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Moving
Day The time has finally come that it is moving day. After nearly nine months of apartment living, the entire family gets to go home....to our new home. I can't tell you what a pain in the rear it's been this year, living like a gypsy. This week, my family gets back to a routine as we gather all of our belongings under one roof. Thanks again to Heard Ratzlaff Construction, for doing a great job on our new house and completing the task in record time. I made a bet with them that if they could finish the project before Thanksgiving, I would supply holiday dinners to the entire staff....I've never been happier to lose a bet in my entire life. Moving is never easy, and that's true if you're going across country or across the street....but I have never been more excited to go through the process than what awaits my family this week. Speaking of moving and making changes, the NFL teams had to cut their rosters down to 53, and there was a surprise move made by the Panthers. Everette Brown was released by Carolina and the second-guessing started immediately. If you remember, Brown was a player that the Panthers loved out of Florida State. The team liked him so much that they traded their 2010 1st round pick to acquire his services. Ouch. Marty Hurney, the GM of the Panthers, was quoted as saying Brown is a good player but you're not going to be right 100% of the time. Double - Ouch. Unfortunately in the NFL, when you're not right 100% with your first round picks, you suffer some serious consequences. It's one thing to botch a pick in the second, third and fourth rounds, but you gotta be damn good with those first-rounders. This turned out to be a colossal mistake....and the team is paying for it. After watching Carolina's last pre-season effort against the Steelers, I would have to say winning 6 games this season would be a major achievement. The team coming off a 2-14 campaign has major issues with apparently few answers. If the Panthers want to get to six wins, they need to pick one up in their opening game at Arizona. Coach Ron Rivera made a declaration earlier in camp when he said the team could win nine or ten games. I don't see it under any circumstance....not as the doormat of a really good NFC South. I applaud him for his exuberance, but that comment would have been better served in the locker room and not in front of the media. The folks in Vegas don't feel the Panther vibe, since they have the Cardinals favored by a touchdown. The first full weekend of the college football season was a blast. We had some marquee games and a sprinkle of upsets to whet the palate. I was impressed with the way LSU pounded Oregon up front. You can say a lot of things about Tigers coach Les Miles, but there is no doubt that his team plays hard in big games. They were well prepared and punched the Ducks and their trendy uniforms right in the kisser. The other big game was at the Georgia Dome, where Boise State continued their mastery over BCS teams....this time, Mark Richt and the Georgia Bulldogs fell victim. I think Boise State runs the table and finishes up undefeated.....something that they didn't accomplish last year. On the SiriusXM College Football Sunday show, this was a hot topic. And by the way, that four-hour show on Sunday felt like it lasted 30 minutes. It's the most fun I've had hosting a radio show in a long, long time. Getting the chance to talk to the entire country about a sport that I love was too much fun. But, back to Boise State....it was funny to hear fans make a case for and against their accomplishment and existence. SEC fans will not give in to the Broncos....it's as if the guys from Boise are trying to get into their party without a formal invitation. Boise State is really good....they are legit. Would they be undefeated or have only one loss if they played a SEC schedule? Probably not....but that's not important or relevant. They play the teams that are on their schedule....if they go undefeated, then they have to hope their body of work is good enough to put them into the BCS title game. I don't think a perfect season will put them over a 1-loss team from the SEC, Pac 12, Big Ten or Big 12. But what they did prove on Saturday night is that they are much better than Georgia. The Dawgs not only embarrassed themselves in being outplayed and out-coached, but they also traded in their classic uniforms to dress up like a bunch of Coca-Cola cans in their new NIKE Pro-Combat threads. It was embarrassing. I hope UGA took a leak on those things before they burned them. Mark Richt is in trouble....and I hate it for him. He's one of my favorite coaches...no...make that people, in college athletics. However, in the SEC, you get paid big bucks to win football games, and right now the Dawgs are struggling. This week, the Ol Ball Coach brings his Gamecocks to Athens. It is a huge game for both sides, but importantly Mark Richt needs a win in the worst way. It is definitely a game to keep your eye on this Saturday. Duke lost to Richmond? Again. Ask any Duke fan when Midnight Madness begins, and I bet that they can give you the days, hours and minutes. This week, the Blue Devils entertain Andrew Luck and Stanford. Something tells me it could be uglier than usual at Wallace Wade Outdoor Stadium. Elsewhere in the Carolinas: NC State underwhelmed me against Liberty....same goes for Clemson's effort against Troy. The Heels played well, even if it was against James Madison. I couldn't help but notice how blue the new seats are at the expanded Kenan Stadium. Great numbers by quarterback Bryn Renner. Wake lost a heartbreaker at Syracuse and the Gamecocks and Pirates entertained nearly 60-thousand in Charlotte. I guess Steve Spurrier is back on the Garcia Bandwagon, after the five-time suspended senior rescued the Cocks from an early 17-point deficit. The one thing that jumped out at me was Appalachian State's DeAndre Presley downplaying the Hokies after they beat the crap out the Southern Conference power. Presley thought the Mountaineers made the Hokies look better than their national ranking. Huh? 66-13....scoreboard. That game, just like every other ASU vs. FBS game since 2008, should answer App State's question about leaving the FCS. I love Jerry Moore and the program that they have built in Boone. It's fantastic....the facilities are great, the fans are loyal and understand good football, and they dominate the Southern Conference. Why in the world would they want to ruin it? Stay put and continue to make it special on Saturdays in the NC mountains. Ever since the Michigan game in 2007, ASU fans have convinced themselves that the difference between FCS and FBS is a narrow strip.....it's not. The numbers don't lie. I felt great for Skip Holtz on Saturday. The former East Carolina coach, and current big cheese at South Florida, won the biggest game of his career....beating Notre Dame in South Bend. For Skip, it had to be an emotional victory. There's nothing like taking your team to a place that has meant so much to him and his family....and then coming away with a huge win against the ranked Fighting Irish. It was fun to watch, and I'm thrilled to death for him. Skip is one of the best people in the game, and the guy can flat-out coach, too. As for ND, the beat goes on.....this week, they head to Michigan and the first night game ever at the Big House. Let's hope the weather cooperates, so they can play all 60 minutes this week. And I'll warn you ahead of time....both Michigan and Notre Dame plan on unveiling special uniforms for the big contest. You've been warned. The NASCAR race in Atlanta was postponed due to weather and rescheduled for Tuesday.....that's assuming that Mother Nature cooperates. I'm writing about this a day prior to the event, but assuming we have racing as planned on Tuesday....I can only imagine what the stands are going to look like. Normally, the Atlanta race doesn't draw flies to begin with, but when you throw in a couple days of delays due to weather and a national holiday....it has all the makings of a Florida Marlins game. Seriously, the stands could look like the second half of a Duke football game in November. This could be a reincarnation of a Bobcats game on Tuesday night against Sacramento. I know we're getting closer to the cut-off for the Chase, but the race in Atlanta might be one for the ages. |
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