2008 Bowl-A-Mania in Triplicate!

Christmas is come and gone, and now the big New Years celebration is right around the corner where we get a week’s worth of BCS mayhem…with some really questionable games thrown into the mix. I think I would rather see some of these bowl games eliminated rather than a playoff system at this point; but who am I other than a football fan…like I really matter!

Here is a recap of the 2nd set of picks.
• Motor City Bowl: I still think FAU got screwed getting sent from FL to Detroit in December, but they did win and I didn’t have to watch it! WIN!
• Meineke Car Care Bowl: Close game with WVA pulling out, congrats! 2-0 this week.
• Champs Sports Bowl: Bobby and his boys beat the Madison Reds…3-0
• Emerald Bowl: Miami didn’t win…I’ll leave it at that, 3-1
• Independence Bowl: Bulldogs win a bowl game for the first time since 1980, 4-1
• PapaJohns.com Bowl: I got sushi, eel rolls! And somebody won, I think Rutgers won…I call it a win, 5-1
• Alamo Bowl: Cousin Chase (who knows, we might be related!) and the Tigers from Mizzou pull it out in the end, 6-1
• Humanitarian Bowl: Blue turf…7-1.

This takes my total so far to 10-5 for this bowl season. Now on to more picks!

• Texas Bowl, Reliant Stadium in Houston, TX
Not sure how but Rice managed to get into a bowl game after fielding a 9-3 record, which is generally opposite of their typical record of 3-9 and will be taking on the Western Michigan Broncos with a matching record. These regional MI teams are the only ones that the University of Michigan managed to beat this year while Rice is a grain served best in a bowl of gumbo.
MY PICK: Rice has a home field advantage, but to be honest…who cares? I’ll pick Rice just because.

• Holiday Bowl, Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego, CA
Oklahoma State brings a 9-3 record and losses to the power players of the Big 12 into San Diego to play Donald and the Boys from Oregon, who also bring a 9-3 record out of the Pac 10. Big 12 teams like the Cowboys have no defense, and Pac 10 teams like the Ducks have no defense either…should be a basketball score.
MY PICK: My secretary is an OSU graduate, Go Cowboys!

• Armed Forces Bowl, Amon G. Carter Stadium in Ft Worth, TX
This edition of the Bell Helicopters Peace Thru Superior Fire Power Bowl matches up the United States Air Force Academy with an 8-4 record against the Houston Cougars with a 7-5 record. Air Force is known for high powered offense and Houston is known for…well, there was David Klingler a long time ago.
MY PICK: God Bless the USA! USAF, Go Falcons!

• Sun Bowl, Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso, TX
Pittsburg travels southwest from the Big East to face off against the Oregon State Beavers from the PAC 10. OSU did beat USC this year, and I applaud them for that since I hate USC…and Pitt is the alma mater of Dan Marino and Tony Dorsett. Both teams started miserably and rebounded in the end, but fell short.
MY PICK: The Beavers lost 3 big road games this year, I’ll hold my breath and take Pitt.

• Music City Bowl, LP Field in Nashville, TN
Vandy is in their first bowl game since 1982 and only the 4th one ever and get a home date thanks to their 6-6 record to take on the Boston College Eagles coming out of the ACC with a 9-4 record. I so want to cheer on the Commodores, but they are Vandy…and their purpose is to help raise the overall academic standards of the SEC, not win football games. And they are also facing off against the runners up in the ACC who barely lost to Virginia Tech in the conference title game.
MY PICK: Sympathy goes to Vandy, but common sense says pick BC, I’ll go with common sense.

• Insight Bowl, Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, AZ
After going 1-11 last year the Golden Gophers head south from Minnesota with a much improved 7-5 record to face off against last year’s Big 12 Cinderella, Kansas with a matching record. I still think Kansas is a basketball school, but they are apparently learning how to play football.
MY PICK: The state of Minnesota may have elected a stupid SNL “comedian” (I use that term loosely) to replace a find Senator…Go Jayhawks!

• Chick-Fil-A Bowl, Georgia Dome in Atlanta, GA
My beloved Bayou Bengals fell well short of their BCS National Championship hopes and finished a lowly 7-5, losing many games as a result of not having a QB who can throw to the right player. They face off this year against the Wramblin’ Wreck from Georgia Tech, who bring a national ranking of 14 and a 9-3 record into this year’s match-up of the SEC and ACC. The Jackets finished strong with a win over in state rival Georgia while the Tigers dropped a heart breaker in Little Rock against the Pigs from Fayetteville in the last game of the season.
MY PICK: I am by no means a fair weather fan, but think the Tigers would have been better off staying home and finding them a QB for next year…but I will pick them none the less. Geaux Tigers!

2008 Bowl-A-Mani 2, the Sequel

2008 Bowl-A-Mania 2, The Sequel

The 2008 Bowl season is off and running, and so far I’ve been surprised by how good some of the games have been while still thinking there are way too many stinking bowl games for anyone’s good.
Now for my first round recap.

• EagleBank Bowl: My house got cleaned and Wake won…since my house took precedence it’s a win. 1-0
• New Mexico Bowl: CSU came from behind and beat the Bulldogs…and I still hate Acadiana High School. 1-1
• St. Petersburg Bowl: This was a joke with USF winning their home game, good visit with my dad. 2-1
• Las Vegas Bowl: BYU lost by 10 when their kicker who only missed 2 field goals all season missed 3…another missed pick. 2-2
• R+L Carriers New Orleans: A surprisingly good game that had me switching between the Giants and Panthers. Golden Buzzards win and we had a great fellowship. 3-2
• San Diego Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl: I have no idea what happened here, and what happened to Boise???? 3-3
• Hawaii Bowl, Aloha Stadium: I hate Notre Dame. 3-4

OK, I pretty much stunk up the first set of picks…let’s hope the 2nd set is better.

• Motor City Bowl, Ford Field in Detroit, MI.
Nothing says “holiday get away” like a trip to Detroit in December! Yeah, right. Watch out for drive by shootings and protect your wallet like your life. And lucky for the Florida Atlantic Owls they get to leave the Sun Belt to face the Central Michigan Chippewas from the MAC playing in their 3rd straight Motor City Bowl game. Remember that too many bowl games thing? FAU was 3rd in the Sun Belt and CMU was 4th in the MAC with a 6-6 record.
MY PICK: FAU fans stay in the sunshine and everyone else go shopping for post Christmas specials.

• Meineke Car Care Bowl, Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC
ACC could have been North Carolina brings their #1 ranking…oh wait, that is in basketball. This is the 8-4 football team taking on Big East should have been West Virginia with a matching record in the mother of all big corporate sponsored ball games.
MY PICK: I’m picking the should have been, Mountaineers win.

• Champs Sports Bowl, Citrus Bowl in Orlando
Bobby Bowden brings a less than stellar 8-4 team out of the ACC that at times showed signs of brilliance during this season to take on the 7-5 Wisconsin Badgers who finished 6th in a pretty pathetic Big 10. I’m a Bobby Bowden fan and if you took all of the Obama loving Socialists out of Madison…it would be a ghost town.
MY PICK: I’m going with FSU since it is a bit of a home game, but wouldn’t be surprised to see the Commies win.

• Emerald Bowl, AT&T Park in San Francisco
This year’s Fruit and Nut Bowl plays host to the Granola State’s own Berkley Bears out of the Pac 10 taking on the U from Miami coming cross country to one of the few places even more liberal than South Florida. The Canes are 7-5 and play in an overrated conference while Cal is 8-4 in a one team conference…where do I turn, where do I turn? Who do I despise the most?
MY PICK: It’s a home game for Berkley…but they are Berkley, that isn’t even part of America, is it? I can’t even say I pick…them; so I’ll say I pick Miami.

• Independence Bowl, Independence Stadium in Shreveport, LA
The game that is so good that they managed to lose their sponsorship! After seeing mediocre Big 12 and SEC teams for the last few years, they returned to a classic match up of a 4th place WAC team, Louisiana Tech taking on a .500 team finishing 5th in the MAC, Northern Illinois. Yeah…classic. What happened to the mediocre BCS schools?
MY PICK: I’ll probably watch this game just because of LA Tech, and I’ll pick them too.

• PapaJohns.com Bowl, Legion Field in Birmingham, AL
Isn’t this the bowl game Louisville has been trying to get since building Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium? In this year’s edition the State College of New Jersey, Rutgers comes out of the Big East finished tied for 4th in that conference to face the NC State Wolfpack who come to SEC territory out of the ACC with a last place finish in their division. Too many bowl games?
MY PICK: Honestly, I’m at a loss here. Probably the only thing worst than a mediocre mid major getting into a bowl game is a mediocre majors getting a free trip during the Christmas break. Darn, it will be Monday at 3:00 PM…I’ll be working. I win!

• Alamo Bowl, Alamo Dome in San Antonio
The 15th edition of the Alamo Bowl matches up Big 12 could have been Mizzou with the Big 10’s never quite was Northwestern. There were big hopes for the Tigers this year that crashed and burned against the big boys of the Big 12 south; and as for Northwestern…well, they are a school for drama majors, right?
MY PICK: I like that QB for Mizzou, Chase…and what is his last name again? Oh yeah, Daniel! I’m going with Missouri.

• Humanitarian Bowl, Bronco Stadium in Boise, ID
I still have yet to figure out how they managed to keep a bowl game going on the smurf turf for 11 years! This year Nevada heads north after finishing 3rd in the WAC to face off against the 7-5 Terps coming cross country from the University of Maryland. Did I mention the blue turf? And Idaho? Blue turf? Yeah, really…blue turf. Please do not adjust your TV’s color settings; that really is blue astro-turf you are seeing.
MY PICK: 2:30 on a Tuesday, you know…I’m going to have to be in the office…darn!

Since I need to get the kids ready for bed I’ll pause here and pick back up soon. If you have not been offended as of yet…my apologies, I’ll try harder next time!

2008 Bowl-a-Mania

So I turned on my TV this morning and what do I see…A BOWL GAME! Is it that time of the year already? And I still haven’t made my picks? With so many meaningless and useless bowl games leading up to the last week of December and that the sitcom that we get to watch daily with the Illinois Governor’s office…it is understandable how these early games can be over looked. But then again, it is the weekend before Christmas and I just had to turn my air conditioner on too; go figure.

This year there will be 34 bowl games featuring 68 different FBS (formally known as Division I-A) schools, which means it will much harder to not get into a bowl game than it is to get into one. In some cases a mediocre season is more than enough to play in the 2nd season.

With that being said, off we go with my bowl picks for this year. As in previous years, expect it to be as politically incorrect as possible, some golden calves may be slaughtered and someone may very well get offended as I give my opinion of your favorite school, your home state and even thrown in some political and theological points in for fun. Enjoy the first of many parts!

• EagleBank Bowl, RFK Stadium in Washington DC
The 8-4 Navy Midshipmen bring in 2 straight heartbreaker losses in bowl games to take on the 7-5 Demon Deacons from the ACC, Wake Forest. We have the alma mater of Vietnam War hero, US Senator and GOP Presidential nominee John McCain facing off against a team from one of the most liberal Baptist schools in the country…so much so I’m ashamed to call them Baptist at time. Not sure the point of a bowl game in the nation’s capital when the schools are failing, crime is up and the US Congress has an approval rating of 18%.
MY PICK: Not watching this one, cleaning the house for company, automatic win for me!

• New Mexico Bowl, University Stadium in Albuquerque, NM
The artist formally known as the Sun Bowl plays host to the Colorado State Rams, bringing in a 6-6 record out of the Mountain West Conference against the spunky Fresno State Bulldogs with their “Anybody, any place, any time” attitude who have a 7-5 record. So the 6th best MWC team is taking on the 5th best WAC team…and this is supposed to be a bowl game?
MY PICK: Typically I wouldn’t give a rip, but since CSU should be at home and remind me too much of the Acadiana High School Rams…I’m picking Fresno.

• St. Petersburg Bowl, Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, FL
Basketball school Memphis carries a 6-6 record from the C-USA into the citrus state to take on the Southern Florida Bulls with a 7-5 record that includes a 2-5 record in the Big East. Once again, why?!?!
MY PICK: My dad is here, I win.

• Las Vegas Bowl, Sam Boyd Stadium in Sin City
The geniuses in Las Vegas hoping for a cash cow must be flipping their lids as the Mormons make their 4th straight appearance in the city known for gambling and legalized prostitution…yeah, good choice there! BYU is 10-2 and was oh so close to crashing the BCS party while Arizona is 7-5 and making their first bowl appearance in 10 years. I hate the Pac 10.
MY PICK: The Cougars should make their prophet proud.

• R+L Carriers New Orleans, Super Dome in Big Easy
Mid-Major powers Southern Miss (6-6 in C-USA) takes on the Men of Troy, Troy University, champions of the Sun Belt (8-4). My thinking is one bowl game in New Orleans is enough, and although I have no ill-feelings toward the Golden Eagles or the Trojans…I probably won’t be watching this one either.
MY PICK: We’re having friends over for fun and food, and lots of coffee! Auto win.

• San Diego Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl, Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego
Boise State gets the screw job of the football season and bring an undefeated record into the step-child of the Holiday Bowl to face the TCU Horned Frogs. TCU is not a real slouch, bringing a 10-2 record out of the Mountain West…but may have bitten off too much with the bitter Broncos.
MY PICK: Broncos will score 100 style points.

• Hawaii Bowl, Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, HI
Please tell me why Notre Dame goes 6-6 and gets rewarded with a free trip to Hawaii?????? Their hosts, the Warriors of Hawaii finished 7-6 after getting pasted by Georgia in last year’s Sugar Bowl. This game used to be played on Christmas day and has now been moved to Christmas Eve…which means fewer people watching. I’m not so sure the catholic boys have been saying enough hail mary’s lately since they haven’t won a bowl game since 1992 or 93.
MY PICK: The hometown Warriors, I really don’t like the Irish.

That is part one...more to come!!

Time Person of the Year

Well, it is official. Time Magazine has named Barack Hussein Obama their "Person of the Year" for 2008...or as i refer to it, a typical cover story for this pseudo-news rag.

Of course my math may be wrong, but i do believe that Barack Hussein Obama's face has gracefully graced the cover of one of his favorite PR publications at least 13 times as the focal point, and probably also was one of a collection of faces featured at least another 6 times in the last year. Every one of these covers presenting him as nothing short of incredible, of course; while the likes of John McCain or Sarah Palin were presented as the evil, scum of the earth politicos that those who practice yellow journalism make them out to be.

Time Magazine is just another proof of what Sean Hannity refers to the death of journalism in 2008. With more and more print publications going broke, we can only hope Time's time will come also.