’s worked. They at least got the Andre Iguodala pick right, as he’s a star in the making. Nobody was a bigger fan of C-Webb back in his Fab 5 days than I was, and it’s been sad to watch him these last few years. Like Shawn Kemp before him, one of the best power forwards of our time never got to realize his full potential.

8. NEW YORK KNICKS: Like the Sixers, so many problems here and so many cap problems they can do little to stop it. However, as much hype as Larry Brown’s gotten, I’m a believer. His teams are always competitive and he’ll find a way with this undersized, underachieving bunch too. Eddy Curry will help on the one night a week he feels like it, and Marbury will continue to be Marbury. Having Nate Robinson here makes it difficult for me to hate the Knicks- difficult, but not impossible.

Jeremy: I'll Take a Pepto on the Rocks

Sitting in the very last row of the Metrodome on Saturday watching the Gophers get absolutely destroyed in the second half was a horrible feeling. When things looked bad in the first half my "friends" made fun of me as I stood with my shoulders crossed and a scowl on my face. For many of them this was their first Gopher football game and they didn't know my game watching habits. In the second half I sat calmly and cussed either out loud or under my breath as I pulled my hat down over my eyes.
How was I to know that the pain I was feeling in the pit of my stomach was just a precursor to what I would feel on Sunday afternoon during the Vikings game?
As Daunte scrambled on that fateful play I was thinking to myself "that looks like the old Daunte..." But when he went down, and I saw that his knee had taken a beating and he grabbed it ever so slightly, it didn't look like it could be season ending.
Of course maybe that was the homer in me, the biased Viking fan who always assumes the best. I couldn't have been more wrong, and today, that pain in my stomach feels a little bit like what a burning ulcer that is being taunted by a hangover and the stomach flu might feel like.
They say when it rains it pours, but how come nobody told us it was going to be unseasonably monsoon-like all season long in Viking land? I'm no weatherman, but I'm predicting the monsoon is only going to rage on. Might be time to board up the house, sandbag the perimeter and prepare for the worst.

Jeff: Daunte's Down & the Vikes Are Out

A team that we thought was going to be a Super Bowl contender in August, is looking like a team who will only be contending for the #1 pick heading into November. The last-second miracle win against Green Bay two weeks ago provided a glimmer of hope, that maybe, just maybe, the Minnesota Vikings squad we had hoped to see would finally show up. The bloodbath in Carolina sank any of that talk. After getting demolished 38-14 by Steve Smith and the Panthers, the Vikings season is essentially lost, as is starting quarterback Daunte Culpepper. Culpepper was running for his life once again in the first half, and when he finally found some daylight he decided to take his frustrations out on Panther safety ... At the same time, corner Chris Gamble went low, just as you're taught. THe combination collision bent Culpepper's knee in an awkward way, and he slumpt to the turf. After being helped off, the worst is feared today for him, and the same can only be said for the entire organization as well.

Two things about that hit: One, it was NOT a cheap shot by Gamble, as a few morning radio hosts were trying to say. Gamble is AT LEAST 60 pounds lighter than Daunte, and as all corners are taught when tackling a much bigger man, go low below the knees. A man Gamble's size couldn't possibly tackle somebody like Daunte by going high. Hits like this happen all the time, and this one just happened to be at an unfortunate angle. Two, yes Daunte is 265 and moves like a gazelle, but that injury never happens if he slides like he's supposed to. Commentators today said it was just Daunte wanting to be competitive and win and get some extra yards. Look, I would assume the other 31 starting NFL QB's want to be competitive and win. They're not sliding because they care less, they're sliding because they care MORE. Even at Daunte's size, he's the one being hit, not the other way around, and by not sliding, he's leaving himself open to shots like he took. Especially when his knee was already a detriment to him all season, there's no excuse for him not sliding and avoiding further contact there.

So now the season rests on the shoulders of Brad Johnson, who looked nothing Sunday like the Super Bowl winner he was with Tampa five years ago. But even if we had the Brad of five years ago, it would matter little with this team. Nobody can seem to explain why the Vikings are a completely different team on the road, but neither their offense or defense has had a clue away from the Dome. $25 million down the drain on what was supposed to be a much improved defense. Steve Smith humiliated a once-confident Fred Smoot, and Jake Delhomme and Stephen Davis carved up everybody else. There was hope that after strong first-halves and second-half flops the last couple of seasons, that maybe this year will be the opposite. Sunday's loss showed both halves of the season will be woeful this year. Perhaps it's for the best: with no hope to cling to now, this should give owner Zygy Wilf all the reason he needs to completely overhaul the players, and organization, from top to bottom. This year has proven that this Vikings' ship has so many holes, it's a wonder it's stayed afloat as long as it has.

Jeff: NBA Preview: Out West

I'm going to attempt to make this shorter than last year's. Of course I said that last year, and if you attempted to read it, well you know how that went.

LOTTERY LOCKS:
15. New Orleans/Oklahoma City/Baton Rouge/Timbuktoo Hornets: They'll play most of their home games in Oklahoma City. Good thing the Okies or Sooners aren't on the schedule. I know there's a reason this team hasn't been contracted yet, but I'm forgetting. Please, Don Stern, do this before it's too late to save Chris Paul (who will be the best player from the '05 draft for the first 3 seasons) and JR Smith.

14. Portland JailBlazers: You know the end of the world is upon us when Joel Prysbilla is considered a quality NBA center. Yes THAT Joel Prysbilla. Yes the Vanilla Gorilla. Gopher fans, you may now collectively stare at the floor, shake your head, and mutter extremities under your breath. Trust me, it helps.

13. LA Clippers: What do the Clips, Arizona Cardinals, and Alex Rodriguez all have in common? None of them will ever win a championship. (As a Mariners fan, that feels great to say out loud. Honestly, as long as the Yankees have ARod -which is hopefully forever- they can put an all-star at every position and still not win the Series. Oh wait, they've already done that! And see? No title. Beautiful)

12. LA Lakers: I know, I know, I know, they have Kobe AND Phil. They also have a disgruntled Lamar Odom and absolutely nothing else...unless you're counting on Kwame Brown, Chris Mihm, or Andrew Bynum to be a factor in the post? And did I mention Speedy Claxton's their point guard? See, I knew you'd come around. Also, Phil hasn't really "coached" a team since his first title run with MJ, and even if he started now it wouldn't matter.

PLAYOFF CONTENDERS:
6 teams; 3 playoff spots. You'd have as much luck throwing darts at them to figure out who's finishing where. I have no idea, but then again you already knew that.

11. Utah Jazz: They'll make the Sox/Astros series look entertaining by comparison. Speaking of which, with all sincerity, congratulations to the Chicago White Sox and their 12 real, die-hard fans. There are many baseball fans, like myself, who may never get to experience what you folks are feeling. With that said, can we stop pretending this win was as good for the city of Chicago as it would have been for the Cubs to win it? Please. If the Cubbies ever win a World Series, that city would be in absolute and total chaos. They wouldn't be able to hold the parade down Michigan Avenue for weeks because of the looting, rioting, partying, and group sex that would make even the Minnesota Vikings uncomfortable. Drunk college kids would be parading Harry Caray's corpse around town shouting "Cubs Win!" "Holy Cow!" and "It's a simple question! A baby could answer it!" like it was a Weekend at Bernie's movie. The Sox win over Houston may make them the #1 team in baseball this season, but it doesn't change the fact they'll always be a distant second in the Windy City.

10. Seattle Sonics: I compare this team to the Chicago Bears of a few years back. You know, the one that came out of nowhere to win 12 games? EVERYTHING went right for them. Well that was the Sonics last year. Like that Bears team, the Supes come back to earth. Getting rid of starting center Jerome James was a good idea. Letting coach Nate McMillan and top assistant Dwayne Casey walk? Not so much.

9. Phoenix Suns: Ok so let met get this straight: last season, this team's entire offense predicated on running the fast break, and Nash driving and dishing to either Amare or a wide-open guy for 3. And they played no defense whatsoever. This season, Amare's out for at least 3 months, and their two best 3-point shooters are gone. Oh, and they still can't play defense. Only my undying love- I mean respect- for fellow Canadian Steve Nash has them ranked this high.

8. Minnesota Timberwolves: You know those Adidas commercials of KG running on the beach in a Muhammed Ali sweatshirt? That's not a marketing gimmick. I think Adidas couldn't find him all summer, and somebody stumbled across him running 19 miles a day on the beach, and they just filmed it. Too bad they didn't show his training where he alternates Wally Scerbiak and Rick Rickert punching bags. Garnett will have his best season as a pro, carry this team on his back, and be the first guy to win MVP on an 8 seed. It's also probably his last year in a Wolves uniform, so enjoy it while you can.

7. Memphis Grizzlies: No allstars but good depth, and guys who know how to win. Plus Pau Gasol has a sweet Grizzly-Adams beard. Apparently he's trying to shed the "soft" label. Um, Pau? You're European. You'll always be soft. The beard won't change that. Also, can you put an "l" at the end of your first name please? That's always bothered me.

6. Golden State Warriors: Their season hinges on the hinges, screws, plates, and whatever else is holding Baron Davis together. IF Baron can stay healthy for an entire season the Warriors take the reigns from Phoenix as the most exciting team in the league to watch, and the scariest opponent for anyone to play. However, considering I don't believe Davis has had an injury-free season at any level, this is probably just wishful thinking.

IT'S NOT A MATTER OF IF YOU'LL LOSE TO THE SPURS, BUT WHEN:

5. Dallas Mavericks: As much fun as the Nash/Mike Finley/Dirk Nowitzki trio was to watch, they were not going to win a championship for Dallas. Through free agency and the amnesty clause, the Mavs are 2/3rds finished with their housecleaning. Mark Cuban needs to deal the Diggler now for as much as he can get, and build around someone else because the Dirk will not lead a team to the title. I had high hopes for him that maybe, just maybe, he'd be the first European to step-up when it mattered. Of course that was right before chewing out Jason Terry at the end of game 5 and then missing all 5 of his shots in OT. Maybe if he didn't shave his head every year things would be different, but I doubt it.

4. Houston Rockets: Probably the 2nd best team in the West with the addition of a real power forward and point guard, but because of the divisional format they'll have to settle for a 4 seed. But at least they'll host, giving T-Mac his best opportunity yet to break his 1st round playoff drought. And imagine if he plays all year like he did in the first round against Dallas last year? Yao Ming has had an entire summer off to rest up for the first time since the Great Wall of China was built. And you know what? He'll still never be an elite player. Never.

3. Sacramento Kings: Remember when this was the toughest division in decades? Now the Kings have half the team they used to, and yet they'll still get a home series. Bibby will be Bibby, and Brad Miller will continue to be the Esa Tikannen of the NBA (for non-hockey fans that's the guy every team hates with all-star skills). There's a reason Bonzi Wells is on his 3rd team in four years, and he'll have his annual meltdown before season's end.

2. Denver Nuggets: Nobody's happier about the division realignment than, as my friend Joel likes to call them, the "Nugents." Everyone, including myself, predicted this ascention last season, but this really should be the year. If they grab a clue by the trade deadline and deal Nene for a legitimate 2-guard, they could really challenge the Spurs. Melo was a new man under George Karl, and as we saw last year, as he goes, so go the Nuge. I still worry though that's he got too much Glenn Robinson in him. Extra points to Denver for the powder blues, being fun to watch, and, of course, for Earl Boykins.

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, YOUR WESTERN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS:

1. San Antonio Spurs: The only people who would whine that Tony Parker, who has been the point guard on two Spurs Title teams, shatters the mold of "soft Europeans" would be Europeans themselves. So just in case there's any that are taking a break from hating Americans or watching soccer to read this, let me make this point: Derek Fischer and BJ Armstrong were also starting point guards on multiple title winners. When they eventually left for new teams, they were exposed for the below-average players that they were. If Parker's smart, which considering he's dating Eva Longoria I'd say he is, he will do whatever it takes to stay in a Spurs uniform as long as Tim Duncan does. Granted the PG play in the league has never been worse, but I'm baffled as to how Parker was able to drive through the lane at will last year. The only thing I can figure is that out of respect and awe, the rest of the league won't guard him as long as he's dating Eva.

Jeff: What's the story?

Two sports stories today caught my attention, both because I can't believe they're getting any attention at all.

The first is Sheryl Swoopes has admitted to being gay. 99.999999% of people have two responses to that sentence: the first is "Who?" The second is "Who cares?"

The article contends that "Swoopes, 34, is the most recognizable athlete, male or female, to come out in a team sport." Um, WHAT?

First of all, the comment that Swoopes is the most "recognizable athlete to come out in a team sport" is ridiculous. Only the most die-hard of hoops fans, and women's hoops fans at that, know who Swoopes is. No matter how much ESPN and David Stern try to shove it down our throats THE WNBA IS NOT A MAJOR SPORT. NOBODY CARES. This is a good player from an obscure league. If this were Mia Hamm, Anna Kournikova, Michelle Wie, or one of the Williams sisters, THAT would be a recognizeable athlete. You ask 100 people who Sheryl Swoopes is, you'd be lucky to get 2 or 3 people that would know. You ask 100 people who Hamm, Wie, Venus, Serena, or Kournakova is, I would guess at least half the people, and possibly more, could tell you. Those are recognizeable athletes. Swoopes is not.

Second, I don't believe this opens the door of acceptance for both gay female AND male athletes. I really don't think there's much of a problem with the acceptance of lesbian athletes today. Much of the WNBA's fanbase comes from the gay and lesbian community already, so I think this helps a lesbian, not hurt them. And please don't make the argument that "well it hurts her endorsement opportunities with mainstream America." PLEASE. Gay or straight, she didn't have any to begin with. Furthermore, we've already had prominent female athletes in tennis, the most popular women's sport, come out. Billy Jean King and Maria Navratalova were two of the greatest in the history of the sport. I don't remember there being a real big deal made about this.

It certainly hasn't made mainstream America more comfortable with the idea of a gay man in a team sport. To think Swoopes coming out will change people's minds on that is naive at best. I'm not saying that attitude is right, but comparing Swoopes in the WNBA to a guy in one of the four major pro sports is like...well you know what there IS no comparison to that. Bottom line: GOod for Sheryl Swoopes, and I'm glad she feels better about things. I just don't care.

The second article is about long-time Air Force football coach Fisher DeBerry making the comment that black players "can run very, very well." Here's the two comments he made:

'He said Air Force needed to recruit faster players. "We were looking at things, like you don't see many minority athletes in our program,"'

"It just seems to be that way, that Afro-American kids can run very, very well. That doesn't mean that Caucasian kids and other descents can't run, but it's very obvious to me they run extremely well,"

I'm sorry, but why is this an issue? Race relations are far from perfect in this country, but what's the problem here? The man isn't saying that all African-Americans do is run well, or run fast and that all they are or can be as a race is good athletes. Not at all. The man is simply stating a fact. The two positions in football that speed, quickness, and agility are most vital to are running back and corner back. Look at the NFL: you don't even need one hand to count the number of white running backs AND defensive backs. You simply need one finger. BRad Hoover, who started last year as Carolina's fullback, was moved to tail back after four, count them, FOUR running backs on the team got hurt. He was the only white RB in the league I can even think of. And corners? Now that the vastly overrated Jason Sehorn is no longer prancing around the league, there are zero white corners. None. And if you watch D-1 football on Saturdays, the number of quality white starters at those positions is pretty similar.

IS this racist? Of course not. Do all african-americans run faster? Of course not. But the best players should play, regardless of race, and the sheer number of african-americans playing those positions (as well as wide receiver) show that. Please leave DeBerry alone. He's got enough to worry about with that program as it is.

Jeremy: While I've Got a Chance Here, Let Me Clear My Head

*While I was watching the World Series the other night, I noticed... wait a minute, I wasn't watching the World Series. What am I talking about?
Look, I tried to watch it, I really did, and when I watched it, I even went as far as to try to care, but I just can't do it. I have only two possible rooting interests in this Series. First is that I hate the Sox. Second is that when I used to play RBI Baseball (circa 2000) I would always choose the Astros because Biggio and Bagwell were money. Well, it turns out in real life, in 2005, Biggio is still pretty money, but Bagwell is washed up. I can't support reality t.v. that spits in the face of my Generation X-like memories.
*There I am. It's around 2:30 a.m. Treasure Island Casino. $5 Blackjack table. Sitting next to my future brother-in-law. I'm up $45 and I am feeling it. Suddenly my gal walks up and asks how I'm doing. Even worse... I TOLD HER!!! What was I thinking?
Well, you know how it ends. I should have just gotten up when she asked, but it's been so long since I've played blackjack that I forgot the unwritten karma rules. Later, on the drive home, when I tried to explain to her about how blackjack has karma and streaks and how little things, things that aren't even related to the game, can change everything, I felt like a complete idiot as I stumbled over my words trying desperately not to sound like a tool.
*The Gophers are ranked 20th in the BCS standings. They actually improved their standing by not even playing last week. Their stock is rising in the BSC not because of who they have beaten, but because of who they have lost to. Simply amazing! I do not understand the BSC at all. USC won and they still dropped to #2. How does this happen?
*What's happening with Minnesota football this year? First the Gophers beat Purdue in the kind of game they always lose, then they beat Michigan where they never, ever, win, and then the Vikings beat the Packers on a last second field goal in the kind of game that the Wikes almost always lose. Are they setting us up? Or are they finally learning how to win?
*I feel like Sid Hartman today. I can't put together enough material for a full post so I have to piece together items like this. I keep clearing my throat uncontrollably. I can't say enough good things about Minnesota teams. And I have said the "F" word at least 1,949 times already today.

Jeremy: Some Interesting Points From Whitlock

If you don't already read Jason Whitlock on ESPN.com, I would recommend checking him out. While I agree with him roughly only 70% of the time, he generally brings a well thought out opinion and he's pretty entertaining.
In his column today, 10 More NFL Truths, he talks about two things worth mentioning.
First, a quote regarding the Vikings. I think for the most part Jeff and I have avoided tackling "Boatgate '05," but I think Whitlock sums it up nicely.
"If all it took to throw a team into chaos was a sex party involving a third of the roster, then I'd suggest that a third of the league's teams would be in chaos.
The Vikings stink because they're poorly coached, they have mediocre defensive personnel, and Daunte Culpepper can't read a defense. Lack of discipline and lack of morality have nothing to do with Minnesota's on-field failures."
Second, Whitlock talks about a classic quarterback vs. quarterback controversy. In this case Favre vs. Marino.
"Without arguably the greatest defensive player of all time, Favre does not own a Super Bowl ring and two Super Bowl appearances. Give Marino a defender as dominant as [Reggie] White, and he wins at least one Super Bowl.
I bring this up because it's my opinion that Marino, especially late in his career, routinely carried mediocre teams -- like the one Favre is leading now -- to the playoffs. I don't question Favre's greatness. I'm just saying there's no reason the Packers shouldn't win the NFC North and reach the playoffs. Marino would do it."
I've never heard this particular argument stated in quite this manner and it's very intriguing to me. How important is having a single dominant player and team leader on both sides of the ball? Is Whitlock right, would Marino have won a ring with a Reggie White-type player on defense? Was Marino a better QB than Favre is now?
I'm curious to see what you all think. (And Porta is not allowed to answer because we know he's blinded by green.)

Jeremy: Dress Code Marketing

Piggy-backing on Jeff's post about the new NBA player's dress code, this issue is certainly on the forefront of basketball fans everywhere. And Jeff is absolutely right, there's no reason to believe this isn't going to work and it's not going to be enforced.
We know that David Stern knows two things at least. First, he knows how to run a business, and the NBA is definitely a business. Some might be quick to argue that, no, the NBA is not a business, it's a game, and the players should not be forced to dress as if they were part of a business. The truth is basketball is a game, but the NBA is a business, and that is a very important distinction to make.
Second, Stern knows, as the leader of this business, he's got a monopoly on the professional basketball market. The reason that he can enforce his new dress code rule, and go to any lengths he needs to in order to uphold it, is because he knows that the players won't leave for another league. True, there are other professional basketball leagues around the world, but none of them come anywhere near the NBA as far as talent, competition, exposure, and, most importantly to the players, (and to why Stern is safe in upholding his new rule) money.
I wrote a very similar opinion when talking about age minimums, but this isn't about choice, it isn't about singling players out, and it isn't even necessarily about making the players look good. This is about David Stern protecting the product that he is putting before the buying public. He knows that his league's players have the worst reputation of the players in the other professional sports. This is his attempt to help present his product as more professional and more approachable by the common fan.
Whether I like it, you like it, or the players like it, or not, David Stern has every right to do this, and from a business standpoint, it's an incredibly shrewd, but smart move.

Jeff: The Question For Gopher Fans

As a relatively new Gopher football fan, I feel like one of the new recruits in the movie Band of Brothers. I'm like one of the newbies that comes over after D-Day, and I want to say I'm part of the group, and that I know what the grizzled vets have been through, but I don't. I know it, and they know it. As a new Gopher football fan, losses like the one last week to Wisconsin hurt. For the vets, it's just another scar. I feel like I should have no right to comment on how the captain is running this ship, and yet I was taught that if you don't understand something, ask-no matter how dumb the question. So, Gopher fans, I need your help. I need some clarification on the head coach Glen Mason. The debate this season is whether he should be given a contract extension. My confusion doesn't center on whether he should be back next year: my confusion is HOW IS HE BEING CONSIDERED AT ALL?!?!

If I'm Gopher AD Joel Maturi, I'd tell Glen "You've done all you can here. Put the house up for sale, start cleaning out your desk, because when this seaon's finished- so are you." I'm starting to believe Mason has concocted some kind of maroon-and-gold kool-aid. And boy has it been getting around. He's given it to Maturi, as rumors in the paper are that Maturi, even after last week, continue to talk extension. He certainly passed it around to the folks at E!SPN who were covering the game last week. Commentators Mark Jones and former Ohio State great Chris Spielman, were gushing about Mason and his accomplishments at Minnesota in 9 seasons. How he has a winning record (56-47), how his 3 8 win seasons('99,'02,'03) were as many as the school had in the previous 3 decades, and how he has a winning bowl record (3-2). They also mentioned how Mason had- I'm not making this up, they actually said this- turned down "numerous job offers to stay at Minnesota." They just couldn't heap enough praise onto Mason's shoulders as the team looked certain to defeat Wisconsin. And then we know what happened next. And he's been passing it around to pleny of Gopher fans. The common argument is that Mason's done much more, and is much better, than Jim Wacker- the man he replaced.
All of these things (except the comment about Mason turning down offers to stay at Minnesota. He's applied for every job known to man but has been turned down for all of them. E!SPN must have gotten their facts mixed up. THe kool-aid will do that to you) are true. Not counting this season, he's averaged a 6-5 record over 8 years. Yes Gopher fans, that means your team has a good shot at being bowl eligible. That's certainly better than Wacker or many of predecessors have accomplished. But my question is, why would you settle for this? GOPHER FANS DESERVE BETTER!!
I looked up the numbers that people AREN'T telling you. And believe me, they're not easy to find. I had to go to three different websites (and none of them were the team's official website, www.gophersports.com) to piece together Mason's history at Minnesota. After the loss to the Badgers last week, Glen Mason at Minnesota...

- is 27-41 in the Big 10
- is 5-22 vs ranked teams (he has not played a ranked non-conference opponent)
- has a winning record against three Big 10 teams- Illinois (5-1), Northwestern (4-2), and Penn State (4-3)
- is 3-3 vs both Michigan State and Indiana
- is 3-17 vs. Michigan, Purdue, and Ohio State
- against the rivals, is 2-6 vs Iowa, and 3-6 vs Wisconsin

Taking out this year's 2-2 conference record, Mason averages 3 Big 10 wins a season. Gopher fans, Mason has had 9 seasons at the U. He's won zero conferece titles, and the Gophs have played in zero New Year's Day bowls.

NORTH-FREAKIN-WESTERN HAS PLAYED IN THE ROSE BOWL IN THE PAST 9 YEARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No matter how hard you try, you can't turn a Cavalier into a Cadillac (I would know because I drive a Cav). You are what you are. What Mason is is a decent coach who will get you to a low-profile bowl game, and an average of 3 Big 10 wins a year. With Mason you're finishing somewhere between 6-8th in the conference. You're better than Northwestern, Illinois, and sometimes Indiana. And that's it. This is who the Gophers are, and always will be, under Glen Mason. If you're satisfied with that, then keep him around. But I think GOpher fans deserve better. We'll never be Michigan or Ohio State, or even Penn State, but there's no reason we can't be as good as Iowa, Wisconsin or Purdue. If believe that, then start writing Maturi's office that we need a new coach for 2006. And keep him away from the kool-aid.

Jeff: E!SPN

I've finally reached my breaking point. I've had enough, and I'm not going to take it anymore!! Henceforth, ESPN will now be referred to on this site as E!SPN, only a slight variation of the E! entertainment network. The self-proclaimed "World Wide Leader in Sports" is becoming the "Gossip-for-Schoolgirls" network for men. Sportscenter is now 30-90 minutes of who said what about whom, what color somebody's shoes are this week, what hairstyles are in, who a guy's favorite rapper is, and how he feels about. Oh and if they get time, they might even throw in a highlight or two from an actual game. Anchors like Stu Scott and Linda Cohen haven't said one original thing in a decade. They're using the same shtick they were using when they started at the network, when their one-liners were actually amusing. Why not just hire Leeza Gibons and Joan Rivers as your anchors, and Brooke Burke and Tara Reid as your reporters and get it over with. "This week, Brooke talks to Shaq and Steve Nash about their hair, their groupies- and their spa of the month."

And you know what the saddest part of it all is? It's not that E!SPN has decided that us sportsfans are so dumb, all we want are chicks in bikinis, cool graphics, and snappy, overused one-liners. No the worst part is that E!SPN can get away with this because they know that real sportsfans like myself and the Jer have nowhere else to go. HOw in the name of BOOYAH! are there 19 cooking channels and shows about how to fix your sink, and yet there's so little choice for factual sports news?!? E!SPN knows there's no competition out there, so they can keep throwing this garbage on there and people like me will watch just hoping for 5 minutes of highlights and analysis. Fox Sports found a niche with regional networks, but anything other than actual games or the Best Damn Sports Show Period! (which is on about every 15 minutes), look like the cable access channel.

In this world of 24 hour cable networks and the internet, E!SPN is so worried about being able to hold a viewer for more than 15 seconds that they're throwing this and any other garbage on to get people watching. Believe it or not, people like myself and Jer, and others out there, are actually able to wade through all the media crap that we're inundated with on a daily basis, and find what we like. But they screw the die-hard knowledgeable sportsfan simply because they know they can!! If somebody out there has enough money to start your own network, or to buy an existing one, please: don't start another "how to make tofu taste like meat while giving your bathroom that post-modern look" channels. They're everywhere. Instead, start a real sports network that shows games, analyzes them, and previews them. You can leave who Tom Brady's dating or what color TO's underwear is for the folks in Bristol. They'll cover that and more next on E!SPN Sportsce!nte!r, hosted by Paris Hilton and one of the Queer Eye Guys.

Jeff: The Godfather is back!

He's done it again. Just when I think "THe Don" David Stern has lost all his Godfather-like powers, he starts slapping people around and telling them to act like a man! First he avoids what could have been a very ugly strike/lockout with the players union. Sure he didn't get everything he wanted...or did he? I think he got more of what he wanted than the players did, and as usual that means The Don wins. Now he comes out with the dress code. Are you kidding me? Not just because athletes are more spoiled than ever, but also because of the imminent race card being thrown in? In spite of it all, Stern goes ahead with it, that knowing smile on his face that this will work. At a press conference today The Don laid out the new NBA dress code. Phrases like "business casual" and "sport coats" were used in the same sentences as "NBA players". Impossible? Laugh all you want, and granted the thought of Allen Iverson, or even Jason Williams (the one who didn't shoot his limo driver), in a suit is hilarious, but make no mistake-- this WILL happen. Stern didn't go into specifics about exactly how he will enforce this dress code, saying only this:

"If they are really going to have a problem, they will have to make a decision about how they want to spend their adult life in terms of playing in the NBA or not," Stern said.

A veiled threat? Hardly. Do you really think a man that has worked so hard to make this league so successful, and who cares so much about the image of both himself and the league, would dare try this if he didn't know it would work? You really think he would stick his neck out this far if there were ANY risk of it getting cut off? No sir. AS amazed as I am that somebody would try this in the lawsuit-happy world we now live in, BECAUSE it's the Don, I have no reason to believe he can't pull it off. Nobody else, repeat NOBODY ELSE, would even dream of this, let alone try it. The man should be on everyone's ballot for the 2008 presidential election. I don't know, or care how, but he would clean up Iraq, balance the budget, and feed Latrell Sprewell's family if he were elected. Of this I have no doubts.

Jeremy: Sid Has All The Answers

You gotta love Sid Hartman. He's the kind of writer who you can't help reading, but everytime you do he says something that completely baffles you. I can't read his column without laughing and screaming in my head: "WHAT?!?!" It makes me wonder how a guy like this is still writing for a major metro newspaper.
On a side note wondering how Sid still has a job, apparently Sid also has a world-class foul mouth. I've heard it said that Sid cannot go 3 minutes without using the infamous "F" word. He's even sworn at my employees during catering events. His liberal use of swear words, particularily the aforementioned one starting with an "F", is legendary. I've never met him myself, but I'm told he is neither pleasant to be around, or welcoming in how he approaches people.
Moving on... Ever the last word on all things Minnesota sports related, today Sid had this gem.
"One comment on the Vikings. One of these days, the critics will discover that the Vikings don't have talent, and their record is not the coaches' fault. Last year, the Vikings scored 47 touchdowns; this year, they are on pace to score 16. Enough said. "
Enough said. Enough said? Nicely done Sid. Nothing like hatching up an opinion contradictory to what everyone else is saying. I commend Sid for standing on the other side of the street, however, he's completely wrong.
I'm not saying that how terrible the Vikings are has everything to do with coaching, because that is crazy. But to say that their horrible season has NOTHING to do with coaching is ridiculous. Furthermore, to say that the Vikings don't have talent is a cooked up way to let the coaches off the hook, when they clearly deserve to be firmly on the hook, along with their seaworthy players. Letting the coaches off the hook is just plain stupid, but it's the only viable plan if you want to keep your lips firmly planted to the rear ends of the coaching staff so that you can join them for dinner at Murray's on Thursday nights.

Jeff: So This Is How It Feels...

...to be a Bengals fan (at least before this season). Or the lone Arizona Cardinals fan. To be looking ahead to the NFL draft before October's even over. I've pondered before if it'd be worse to cheer for a perenial loser, or a team with expectations that constantly breaks your heart. This season I may get to find out. Is this really the team picked to go to the Super Bowl? A team who would tell anybody that would listen about their new image now that badboy Randy Moss was gone? I don't know about you, but I'd take Randy's halfmoon or any of his antics over what's happened so far. With Randy on the team I know we'd at least have scored more than 1 touchdown in the last 24 quarters.
But this is obviously so much larger than Randy. Or Matt Birk. This team had two weeks to prepare for a one-dimensional Bears team with a good defense, and instead of looking ready, it was as if they spent the two weeks on the Love Boat (Oh wait, that's basically what happened). The team stunk for the fourth time in five outings, showing absolutely no signs of improvement from the pounding they took at the hands of the Falcons two weeks ago. Is it too early to say the season is lost? Unfortuneatly, Purple fans, it may be time to start looking to see how close we are to the bottom of the standings instead of the top. It's us vs the Texans (who are getting crushed in Seattle as I type this)for the right to pick the best USC Trojan (I take Reggie Bush over Matt Leinart but that's a discussion for another day).
Now before you start pointing to the pathetic NFC North standings, and how the Vikings are STILL very much in the hunt for the divison let me say this: tHe other three teams in the Norris may not have terrific records, but they've been in every game. They've moved the ball consistently, and have even stopped people on occasion. The Purple have been in exactly one game, and that's only because the Saints were even more disinterested than the Vikes.
The "alleged" sex cruise scandal was bad enough, but the Vikes could have used it as a chance to come together (a REALLY easy joke right there but, like Denny Green, I'm taking the high road here) and make a stand for their season. Instead the game was over from the opening kickoff.
So the big question today for Vikings fans isn't how do we fix Daunte, or the running game, or the line, or the receivers, or the defense, or playcalling, or whether Mike Tice knows how to write up a resume? The biggest question is which Trojan would look better in Purple? (I'll let you insert your own Love Boat joke here)

Jeremy: Looking Back @ Wisconsin

Thanks Lukedawg & Twinsfan for the replies on the last post. Obviously a lot of emotion tied up in that Gopher game against Wisconsin, as there always is, but this one seems to sting a bit more.
I agree with both of you to varying degrees. Twinsfan, I see your point about not blaming this on coaching, and you can't blame the entire loss on coaching, but for sure somebody needs to remind an 18 year old kid what to do if the snap is botched on that punt. Did somebody do this? We don't know, but somebody dang-sure should have. And Luke brought up an even bigger coaching mistake with the on-side kick that I certainly was not aware of. It's the coaches job to see what is happening on the field and react accordingly with personnel, scheming and teaching... this simply did not happen in the final moments of Saturdays game.
And for once I'm not even saying it's necessarily Mason's fault. Of course, he is the head coach, and the blame falls somewhere on his shoulders. But there is a special teams coach on this team right? Somebody, a coach, has got to understand the situations that the team is in, and react. And when it counted most, when everything was on the line, a win over one of your biggest rivals, housing two traveling trophies, a Big 10 Championship, a January bowl game... nobody reacted accordingly.
With the success that the Gophs had the entire game against Wisconsin it is painfully obvious that the coaching staff had a good gameplan in place. And the way the team played it's also obvious that they believed in the gameplan and the coaches and they executed. They did what the coaches asked them to do. Are we to believe that suddenly at the end of the game these guys didn't do what the coaches asked them?
A good gameplan isn't the end-all and be-all of coaching. Good coaches know when the gameplan is irrelevant, when to get away from the gameplan and just play good, smart football. It doesn't seem, to me anyway, that this happened on Saturday.

Jeremy: Another Coaching Failure?

The Gopher football team was well prepared to play on Saturday in the Border Battle against the Badgers. The team did everything right and put themselves in a position to win. The coaches must have a had a great gameplan in place.
So in the end, who do you blame for a botched punt snap?
After speaking on the phone just minutes ago with Jeffrey, I concur with him:
Whose job is it to remind the punter: "if the snap is bad just down it in the endzone, we'll still have the lead and we can let the defense win it."??????
Just a hunch, but it might be a coaches job.

Jeremy: My Emotional Gopher Experience

I was standing in Sportsman's Bar on Como Avenue in Minneapolis with my gal last Saturday as Jason Gianni kicked the Gopher field goal that beat Michigan. The first time a Gopher football team had taken the Little Brown Jug from the Wolverines in 19 years. Why I was at Sportsman's surrounded by a bunch of half-hearted (at best) Gopher football fans is not important (and it's pretty anti-climactic too), but what is important is how it felt.
You've already read all the stories about how big of a win it was, how the Gophers did it, how Michigan is having a down year. None of those stories matter now. It's over. The Gophers beat Michigan. It's just a W on the record and let's move on to Wisconsin.
At least as far as the team is concerned.
It's six days later and I can't stop smiling everytime I think about the fact that we finally lifted the monkey that is Michigan off of our backs, threw it to the ground, and walked away able to look ahead.
My uncle and my cousin were there. I talked to them after the game. I wasn't even there, but just talking to them on the phone was an emotional experience for me. My gal will attest to the fact that I was an emotional mess when we walked out of Sportsman's. I was happy with disbelief over the win. I was ecstatic for my uncle and cousin who were at the game. I was slightly sad that I wasn't able to be there with them.
It's the weirdest thing in the world sometimes, to me, to be a sports fan. The logical part of my brain keeps telling me that it's just a game, a dumb football team full of guys that I don't know. But the emotional part of my brain (heart?) is completely overcome.
Anyway, yes, I cried. Okay? I said it, I cried.
I'm walking out of a crap little bar with my fiance and I'm shedding tears over a football game as she consoles me and I'm babbling, "I can't believe we beat Michigan. It's just a dumb football game. I can't believe we beat Michigan. I'm sorry I'm crying, it's just a dumb game, but... it's Michigan. And my uncle and cousin are there."
I can't imagine what it would have been like to be there. I'm sure I would have just collapsed.
I cannot explain it, I simply cannot. I cannot explain my loyalty to sports teams. I cannot explain the anger I feel when they act like idiots off the field. I cannot explain the joy I get when they finally do well. And I cannot explain why it brings me to tears.
But what I can explain is how much fun I've had at Gopher games over the years both home and away, even when I feared for my life one November Saturday in Iowa City. I can explain the memories of tailgating with close friends, making new friends, and having perhaps one too many before heading into the Dome for an 11 a.m. kick off.
And I can explain how close I am to my uncle and my cousin and how I believe Gopher football has played a huge part in that. Gopher football is like a strange family legacy for us. It's an unrational loyalty to a rotating bunch of young men who we have no personal attachment to except for the state in which they play. It's not like being a fan of Florida State or USC or Notre Dame, whose teams have one or two bad seasons in 20. It's different. I believe it takes a bit more intestinal fortitude to be a Gopher fan. Then again, I'm a little bit biased.
I know I've said it before, but I'll say it again...
This is what it's like to be a Gopher fan.

Jeff: Can Daunte Save the Season?

Ok so I'm not making deadlines for myself anymore. I haven't had internet at home until the past weekend, so I'm not sure when I thought I'd get all this time to write. Certainly not at work or school. But now that I have the net back (and cable) I'll be able to write some more- and of course do a lot less homework. Jer was having some computer troubles of his own, otherwise he would have posted about the Gophers win. Only he or Josho really should comment on this one, since they've been waiting like 16 years for this. IT's coming, trust me. I'll also get to the Whine List at some time.

Today, though, it's about Daunte. The Purple face the Chicago Bears this Sunday. They've had two weeks off, two weeks to prepare, two weeks to answer questions about what's wrong with the team and whether it can be fixed. I can't answer the second, but I can answer the first: Daunte is the problem. Minnesota needs the Daunte we've seen up until this season, not the bumbling, stumbling turnover machine we've seen through five weeks.

I probably can't repeat what you're saying right now. Probably something along the lines of "No $%^&!! EVERYBODY KNOWS THAT!!! Tell us something we DON"T KNOW!!" Thank you, I will. I was watching the Atlanta debacle at the Jer's place, and midway through the game, after Daunte made yet another terrible decision, Jer's housemate Ryno made the comment that Daunte "looked rattled and like the Falcons got in his head. He's completely lost his confidence!" Ladies and gentlemen, the light went on for me.

Culpepper has been one of the top quarterbacks in the league, and had it not been for Peyton Manning, he would have been league MVP last season. How in the name of Wade Wilson does Daunte go from MVP to moron in one summer? People point to two factors: Randy Moss and Matt Birk, and I agree that the absences of both are the reasons for Daunte's struggles- but for more than the reasons you hear. Yes, teams can defend the Vikes differently and much more aggresively than in seasons past. You HAD to commit at least two people to Moss, and sometimes even that wasn't enough. Now you have the option of blitzing any one of the 11 guys on defense. Nate Burelson, Travis Taylor and the rest of the Vikes receiving core have talent, but they're certainly not keeping D co-ordinators up at night. THey feel like they can blitz like crazy and not get burned. And so far they've been right.

Losing Birk hurts because he was absolutely your best lineman, and now you're reshuffling lesser players to fill the void. Very true. Birk was very athletic and a great blocker. BUt he was also excellent at recognizing blitzes at the line of scrimmage. It's the center's job to call out blocking schemes and blitzing players before the snap. Birk was exceptional at it, and seemed to always make the right call. The Vikes line and backs, for the most part, knew what was coming and who was coming, and it kept Daunte upright and able to throw the ball. And there in lies the key: keeping Daunte upright. Not just for his physical health (hey even 260 pound QB's can only take so many hits)- but more importantly for his mental health.

Ryno hit it right on the head: Daunte was rattled. He had lost his confidence. Our good friend Austin Danger Powers would say he'd lost his mojo. For his entire career, Culpepper's been a man among boys, and has had the time to use his incredible physical gifts. He played on a great team in high school, and played against lesser competition at UCF. Up until this season, he's played with a lot of talent in Minnesota, and it's allowed him time and space to do his thing. But this season opposing defenses are bringing the house on every play and Daunte is helpless to stop it. It's hard to believe that a quarterback that stands 6'4, 260 pounds with his incredible physical gifts could lose confidence in himself so easily but that's exactly what's happened.

Look at the Vikings losses this season to the Bucs, Bengals and Falcons: Minnesota was down early, and Daunte was down often. They blitzed the hell out of him early, got to him, and he was never able to recover mentally. In all three of those games, after getting killed early, even when Daunte had time to throw he was missing open receivers. No throw in the NFL is "easy" by any means, but he was missing passes that a starting NFL QB should make- let alone one of the best in the game. Now look at the New Orleans win. Daunte's first play from scrimmage he went right after the Saints and connected for a 27-yard TD to Taylor. Next series, he went after them again and it resulted in another TD. #11 got the mojo working early and the Vikings cruised to their only win of the season.

So how do we keep Culpepper, and his confidence, upright? I have as little faith as you do that Mike Ticey or Steve Loney can come up to a solution, but it needs to happen before the Vikings season slips away. Remember, Minnesota's looked as bad as any Vikings team in the last 2 decades, but they're still just a game back of Detroit for first place. The Vikes need to protect Daunte enough to let him be aggressive early, which means finding a way to block blitzes that will come from any direction. Keep Daunte upright and you keep the Vikes season and playoff chances afloat. But if you see #11 on his big keester a lot this Sunday against the Bears, the Purple's season will pretty much be sunk.

Jeff:

Because the Vikes don't play this week, and because I don't have time, I'm going to put off the Daunte opinions until early next week. Nice to see Zygy not do the right thing and give Tice the vote of confidence today. Although, usually when that happens, that means the coach is walking the plank. We'll see.

Friday I'm going to start a new feature. No, not regular writings on this site! We might actually get regular readers if we did crazy stuff like that. No, instead I'm going to type the inaugural edition of "The Whine List". To explain, let me take you back to 1999. People were scared to death of the Y2K bug that was going to wipe out our banking system and cause mass chaos. Or something like that. Well obviously that didn't happen, but I found something it DID do: it has caused the world to be a completely fair, balanced, and just world. Yup, everyone is entitled to their rights, and by rights, I mean getting anything they want whenever they want it. Oh, and they don't have to earn it. They just deserve it because they want it. As a matter of fact, it's even more unfair if you do have to work for what you want.

If, for some strange reason, you don't get exactly what you want when you want, you have the right to bitch, complain, rant, rave and scream about it. Or hire lawyers, which do the same thing. Every kid that plays a sport now has to make the team and be a winner. Anytime something bad happens to somebody it's definitely not their fault- even if it clearly IS their fault. Yup, the world is fair, and people are unhappy when it's unfair. And therefore there's been a LOT of whining since the turn of the century.

There's been a few, mostly (ok, actually entirely) sports related whinings this week. I'll share those Friday.

PS-- the NHL starts tonight. Celebrate in the best way you see fit. I'm going to do homework. Yippee!!

Jeff: Going Down with the Ship

Mike Tice is a good guy, but he's not cut out to be a head coach. That much is clear. Mike Morris had some interesting comments this morning on the Powertrip Morning Show on KFAN, pointing out that Tice never got the experience as an offensive coordinator that pretty much every NFL head coach gets. You can't blame Tice for jumping at the chance to be a head coach. I think any of us would take a job with significantly more pay, even if we didn't have the experience or training for it. However, in his time as coach I think he's made it pretty clear he's not up to the challenge. Could he have been with some time as O-coordinator? We'll never know.

What I do know is Tice needs to go, and I think it should happen this week. The two arguments I've heard against firing Tice this season are "firing your head coach during the season tells your fan you've given up" and "there's no one else on the staff who could run the team any better." The second point is absolutely true. All these guys are barely able to keep their heads above water with their current assignments, and none of them are head-coach material. This is what you get when ol' Red puts together the cheapest possible staff. In this business, like any other, you get what you pay for. As to the first point, yes, firing your coach midseason rarely results in a Super Bowl appearance. Ok, it's NEVER resulted in a Super Bowl appearance. But, like I mentioned, this is a business. The players today aren't stupid. They know this. They read the papers and surf the internet and watch TV just like you and I, and they know Tice is a lame-duck coach. In today's Pioneer Press, Sean Jensen has an article quoting players that say:

"Tice delivered a 'rambling (postgame) resignation speech'"
"He quit on us... I lost all respect for him."
"You could tell he gave up on us"

According to Jensen, this isn't coming from benchwarmers-this was from STARTERS!!! Ladies and gentlemen, these guys have already abandoned the Good Ship Viking. THey've gone overboard and aren't swimming back until somebody-ANYBODY- has replaced Tice as the captain. Don't be worried about fans thinking you've given up-worry about the players!! THere's no sense in keeping Tice on for the rest of the year when every fan, player, coach, and Tice himself knows he's not coming back. Could somebody else on the sidelines do a better job? Probably not, but to avoid mutiny, Tice needs to go and he needs to go now. Give the new guy two weeks to throw a game-plan together and try and salvage the season. Because oh by the way, as terrible as we've played, we're still only a half game out of first place in the division. Is anybody worried about Detroit or Chicago running away with it? Me neither. The time to act is now. Make Tice walk the plank and see if somebody else can steer the Vikings towards the playoffs. Next year, we'll worry about a new coaching staff. This year, let's just worry about winning the divison while there's still time.

Tomorrow: Fixing Daunte

Jeremy: Outdueled in Happy Valley

As I was working throughout the Gopher Football game on Saturday I received periodic text message comments on my cell phone about the game from my cousin who was watching on t.v.
"Garbage."
"D no show."
"Death to Cupito."
"Death to the D."
"Death to the Gophers."
"They would have done better with a no show."

Even though it wasn't much prettier trying to listen to it on the radio while at work, in a sad way I was glad I wasn't able to watch the game. Since he was able to watch the entire game and since he obviously had a strong opinion on how things went I offered him a guest blogging opportunity on Midwest Sports Rubes. I present to you now, the best man in my wedding next June, my brother, my friend, my cousin... Josho. (edited for content and strong language)

There are two ways a team can lose a football game: either they can be beaten or they can beat themselves. There are also two ways a football team can win a game: they can play better then the other team or they can get lucky.
Today the Minnesota Golden Gophers lost to the Penn State Nittany Lions. Penn State played flawlessly. This is the major contributing factor to the Gopher’s loss. As much as critics of Glen Mason hate to hear it when he says it, Penn State is a good football team; the [Gophers] were simply outplayed by better student athletes.
Penn State made plays; the Gophers did not. The Gophers made mistakes; Penn State did not. As a fan of Minnesota football I expected today to see a good match where two good teams met on a battlefield of turf to see who was stronger.
In the end, it was very clear that Penn State was stronger. Minnesota ran into a buzz-saw today. Sure, both teams were undefeated going into this game. Both teams were getting national respect for their level of play recently, but in the end only one team could win. It is just too bad that it wasn’t even close.
As Gopher fans, we are accustomed to speculation and wishful thinking. “If only the Gophers could do (fill in the blank) then we would have acompetitive team.” If only the Gophers would have (fill in the blank) then we would have won the game.” Sometimes we are lucky enough to be able to pinpoint with relative accuracy just exactly what went wrong and what may be a good reason for why the game ended up the way it did.
Even when the Gophers pull through and win important games we hear speak of this nature coming from the celebratory lips of even the most faithful of maroon and gold supporters. Gopher fans can always speculate: “What if Cupito was better? What if the defensive line was stronger?” But today none of those things mattered. This game today was just so cut and dry there is very little room for editorial commentary.
Look at the numbers put up for both teams in this game. Minnesota's defense could not stop Penn State. The Penn State defense had Maroney perfectly dialed in. Cupito and the Minnesota offense could not make anything work against Penn State. The end result: Penn State outplayed Minnesota and was victorious.
That is the end of it. I wish there was more.