Weekly football post #17.

Another step forward toward the end of most football seasons, another short weekly football post. Remember when the football posts would be so large? I would cover high school, NCAA, NFL, CFL, SPL, EPL, and the MLS? Those were the good old days for my faithful readers. However, with just a handful (wait, is that always five?) of those seasons continuing on, this LSF writer needs to learn how to "hook" the reader with not a whole lot of material. Lucky for me, this time there is a lot of exciting stuff (or at least, a LSF win for me thanks to the Bhoys). 

Notre Dame jacked Hawaii 49-21 in the Hawaii Bowl. How do you lose the bowl named after your college? Charlie Weis bumped expectations for his club all the way up to this writer's prediction of 9-3 for next year (remember, I picked 5 straight victories down the stretch in '09). It will be interesting to see if Clausen can prove that he can continue to improve, and we all hope that his improvement will include no longer taunting the state that he is playing in after each touchdown (hang loose, dude). But, if you want to remember the game, and more specifically what this LSF writer thought of the action, simply click here. 

Wait, listen... is that the sound of the Edward Jones dome closing its doors until next year (and I mean next season, not that lame "next year" 2009 joke that everyone at work does)? Yes! My defective Rams dropped the final game of their mediocre season with another dreadful loss to a better team (thanks for the synonyms, rhyme zone). It was a close match to walk the Rams out of the building, a 31-27 battle against a Falcons team really needing a win to get into playoff glory. I actually got to watch the first part of this game (notice I didn't say first half) at Karen's parent's house thanks to the NFL Sunday Ticket. I got all the way to the Rams 14-10 lead before we left to head out to a Watsonville suburb called Corralitos to visit another Ryan family. What did I miss? Outside of another Steven Jackson touchdown (by the way, his first TD run of 4 yards was just rawly powerful... and sexy), and a couple of Ramie field goals (is Josh Brown the season's MVP?), I missed out on a really normal and expected Rams collapse. The boys from the STL grabbed the 14-10 lead with 32 seconds to go in the half, and were able to allow a Falcons TD on a 9 yard run by Jerious "Honey, I'm Gonna Snowball Jackson" Norwood with 11 seconds left to go into the half down 17-14. I think that TD by Hot-Lanta smoked our chances of feeling good about ourselves heading into the final 30 of the season. Matt Ryan (hopefully somehow related to Karen) led his squad to a 14-13 second half win, which handed the former Vick squad their 4 point win over my beloved boys formerly hailing from Anaheim (hey, at this rate, maybe St. Louis will send them back!). Marc "I was raised Catholic" Bulger finishing 19/32/230 with 1 TD and no INTs. Not an awful day on the stat box, but if you watched the game (and by game, I mean almost the first half), he wasn't looking that great. His entire performance, for me, was summed up by getting sacked for a 20 yard loss on a 4th and 5 in Falcons territory. He looked like Jimmy Clausen from his freshman year (throw the ball, you idiot!). Steven Jackson put up a somewhat meaningful 161 yards on 30 rushes to get him up past 1,000 for the season (despite all his talks preseason about getting 2,000 "Reggie Bush" yards). 1998 ACC Offensive Player of the year (you're right, they are underrated!) Torry Holt finally led the receivers with his 6 and 90, with Houston graduate Donnie Avery getting the lone TD. In the end, it was a 2-14-0 season for the Boys in Horns, which was good enough to tie the Kansas City Chiefs for the second-to-worst record in the entire NFL (I wonder who we'll get #2 this time around?). Not much to look forward to next year, until the Rams get a new head coach, but if you know me you can be sure that extremely positive 2009 predictions are on their way for this haphazard squad. Will it be Panthers/Titans in the Super Bowl, as Karen's father predicts? He is, in my eyes, the all-time NFL expert, so we shall see. 

I'm so glad that Andrew supports Rangers because it makes the Old Firm Derby victories that much sweeter. This time around it was a slim 1-0 win for Celtic, pushing the gap at the top of the SPL table to 7 points (50-43) after 20 games. As Yahoo! UK & Ireland puts it, "A second-half wonder-strike from Scott McDonald gave Celtic a 1-0 win over Rangers in a scrappy Old Firm derby at Ibrox." Wonder strike? Damn! 58 minutes into the match, our favorite Aussie bounced a Gorgeous Georgios Samaras pass off of his chest, and then blasted it past bewildered keeper Alan McGregor for the golden goal. It was the first shot on goal for the Sligo side, and it was nice to have the first won drop in compared to numerous opportunities for the Boys in Blue. Artur Boruc and his Polish heritage held strong for the Hoops, getting key saves early on, and keeping those split-happy Protestants with a nice round number. It was the premier win of the premier league season thus far, and it has really put the Cels in a position to walk away with this one (and give them great standing and respect heading into the possible creating of a Euro League in 2009?). Celtic play their next match against #3 Dundee United on January 3 before taking a large break until they resume the SPL repeat title chase against #5 Aberdeen on the 17th. The next Old Firm battle is set for February 15, and it will be the final of the year, and a chance to decide who wins the season battle (with Rangers and Celtic each holding 1 win this season against each other). 

What can you say about Newcastle's weekend match against Liverpool that hasn't been said about the DRC? Tragedy. After dropping a boxing day match to Wigan 1-2, Newcastle came into their usual weekend spot against Liverpool with Irish National keeper Shay Given ready to get back his bearings. Instead, 'Pool ran wild against the struggling Magpie side, finishing with an embarrassing 5-1 win, to end 'Castle's recent climb toward the top 10. Whiston native Steven Gerrard was superb, getting two goals in the match for the Reds, and Yahoo! speculates that if Shay Given wouldn't have been between the pipes to make some thrilling saves, the less than inspired Newcastle side could have been on the wrong end of a double digit massacre (do they mean, if they had not goalie at all?). Before the midway point of the first half, Given had to make five "world class" saves to keep the Boys in Bars from utter annihilation. The lone Newcastle goal came from the 21 year old Canadian National, Edgar David, who nailed one home after being on the receiving end of a nice corner. Shay Given is reportedly the new target keeper for Arsenal, and when he makes some thrilling saves he moves up their list, while when his defense strands him enough to allow five goals they certainly move up his. What can Newcastle make of the rest of this season? Head coach Joe Kinnear can only hope to stay clear of the relegation zone while playing new players to figure out just what he has. With my sorry squad now at 5-8-7 (W-L-D) and just 22 points in 20 days, all eyes turn to a match against #8 Hull City as our next chance to draw even with the #10 spot in the EPL (currently held by 7-9-4 West Ham). Will the new line from the squad, that Newcastle is no longer for sale, spark the club to solid play? As we approach the close of the transfer window, will the Mags make any big splashes to close the gap between our talent and that of a squad like Liverpool? Time will tell, my friends. 

On my way out, I'd just like to briefly state that the Canucks are going to try and keep an East Coast winning streak alive against the Flyers tonight, after a nice 3-0 win against the Sens on Sunday. The win would pull us back within a point of the recently hot Flames, and we really need to keep pace on the top as we continue to wait for Luongo to return. Meanwhile, Mats Sundin has arrived in the most beautiful BC city, and will be holding a press conference in about four hours to reveal when he'll strap it up for the 'Nucks. Should be fun. 

Enjoy the penultimate day of 2008, suckers. 

A Few Updates Before I Go

There are three games today and tomorrow combined. Of the six teams, I care about none, so get ready for a three-thrust-bust. The next time we talk, I'll be in Houston ready to update you on the Big One and all the rest of the Bowl Games (at least the ones that matter).

Independence Bowl: 12/28/08 5 pm, Shreveport, LA, USA
Louisiana Tech (7-5) vs Northern Illinois (6-6), NI by 1.5

The LaTech Bulldogs really impressed later on in the season before a close loss against Nevada. Plus, they've always been above average in the playing football in D1 when no one knows you are department. Northern Illinois has finished its run as those cool unknowns that win Bowl games with neat, small players. Everyone knows who they are, and they aren't cool anymore.

My pick: Louisiana Tech, plain and simple.
Line: Points, please.

Papajohns.com Bowl: 12/29/08 12pm, Birmingham, AL, USA
Rutgers (7-5) vs North Carolina State (6-6), Rutgers by 8

A battle of two of the hottest teams in the country pits the Scarlett Knights and Wolfpack. Rutgers is also the most overrated team in the nation outside of Oklahoma. NC State beat way better opponents down the stretch.

My pick: NC State-I'm going with my underrated ACC philosophy.
Line: Points-Overrated team=overblown line.

Alamo Bowl: 12/29/08 5pm, San Antonio, TX, USA
Northwestern (9-3) vs Missouri (9-4), Mizzou by 12.5

Everyone thinks that Mizzou is a head-and-shoulders-above, better team than Northwestern. Mizzou was suppossed to challenge for a National Championship, but they blew it(thank you, DeNiro)! I feel that many of the Tigers were expecting to be playing in a much bigger Bowl. And hey, Northwestern has an equal 9 wins in one less game played. That has to count for something, right? It's too bad I hate them. At least we'll learn which mascot is more powerful/gay(aka hetero): the Tigers or Wildcats.

My pick: Missouri-I think that Northwestern shows them some things and I hope is able to pull off the mega-upset, as this is tied for the biggest spread of the Bowl season.
Line: Way too many points not to take. Yummy.

ACC Sweep or Swept?

The three Bowl games that we are blessed with today have a common theme: an ACC team plays in each. I earlier wrote about how I thought this was an underrated conference this year. So what happens? Do I pick all three ACC teams and make the ACC TLSF-hyped? Or do I pick none in true TLSF style?

Car Care Bowl: 12/27/08 10am, Charlotte, NC, USA
West Virginia (8-4) vs North Carolina (8-4), Pick

One of the least exciting Bowl matchups pits two teams I dislike (NC can thank this year's ND game for it) and lets them play in the sacred stomping grounds of one DeAngelo Williams. I was trying the other day to realize why I hated Mountaineer QB/RB Pat White so much. Couldn't come up with anything besides "you just do." North Carolina went from nobodies to hottest team in the FBS to nobodies quite quickly.

My pick: West Virginia-I think it would be funny if Pat White lost his last game at WVU, but he is playing such an uninspired NC team that I don't think it will happen.
Line: They both cover.

Champs Sports Bowl: 12/27/08 1:30pm, Orlando, FL, USA
Florida State (8-4) vs Wisconsin (7-5), FSU by 5

Wisconsin wraps up another let down year for Tommy in not making it to the pinnacle of College Football. They were ranked high at one point, Tommy. Then they lost like 14 in a row and barely getting by Cal Poly SLO in OT, prompting some to posit that SLO might become the next FBS team. I think that would be ridiculous and I'll hate Wisconsin even more if it happens. Florida State has the same team they've had the past 6 or 7 years, I'm positive of that.

My pick: Florida State-The Seminoles have to be able to beat this paltry bunch of Badgers, right?
Line: FSU covers.

Emerald Bowl: 12/27/08 5pm, San Francisco, CA, USA
California (8-4) vs Miami (7-5), Cal by 7.5

This is the game everyone has pegged as the sure shot, lockup, take-it-to-the-bank winner. There is no way that Cal loses. Let me give you three reasons why that isn't true. First, Cal sucks. They haven't won a game to put them over the top in ages. Second, Miami lost a bunch of players to suspension. Though this might make one think that Miami stands no chance, I feel that if I was on a team where people screwed up that I would want to go out with the teammates I still had and show the other team who we really are (Unfortunately, in this case it is Miami). Third, ESPN analysts are so ridiculously stupid. That's it. Just that they are stupid. I think I might hope for a Miami win just so people get their confidence fantasy pick-ems go up in flames.

My pick: Cal-I don't think there's any way that Cal loses.
Line: I'll take the points. Come on, close one!

Gauchos '08/'09 not like their '07/'08.

Does the striking end to the Davis/Do post strike mean that Brandon's family pulled in a new home computer for Jesus' birthday? Congratulations, if so. If you are a really faithful LSF reader, you know how well chronicled UCSB's last season was. The Mighty Gauchos went 22-9 (12-5 in the Big West), and made it all the way to the NIT, only to end the season with a loss to Mississippi. After an eleven game start to the new season, however, things aren't looking quite as great. The 'Chos brought back studs like Chris "Big Country" Devine, Pomona powered James Powell, and USF transfer Jesse Byrd, and brought in the thrilling new star and Stockton, CA native James Nunnally. Orange County ballers Jon Pastorek (Junior from Anaheim) and Jaime Serna (the true freshman from Santa Margarita HS) were also set to chip in. I know it has only been 11 games, and the Big West battles have yet to start, but the Gauchos' 5-6 campaign starting record has left a lot to be desired, and their most recent loss to Marshall Faulk and the SDSU Aztecs has made the winning seem even more distant from our Thunder Dome. 

The #12 public university in the United States (as ranked by US News & World Rankings) hopped on a bus and went 101 to the 405 to the 5 and exited on University Dr. (the exit being purely a guess) to take on the Aztecs from the state school known as San Diego. The 'Tecs are a surprising 9-3 this season, including big wins against UCSD, Fresno St., and USD this season. The Gauchos knew that they would be a tough opponent, and came prepared to step it up in their penultimate out of conference clash. Alaskan Chris Devine nailed down 18 points for the 'Chos, but the Blue & Gold only snagged three of thirteen from beyond the arc, in a game that ended in Aztec celebration with a 68-51 finale. Despite only being down by 7 after 20 minutes, UCSB just couldn't put it together, going -10 in the second half, and they would have a long ride back to Isla Vista on the SB Air Bus. Devine was the only Argentinean cowboy to get into double digits, with freshman James Nunnally (9) and senior D.J. "Ficky Ficky" Posley (8) finishing 2 and 3 on the squad. Jesse "Big" Byrd yanked down 6 boards, but it just wouldn't be enough, as the Aztecs had their main man (and Las Vegas, NV native) Lorrenzo Wade dominating the bout with a season high 17 big ones. 

USCB travels back home to match up against Ball State on December 29. The Thunder Dome will host the a rematch from a 12/19/07 game where the Gauchos held their own with a nice 79-52 win. This year, Ball State is an average 5-5 in the Mid-American-West conference, and they should match up well with the Gauchos. As for UCSB, Coach Bob Williams is going to have to get the squad pumped up for their final out of conference matchup. The team will be without Jesse Byrd, who is going to miss 4-6 weeks after suffering a knee injury during the game with the Aztecs. While the injury to Big Byrd will be tough to overcome, it opens the door for Orange County native Jaime Serna (who will have to go get him so much more than his 4.8 points per game with Byrd on the shelf). Come on boys, let's get 6-6 before matching wits with the Big West. 

Meanwhile, my other hardwood love affair are just continuing to roll along. Ranked as the #8 team in this great nation, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish are a thrilling 9-2 after a big (and really dominating) victory over the Savannah State Fighting Tigers (7-5) 81-49 on December 22. It was a game where Junior (and next year's NBA rookie of the year?) Luke Harangody shot just 36% from the floor, and still was able to finish with 23 points (thanks to a 13/14 night from the charity stripe) and 13 biz-oards. ND was quickly up on the Georgian school by 16 points after 20 minutes, and then went +16 in the second half to seal the deal. The 'Gody was joined by Saginaw native Tory Jackson and Senior Ryan Ayers in the double digit scoring club, and Sophomore and (hopefully) Mets fan Tyrone Nash chipped in with 9. The 8,260 screaming South Bend fans got to go home happy after the big win, and ND solidified its #8 national ranking by improving yet again. 

Despite being so highly regarded around the country, Notre Dame are only pulling their weight as the 8th ranked team in the Big East through their first 11 games. Pitt and UConn are both undefeated, with 'Cuse, Villanova, and Georgetown all hitting the hardwood with just a single loss. Keep in mind that 7 teams in the conference are nationally ranked, and ND is the second to last among ranked Big East teams in the table, with only the 7-2 Louisville Sluggers keeping occupancy in the basement. Big Easy play starts on New Year's Eve for the Fighting Irish, as a Catholic battle against DePaul (7-5) gets things under way. Do you believe that DePaul is the second to worst team in the entire conference at 7-5? That is unbelievable. It makes me feel bad for bottom of the barrel South Florida and their 4-7 mark. Anyway, the last time that these two Catholic schools went at it, it was a hard fought battle that ended in a 98-91 Irish win. That game clinched ND a first round Big East bye, and this one (to start the conference campaign) can be considered equally important (despite what ESPN experts may say) to get our guys off on the right foot. 

As Brandon already reported, the Canucks will square off against the Edmonton Oilers for a Boxing Day battle to be remembered. You want some hope for a sure thing win against the Oil? The Canucks have only been shut out three times during this season (most recently in the 0-5 debacle against San Jose one day before I arrived in this blessed Northern California city), and thus far in games following shutouts, the 'Nucks are 2-0-0. 

Mats?

One game today...

Motor City Bowl: 12/26/08 5pm, Detroit, MI, USA
Florida Atlantic (6-6) vs Central Michigan (8-4), CM by 7

It irks me that Florida Atlantic was invited to a Bowl game. I bet you can guess the reason. Money. College football is becoming more and more heavily influenced by money. Look, I understand that FAU earned their right to be bowl eligible with six wins. Congratulations to your program. One of the biggest surprises this year in college football was the play of the University of Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns. They went 5-2 in conference, nearly knocked off #24 (at the time) Illinois, played an exciting, close game with Kansas State, and at the end of the day still had a 6-6 record. What bowl did they get? None, my friend. FAU only amassed a 4-3 record in their conference. And what conference is that? The Sun Belt, the same conference as ULL. I cannot believe that there isn't some bylaw stating conference record be a tiebreaker in these Bowl tie-in situations. The NFL, which I hate, has tiebreak scenarios for everything. Get with it FBS!

My pick: Central Michigan-The Chippewas are far from a team I like. They are also a far better team than FAU.
Line: Central Mich hasn't blown anyone away all year. Thus, the game will probably go something like this, with an ending one of two ways. FAU comes out with a chip on their shoulder after reading this post and puts up some early points. This wakes up Central Mich and they take a commanding first half lead. They do not continue the aggression and FAU bounces back into it on some BS plays and gets 90% of the ESPN audience on their side because they are the underdogs (Not Tommy, though, because he has checked out the line). We get a close fourth quarter with little scoring and the game ends with a last second field goal to win by FAU or a defensive touchdown by the Chippewas, who win by 9. Since I hate FAU so much (there's only one team I consider the true Owls......Temple?), I'll go against logic and pick Central Mich to cover.

The Sabres play at the CAPITALS tonight in a showcase of the league's top two goal scorers, Thomas Vanek and Alexander Ovechkin. Jeff Carter, who is reported to have a league leading 26 goals for Philadelphia, I'm convinced is definitely not a real NHL player. I'm sure he's amassing all those down in the AHL. This means that J should have no worries about the Flyers rolling into Chicago this evening. The Oil also take on Vancouver at GM Place, so there's always that. Toronto? I think they play the Isles, but no one really cares about them. I'm in the mood for some Christmas Hockey!

J. Clausen, breaking all of the rules.

Notre Dame's Christmas Eve victory against Hawaii proved one of two things. Either A) ND made the right move bringing Charlie back for the 2009 season, or 2) Hawaii just can't beat and won't ever beat "big named programs" (remember last year when they killed my dreams of any underdog ever winning for the rest of my life?). Yesterday, Jimmy Clausen played the game of his young college career, Golden Tate set the records we all knew he could, and Notre Dame set things up to take a winning record in a really crucial season next year. 

J. Clausen was more like Jimmy Claus in this one, finishing with the ND record for most passing yards in a bowl game (breaking the record of Joe...no. Rick...no. Brady "Should have won the Heisman" Quinn) with 401 (a number that may be considered slightly less impressive based on his 300 passing yards after the first half), and he added a stunning 5 TDs. Three of his touchdown tosses went to our boy Golden Tate, and it all amounted to a flat out 49-21 romp against the "home team" in Hawaii. Those poor warriors will have to struggle through the remainder of their "winter" with frowns on their faces after again being shown that playing in the WAC really doesn't mean anything. TDs from Robert "It's all for my brother" Hughes, David "Grimey" Grimes, and two from "It's Outrageous, the size of this guy's" Tate got ND off to a 28-7 lead at the half, and I'm really not mentioning their talented defense keeping the pass happy Warriors on the turf. The beauty didn't stop their, as Clausen hit Armando Allen and Golden Tate for TD passes, and Mr. Aforementioned #5 ran back a Hawaii Bowl record (I made that up) 96 yard kickoff return that started getting the fatties out of their seats and headed back to their jobs at various tourist traps around the island (that was too mean, even for me). In the end, it was the best present any Irish fan could ask for: A Notre Dame Bowl win, a completely solid game from the up-to-this-point overhyped Jimmy Clausen (honestly, he was making some passes that made me feel like he may be becoming the legit deal we've been promised), and a spring board into a season that we now hope will be significantly better than a 7-6 completion after a pre-Christmas bowl game (can anyone else smell BCS bowl in January 2010?). 

The question is: Will Charlie Weis remain up in the press box for the entire 2009 season thanks to how great in worked on Oahu? He commented on it afterward, "It is 10 times easier. It's night and day easier. I haven't been up in the box since Drew Bledsoe got hurt. You don't want to do that long term, but calling a game from up there is pretty sweet." Hey, you idiot, don't do anything to mess with a winning streak. Haven't you even watched "Bull Durham?" Just because it is a baseball movie doesn't mean it doesn't apply to the pigskin. And, for all you faithful Irish fans, here is the trivia fact of the game according to Yahoo! (which Brandon and I dismissed a little prematurely via text message in the first quarter): "The Irish had player names on their jerseys for the first time since the Cotton Bowl to end the 1987 season. It renewed a tradition from the Ara Parseghian years when Irish teams did not have the names on the backs of their jerseys during the regular season, but added them for bowl games." Now I'm actually kind of all about it. 

Now all Irish eyes are looking to September 5, 2009, when the Mighty Irish line up against the Nevada Wolfpack at Notre Dame stadium. It will be a thrilling start to the new season, and one could only hope that ND will keep the winning spirit alive and well. Predictions for next year already? Sure. Looking over the 2009 fixtures, and basing my picks on the way that these guys played when it really mattered (aka, not during losses to losers like Syracuse), I'm giving the Leprechauns a 2009 record of 9-3 (and that is being pretty darn objective in my opinion) with a season ending winning streak of 5 straight victories. 9-3 would put us in the BCS, right? Bingo. 

By the way, just to end all the talk now, just because the Lakers beat the C's doesn't mean they're the better team. Far from it, actually. December 25th doesn't matter (in terms of the NBA season, I mean). Beat us in the Finals, and then we can talk. Always remember, 131-92 in Game 6 of the finals; that's pathetic, and that's why you will never be the better team. 

Merry Christmas too all, and remember, the MLB Network launches in just 7 days on channel 213 for all of my DirecTV brethren. 

I Hate Sidney Crosby! and other rants

I really don't want to spend too much time on this subject, though I must, as a TLSF staff writer, report the news. The Pittsburgh Penguins defeated the Buffalo Sabres last night 4-3 in OT. Take a guess at who scored the winning OT goal. No one. Evgeni Malkin threw a puck toward the net early into the OT session which hit Sidney Crosby right in the blade of the stick and ricocheted into the net. The thing was, his stick was well above the crossbar. The goal was reviewed and, of course, allowed. I mean there's no way the league would disallow an OT winner, right? I mean hockey even made it onto Sportscenter last night!
It's just ridiculous that it has come to this. Yeah, I'm upset that we've lost the last two via OT goals, though anyone in their right mind who watches this knows it was a clear high stick. We shouldn't have given up a two goal lead, we shouldn't have let up a late equalizer, but we also don't deserve to have the game ripped away from us just so the league can save some face. As the boys on On the Fly said: "It's a case of different rules for different people."

John Terry was sent off early in the 0-0 (pronounced nil-nil) draw on MNF last night. This assured Liverpool of the top spot in the table for Christmas. Scolari put in Drogba in the second half, but he was reaching with that. There really was no way that Chelsea was going to score and we were lucky to walk away with the point. Hats off to Petr Cech, who played brilliantly, and hats on to the official who should have gone with yellow.

A couple Bowl games lead us up to the birf of our Savior:

Poinsettia Bowl: 12/23/08 5pm, San Diego, CA, USA
Boise State (12-0) vs TCU (10-2), TCU by 2.5

This is worse than Sidney Crosby. You have a team that has gone undefeated, 12 wins, no losses. They are one of only two teams that have done so this year. The other team is in a BC$ Bowl. This team has been in one BC$ game and won it, defeating a team playing for the National Championship this year, which has a loss. This game was incredibly enjoyable. So where does Boise State end up? The Poinsettia Bowl. Oh, but Beasy B, they play in a weak conference! How strong was the Big 10(11?) this year? Apparently strong enough to send Ohio State, with their two losses, in over an undefeated conference winner. This cements the BC$ as a giant hoax. It is all about money, and it seems to me that that is what the top tier of college football will solely be about. The game? Well, Boise State gets a lot of the great secondary prospects and uses them well. Their offense is powerful and you'll remember Ian Johnson as a load. They have a defense that is highly underrated. The team has not trailed in the second half. TCU is a great team as well. They have an incredibly exciting running back in Aaron Brown and their offense will be Boise's biggest test this year. Their defense has tons of speed, highlighted by Jerry Hughes, who is a beast. This game should be awesome. It's too bad I'm going to be pissed the whole time. There are people that think if Boise loses this game that it drops them down a peg; they shouldn't have been there. What about Oklahoma? If they lose, it's something like 15 straight BC$ game losses. Don't blow smoke up my ass, it's a case of different rules for different teams.

My pick: Boise State-If they lose, they still have fewer losses than Ohio State, and still would have a better shot at beating Texas.
Line: I'll take the points.

Hawai'i Bowl: 12/24/08 5pm, Honolulu, Hawai'i, USA
Notre Dame (6-6) vs Hawai'i (7-6), ND by 1

This game is so weird. I don't know why Notre Dame chose to go. I'll have to check with J on this, but I'm pretty sure Texas has better prospects than Hawai'i. I'm also pretty sure I'd rather see Rice play Notre Dame than Western Michigan. If Notre Dame plays uninspired, forget about it. If Notre Dame decides to play air it out with Hawai'i, forget about it. The Notre Dame defense has to win this game. Bruton is the guy I'm keying on here. If he decides to save himself for the NFL, I'm pretty sure Notre Dame is going down and perhaps taking Weiss with them. Clausen and the receivers have been fun to watch, but are far from dependable. Then again, that pretty much sums up Hawai'i and their offense. In fact, these teams are quite similar. They've played up to snuff at times and have disappointed at others. I'm going to go against the grain here and predict a really exciting, close game.

My pick: Notre Dame-I feel like my pick is a jinx. I know all those ND players are going to read this and now will play lax. I should pick UH and get them all riled up. OK, if you play for ND, I'm picking you to lose! If you're someone else, ND wins by a touchdown and Weiss keeps his job. Hooray!
Line: ND covers.

Weekly football post #16.

Watching the Canucks beat up on the Ducks (leading 4-1 with 12 minutes to go), I decided that I better post my quick football article for the week because we're heading out for San Jose on Wednesday, and I might not get another chance. 

Notre Dame is ready to rock and roll on their Wednesday bowl battle with Hawaii. The team has arrived on the island state after their 4,000 mile flight, and hopefully the squad can focus on football, rather than a winter break vacation. Don't forget, I predicted Irish by 3. We'll have to see if Brandon agrees (tough luck about Troy by the way). The game is at 5, and it should be a blast. Remember, as well, that it is also a really important game for Weis after keeping his job for next year. 

My Rams somehow found a way to lose to the 49'ers this weekend, to damage my image as a solid LSF guy. Isaac Bruce lit up his former team with a game winning touchdown with 4:03 to go in the final frame, and the North Cal squad busted the former Anaheim crew 17-16. I was about to send Jon and Karen's dad a dirty email celebrating the Rams win over their rivals, and then decided to check the score one last time before firing it off. Disgust came across my face after I discovered that we somehow blew a 16-3 lead in the fourth quarter to blow the whole damn thing. Bulger went 19/36/227 with 1 TD and 1 INT, S-Jack led the way with 108 yards on 32 rushes, and Darby led to way on receiving with 57 hash marks on 5 catches. I have to make this post quick, so let me just point out how happy I am that the season will finally end next week against the 10-5 Falcons. I predicted 8-8, and we are definitely headed for 2-14. Pathetic. How many times have I said that this season?

That's it for American football these days, with the seasons winding down. Over across the pond, the boys from Celtic beat Falkrik 3-0 this weekend. Gorgeous Georgios Samaras, Koki Mizuno (on a pass from fellow Japanese star, Shunsuke "Ninja Warrior" Nakamura), and Scott McDonald all scored, and Artus Boruc held strong for the clean sheet. Just another Hoops win, and the Sligo side are 4 clear of Rangers with 47 points in their first 19 games heading into the huge match against Rangers on the Sunday after Boxing Day. This game is so big to get Celtic way clear in the table, and it will be a knock down drag out sports battle that also pits religions and ways of life against each other. Bring it!

Meanwhile, Newcastle kept their winning ways going with a last chance goal from Damien Diff in their 2-1 win over Totts, the one team they should have beat. The Irish midfielder netted the all important goal in the 90th minute to snatch the win from the clutches of the draw monster. It was tough luck to the Spurs, who really could have used a draw to help them run more like the Boys in Bars. My man Charles "The only good thing to come out of France" N'Zogbia got the opening goal for the Mags just 11 mintues in, and Shay Given (the other Irish stud of the team) kept the score where it needed to be for a 'Castle victory. All the news out of Newcastle, however, is about how Michael Owen is delaying his decision on the Magpies contract extension offer. He had better come back after all that injury crap he put us through. Wigan is up next for the recently hot Newcastle. The Wigs are #11 to Newcastle's #12, and it should be a fun battle for the Mags to try and get back into the top 10 for the first time this year. 

Great match between Chelsea and Everton, by the way, in their Monday Night Football 0-0 draw. The rivalry goes on. 

I told you that it would be a short football post, thanks to me being in a hurry, and most of my "football" teams not playing any longer. 

I hope you all have a Merry Christmas, and do me a favor and say "Merry Christmas" to people rather than "Happy Holidays." Thank you. 

Hawks somehow cheat, beat B.C.

Why? Why can the 'Nucks not beat the punks from the Windy City? Maybe the Blackhawks are just too hot. Maybe Cristobal Huet was just too unstoppable. Maybe it's because the Hawks have an unending amount of energy because most of their players aren't old enough to even drive yet. It could be any of those reasons. Most would have you believe, however, that it has something to do with the Canucks' 5-6-1 record without our beloved captain in the lineup this year. Yeah, Sanny may have had something to do with it, but I think he made clutch saves multiple times, and in the end it was the fact that we just couldn't get that goal to match all the pressure we put on throughout the second half of the game (that, and the fact that the refs swallowed their whistles as the game went on, despite numerous clear visitor infractions). 

After watching the Leafs dominate Pitt, and humbly accepting the Habs win over the Winnipeg Sabres, I was ready to show some pride for my Vancouver boys (despite the fact that I had to strip out of my V-Town sweatshirt and hat due to an intense heat wave in Fullerton). 3:45 into the game, my fandom was given a present (a blue and green one), a Daniel Sedin goal. His 15th of the year was on a pass from Hank that luckily glanced off the skate of a the Great Dane Jannik Hansen right to the tape of Nintendo DS. Daniel popped home the easy goal, and the Canucks held that lead for the first 22:51 of the match. The second period was a little frustrating, with some dudes names Kane and Sharp beating Sanny to take the lead for the Original 6 squad. However, with a whole lot of time remaining, and Cu-Sa looking semi-sweet between the pipes, this 7th Canuck had hope. The 'Nucks had some serious chances, however they were squandered either by amazing saves from Chicago's Frenchie goaltender or Steve Bernier and friends just not getting the rubber into an open opportunity. The 'Nucks clearly had the better of things for the final 30 minutes or so, but a couple of bad calls along the way (too many men AGAIN at 9:12 of the second period and a 15:53 of the final frame Willie Mitchell call for interference that never actually happened) and an empty netter by Toews while the Orca went for the desperation play sealed the deal, and the future Wrigley Field squad walked out of the Garage with a 3-1 win against the good guys. 

The liberal Canadian media went goalie heavy for their three stars: 1) Huet, 2) Sanford, and 3) Ladd (0 goals, 1 assist gets you the third star?). Of course, I know everyone (including pathetic Hawk fans reading this) is waiting for the LSF Underrated 3 stars of the game, and as usual, I will not disappoint my small (and some would say insignificant) legion of fans: 1) Daniel "Nintendo DS" Sedin (the lone Canucks goal in the loss), 2) Grimsby, ON native Kevin Bieksa (the most ice time at 25:37, and the most hits in the game with 4), and 3) Kyle "Watch the Foot" Wellwood (who led both teams with his amazing 83.3% face off winning mark for those who took more than one face off in the match). Take that, "real media". 

The loss was actually kind of costly in the table. A win would have put Van-ca-tesh in the lone #1 spot in the division, but instead, the 18-12-3 (39 points) Canucks are still number 2 (-1 of the Flames). The rest of the division has Minnie (-6 of the Flames), Colorado (-7), and an Edmonton team fading fast (-9). Overall, my boys are ranked #5 in the West (tied with Anaheim), which sets up a huge battle in beautiful Western Canada this Monday. Vancouver matches up with the formerly Mighty Ducks tomorrow evening, and with both teams running at an 18-12-3 mark it should be an interesting matchup. It marks the second time that Brendan Morrison will get a shot at his former squad, and it will be a crucial matchup for solidifying positions in the wild, wild West. The last time the two teams got together, this happened. The game will be on KDOC, so this Center-Ice-less fan will be stoked. The Canucks follow that up with a Nor Cal game against the (let's all admit it) crazy amazing San Jose Sharks. I'll be in San Jose the next day, rocking my Canucks jersey to celebrate the hopeful win all over those teal green morons (don't worry, Karen doesn't read this). 

Quickly, we'll compare the Vancouver leaders to the Western Conference leaders just to wet my whistle: Goals- Daniel Sedin with 15 (some kid named Sharp and Goteborg native Loui Eriksson of the Stars with 18; Daniel is #9), Assists- Henrik Sedin with 25 (Joe Thornton with 29; Hank is #2), Points- Daniel with 33 (some other idiot named Kane with 39; Daniel is #8), and GAA- the injured Luongo with 2.17 (Jackets' man Steve Mason at 1.92; Roberto is #3). Just for the sake of knowledge, Malkin leads the NHL in points with 55 (although you wouldn't have been able to tell that by watching him play yesterday), and Sideny Crosby only has 1 more goal this season than "Cult Classic" Kyle Wellwood. 

Did you know that the Angels are still waiting on Mark Teixeira to make a decision? Wow. 

Second Annual (In)Complete College Footbal Bowl Game Breakdown

College Football Bowl Season is upon us. The year has to be considered one of the worst in recent memory: Notre Dame continued their losing ways; two conferences claimed to be dominant, yet were nothing but top heavy; a weak USC team decided that they deserved to be in the BC$ National Championship Game; Servite lost again to Mater Dei. Luckily, there was one team to redeem everything.

Not only do our Rice Owls have a chance to win ten games in one season, they have a chance to do it in front of me. And though I'd like to spend this entire post talking on that regard, I owe it to myself and the people of Santo Poco to bring fourth my Bowl Breakdown and Predictions.

The format remains generally the same as last year with a few changes. I am including the Odds (set as of 12/19) on the game and offering two predictions per game: line pick and pick to win. The strength of pick will be gone as I don't want to enter into a world where all my confidence is placed on ***SPOILER ALERT***Florida running roughshod all over Oklahoma***END SPOILER ALERT***. I just cannot do that to you or myself. I will also be submitting my analysis in a number of installments, I don't have the time to finish it all tonight. Enjoy.

Eagle Bank Bowl: 12/20 8am, Washington, D.C., USA
Wake Forest (7-5) vs Navy (8-4), WF by 3

J's love affair with Wake Forest has been chronicled many times on this site. I believe he's up to a whopping zero posts on them. Nevertheless, I am intrigued by the matchup. These teams met once before this season and Navy won by a touchdown on the road. The game in D.C. should be something of a home game for the Midshipmen. Wake brings their oh-so-fun-to watch offense to the nation's Capitol, though they will be without the services of D.J. Shoemate.

My Pick: Wake Forest-The Demon Deacons have been tested by a quite underrated ACC Atlantic and should be ready to play some serious ball, not like the earlier out of conference breather game they played.
Line: covered by WF.

New Mexico Bowl: 12/20 11:30am, Albuquerque, NM, USA
Colorado State (6-6) vs Fresno State (7-5), FS by 2.5

Beasy Bee 2001: "I think I can get on board with Fresno State." Beasy Bee 2008: "Fresno State sucks." I don't know what happenned in those years between, though a few Firestones have been consumed by me in that time. How long is it possible to play the underdog role? Pat Hill has taught us it's something like six and a half years. Colorado State is significantly overmatched. They are lucky to have received a bid, really suck at stopping passing and running offenses, don't have anyone named Darrell Williams playing for them (two Servite references already, w00t!), and are scared of pink freeways. Nevermind, they beat Sac State by 3.

My pick: The Bulldogs-Fresno State should be favored by 147 and we should fence off Central Cali.
Line: I'm going with covered.

St. Petersburg Bowl: 12/20 1:30pm, St. Petersburg, FL, USA
South Florida (7-5) vs Memphis (6-6), USF by 12.5

See above. These Bulls have the making of those Bulldogs and this season full of empty promises is the evidence I posit. You could make the argument that USF didn't have a bad loss until late in the season. Then again, a 49-16 drubbing at the hands of Rutgers does little for my faith in them. The only teams they were able to beat in the Big East were UConn (in a squeaker) and Syracuse (I won't bring it up). For every game that Memphis played well they had one game that they looked abysmal. Their record proves this.

My pick: USF-They're playing this game in the Rays' home stadium, Tropicana Field. Just thought you might like to know that.
Line: Bulls cover it, but only because 9=8.

Las Vegas Bowl: 12/20 5pm, Las Vegas, NV, USA
BYU (10-2) vs Arizona (7-5), AZ by 3

This game confuses me, though that may be the wrong word. Picture me as a comic book character with an exclamation mark in my thought bubble. Arizona has played good teams well, kind of. Their offense is inconsistent. The defense has some size and power and should be able to at least slow these Mormons down. Speaking of the Cougars, they single-handedly destroyed my hopes for UCLA football this season in a game that had the bike riders thinking National Championship. Suckers!

My pick: BYU-Though I hate picking Mormons, I do like honking and waving at them when I drive by.
Line: Give me them points!

New Orleans Bowl: 12/21 5pm, New Orleans, LA, USA
Southern Mississippi (6-6) vs Troy (8-4), Troy by 4.5

Oh, Troy. You ruined my first trip to New Orleans, then almost made me so happy by coming within a 30 point fourth quarter meltdown of victory at LSU. The Trojans have destroyed their Sun Belt (a conference I think 12 percent of college football fans know is in the FBS [formerly D1]) brethren, though that is not saying much this year. The Golden Eagles have just finished their second disappointing regular season. I know this because Rice has beat them twice in as many. They are probably asking if Bret Favre has had a child yet.

My pick: Troy-Their seniors go out with a bang, because I'm sure there are seniors on the team. That's just math, right?
Line: I'm going to take the points actually, I think this might be more exciting than most think.

Angels sign big name free agent.

No, not that big name free agent; even better. Last night over dinner, LSF writer Andrew asked me, "So, where do you think Juan Rivera is going to wind up?" My answer was a very solid, "I have no idea." Who would have thought that the Angels resigning one of their most underrated players would be the second LSF free agent signing post of the day? Not me, but damned if I'm not really pleasantly surprised. 

Despite having Most Valuable Matthews, Big Game Torii, Vlad the Impaler (throw back nickname reference!), Willits, Terry Evans, and the option of Chone Figgins in the O-F, I don't think very many around Angels Nation were ready to see our man Juan "Good ol' JR" "Magic Juand" Rivera get the deal he wanted here in Orange County. But, here we are baby. Yahoo! Sports writer Tim Brown (the Cal State Northridge journalism graduate, not the wide out of Raider fame) broke the news earlier this morning that the Halos are inches away from hooking Juan Rivera up with a 3 year contract. The deal is interesting because Juan stated as he went into free agency that he would only sign with a team that could secure him a full time starting position on the grass. The Angels have never looked like the team that would be able to do that, and yet, that must be the case. 

If you are a frequent reader of this blog, and I believe even the writers would barely classify themselves as such, you know that I basically have a man crush on Juan Rivera. Although Jose Guillen was a player I called studly on more than one occasion, we all knew the Angels had to deal him after the feud with "Lorri" Scioscia. The trade, Guillen for Juan Rivera and Maicer Izturis, is far and away considered the greatest deal in the history of the Halos by me and most other legitimate Angels fans (of which, there are few; actually, just me). In case you don't believe me, I'm taking a trip down statistical lane (almost sounded gross, right?) to convince you of the worth of good ol' JR (by the way, I completely realize that the signing of Juan pretty much cancels out any chance of the Angels signing my favorite "current" Halo player, Garret Anderson.). Juan is a career .284/.331/.468 hitter, and he has been pure gold in his limited play with the Red Hats. Starting in 106 games for LAA in 2005, JR hit .271 with 15 jacks and 59 RBI, then he stepped it up in 2006 with 124 mega games of .310/23/85. Read that line again. If we play things out for a full season, Rivera would have finished with 32 bombs and 111 runs batted in. Are you kidding me? '07 was the year of the big femur injury, but in 14 games (43 ABs) Juan finished .279/2/8, and 2008 gave our boy limited action in 89 games with a stat line of .246/12/45. Read this and weep morons: in his shortened season last year Juan hit home runs (or ding dongs if you are Rex Hudler) in 20.63% of his hits. That's means going better than one jack for every five hits. Are you on my side yet? Guarenas, Venezuela must be so proud of their boy. He better keep his femur safe if he decides to play LF for the Venezuelans in the WBC this year!

Now, what does the Juan Rivera signing mean for the Angels and the remainder of their offseason moves? Let's have some fun: 

1. Garret Anderson will not be signed by my beloved Halos.

2. There will be an upcoming trade by the Angels that will involve Figgins or Matthews (rumors from my sources have the Cubs and White Sox both currently calling Reagins about #9, with the currently injured Matthews being a lot more difficult to deal).

3. The JR deal may signal the sealing of the deal for Mark Teixeira in the next couple of days (the Angels had been in the hunt for other free agent outfielders, but getting the sweet deal on Juan may mean the majority of funds are shifting toward the big corner infielder).

4. Fuentes is not coming to LAA (see #3 to show the lack of Fuentes funds, and be happy that the saver situation will come from in-house). 

5. The Angels are going to have the best outfield in the MLB, again (Rivera-Hunter-Guerrero, left to right, rivals the days of Guillen-GA-Vlad, with Matthews/Willits/Evans ready to step in as needed). 

So, LSF fans, brace yourself  more offseason moves to be posted exclusively (meaning not exclusively, of course) on the LSF... possibly today? 

Sundin brings holiday cheer to B.C.

Just to let you know: 

1) We woke up here in Lake Forest to frost on the windshield and ice on the roof of the house. 

2) The Andrew/Brandon/Jon post strike here around the LSF has now reached a consecutive mark of 50 gigantic days, if you are keeping score at home. 

Alright, now it's time to cover the story that prompted a text message from my cousin (who is a hardcore Rangers fan, which you would know if you were a fan of the blog) that simply read: "Sundin is a fool!" Of course, I see everything that places the 'Nucks on top of the Rangers as redemption for the disgusting finish in 1994. Mr. Torontonian has signed with my Vancouver Canucks ending the long battle for the Hall of Fame (that's right, and I'm sure he'll go in as a 'Nuck) forward, which eventually got down to the Rangers and us. MS will earn $5 million to play out the remainder of the season with Vancouver, and I'm already voting away for him on the All-Star ballot as I type. He is scheduled to arrive in B.C. on December 27 (the day after Boxing day, no less!), which would make him first available to play against the Sens that following Sunday. However, he hasn't played a game yet, so his debut against the Flyers on December 30 may be a more realistic debut date. 

Let's start by getting to know Sundin by the numbers, and then we'll do what everyone else is doing (and mess around with fun line combinations). Mats (the plurality of his name reminded me of this Sports Pickle joke: "12/20/1926- The Giants trade Frankie Frisch and Jimmy Ring to the Cardinals for Rogers Hornsby. The Giants were disappointed to find out that Rogers was only one player and felt the two-for-one trade was therefore unfair.") was the first overall pick by the Quebec Nordiques in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft (I was 7!). Over his 17 NHL seasons (split between the future Avs and the Leafs), he earned himself 555 career goals (good enough for 22nd on the all-time list), and 766 career assists (34th all-time), which would by addition make him the 30th all-time point scorer with 1321. The soon-to-be 38 year old Bromma, Sweden native has never had a season with less than 70 points, outside his first year and the shortened lockout season. The only time he didn't lead the Leafs in points was when (Tommy's all-time favorite player) Alex Mogilny beat him by seven points. He is the only Swedish born player to have 500+ goals, and he is even currently tied with Jaromir Jagr and Patrik Elias for the NHL record for regular season OT goals with 15. He has one Olympic gold medal (2006), and has won gold three times in the Hockey World Championships (1991, 1992, and 1998). Mats was the first European hockey player to be drafted first overall in the NHL draft, and he is also the only Swedish player to amass 1,000+ points in a career. Just to focus on where he is at currently, here is the goal/point total for Sundin from 2000-2008: 28/74, 41/80, 37/72, 31/75, 31/78, 27/76, and 32/78. The large question, however, is: will this signing of a Canadian legend push my West Coast love affair deep into the playoffs?

Now, the fun part. What the heck are the Canucks going to do about the lines? While Coach V loves to mix up lines throughout a game, there has to be a starting line up and a couple of line mates that Sundin can really enjoy, and there are just so many options with pluses and minuses. So, let's go through the options, and see what this LSF writer thinks: 

1. Daniel-Henrik-Mats: I know you think this is how it is going to be. Match up the (arguably) three best forwards on the squad, all from Sweden, and create a top line that would strike fear in the greatest defenders around the Northwest. However, are there downsides to this bad boy of lines (which I think would carry a great nickname of the "Swe-dins")? Problem number one would be that you usually don't put your three best forwards on the same line. That's simple. But, if you have watched the Canucks, and you know what the Sedin lines have been like over the years, you would right away know why this is a not-so-perfect idea. With Daniel and Henrik on the same line, Vancouver has tried multiple combinations. And, one thing we know is that the player who is paired up on the alternate wing is destined to have a career year. We've seen it with Jason King, Richard Park, Anson Carter, Taylor Pyatt, and lately Pavol Demitra. So, why would I put one of my best players on the line with the twins when I know that any ol' fool is going to produce on the line with them? Decision: No.

2. Wellwood-Mats-Demitra: A couple of things stand out about this line option (with the Twin line shifting to include either Bernier or Mason Raymond). The first would be that this option would bring together two former Maple Leafs in "Cult Classic" KW and newbie legend Mats Sundin. The second would be that this line could be nicknamed the "WMD" line (or, "Weapons of Mass Destruction", for those of you having difficulty). Those are two pretty convincing reasons to keep this line together. I kind of think that this line is awesome, however, I find that it lacks the youth/speed factor that I enjoy so much. Po Po has also been really solid with the Twins, which makes me nervous about getting him out of that primary role. Decision: No. 

3. Demitra-Sundin-Hansen: So, this one drops the Leaf connection and adds the youth/speed factor I love to brag about on this roster. The one thing that I really like about this line is that the leadership of Mats can rub off on one of our young studs (especially a young stud like the "Great Dane", Hansen). However, the Herlev, Denmark native has been really a big piece of my favorite line (Burrows-Kesler-Jannik), and it would be tough to see him go. Plus, this line goes against my previous points about getting Po Po up with the Twins and getting Welly and Mats on the same line. Decision: No. 

4. Wellwood-Sundin-Bernier: Here we have both qualifiers I was looking for, with the former Leafs sticking together (as an attempt to make them happy, and keep Welly going good), and with a youth/speed type player getting a go with the Torontonian (by the way, spell check doesn't like that one, but Mats said it, so I'm golden). This lineup would put our new stud with a surprise success (Wells and his 12/5/+6 numbers) and a guy in Stevie B who is always looking to be able to show his potential (as I think he's way better than his 7/6/+4 numbers at this point). The Twin line could stay with Po Po plugged in (the line has combined for a 28/40/+8 stat line to this point), my favorite line of Burrows-Kes-Hansen can stay together, and the big bad fourth line of Hordichuk-Johnson-Jaffray can keep things solid at the bottom. The only question would be if this line would be considered #1 because of having Mats, or if they would take the 2 spot behind the King Twins of Ornskoldsvik. Decision: Pencil it in, bitch. 

Thanks to the NHL-Network and their deal with CBC, we will all be able to watch the Canucks welcome the Blackhawks to the Garage this Saturday. This huge LSF rematch battle pits the first place (tied) Canucks at 18-11-3 against the second place (would be tied with the 'Nucks for first at 39 points in the Northwest) Chicago Blackhawks at 16-6-7. Two teams with 39 points and a grip of young studly talent are going to get together in British Columbia and have a knock out battle. If you have watched these squads battle over the last couple of years, you know that this baby is going to be physical as all get out, and we'll keep an eye on Khabibulin and his "Fightin' Blocker Punch" in the game that can send the Canucks to the top of the division yet again. Lucky for Jon, his boys will miss our boy Mats. Does anyone else think that Patrick Kane looks like one of the brothers from "Malcom in the Middle"? 

Before I go, I want to point out some news from a ball sport. The Boston Red Sox have taken themselves out of the running for Mark Teixeira (joining the Orioles), after flying out to meet with him. This leaves the choices to the Angels and the Nationals, and I'm kind of on a streak with free agent signings after they have narrowed their choices down to some joke squad and my favorite team. Agree? 

I'll leave you with the Onion article that made me laugh harder than arguably any other Onion article, historically speaking. Enjoy. 

Does Lackey provide US lock in '09?

We take a break from the Hot Stove Coverage to take a look at the other huge story this offseason around the MLB. Where else are you going to get WBC '09 coverage on a snappy/witty blog with three out of four writers striking (48 straight days since a Jon/Andrew/Brandon post at this point). John Lackey announced last night that he would be one of the hurlers going for team USA in the WBC this time around, and he'll be rocking the Red/White/Blue starting on March 7 against the Canadians at Andrew's Rogers Centre. 

After the US played a rough WBC in 2006, finishing 3-3 while watching the Japanese win the tournament, Lackey and his 12-5/3.75 numbers from 2008 will try and bolster our country to the finals in at Dodger Stadium on March 23. Commenting on the decision, Lackey said, "I'm real pumped about it. It's going to be real good." The positive aspect for the Angels is that Lackey has already started to get into baseball shape so that he can be ready for the March 7 opener if called upon. Too bad for Lack, he'll have to team up with Derek Jeter, Dustin Pedroia, Kevin Youkilis, and Jon Lester for the US. Garbage. I wonder how Lack and Lester will get along in the clubhouse. Probably fine, because fans like me are the only ones who remember past games and hate guys so much. Right? 

The Americans are locked into "Pool C", which opens up with six games (double elimination) north of the boarder in Toronto. The pool includes us, Canada, Italy, and (gulp) Venezuela. Maybe it sounds worse than it is going to be, but the Canadians are out to surprise again. Last classic, the Canadians were in Pool C (which featured the Canucks, the Americans, Mexico, and South Africa). America's hat beat South Africa, and the followed that up with a huge upset against the United States. However, a loss to Mexico left Canada as the odd team out in a three way tie. Matt Stairs is angry about it, and ready to come back and represent for Canada again, "It will probably be a holiday in Canada," Stairs said referring to this season's second chance starting against the US on March 7. I'm most worried about Venezuela being in our pool, with Italy being the real outsider. So, with just two spots advancing, it is going to be a knock down drag out in the first round of play for Pool C. 

The other pools look like, A: China/Chinese Taipei/Japan/Korea, B: Australia/ Cuba/Mexico/South Africa, and D: Dominican/Netherlands/Panama/Puerto Rico. With the pool winners and the pool runner ups jumping into round 2, I'm going to throw out my predictions all the way through the WBC. Advancing from Pool A, I have China and Japan, while my Pool B picks are Australia and Cuba. Pool C, I'm calling the US and Venezuela, and Pool D is going to be a fun battle seeing the Dominican (without Vlad, by the way) and Puerto Rico (?) getting through. The double elimination of the second round breaks down into Pool 1 (China, Japan, Aussies, and Cuba) and Pool 2 (US, Venezuela, Dominican, and Puerto). From Pool 1, I'm taking Japan and a surprise Aussie club, and I'm grabbing the Dominican and the US from Pool 2 just to be proud of my home country. The semi-finals become a single elimination battle with my predictions seeing the Dominican taking on Australia and the US taking on Japan. I know this may sound crazy, but I'm putting the DR and the US in the final championship game at Dodger Stadium on March 23. DR vs. US. Hm. I know who would win that one, but I'm going to be a patriotic stud and pick our half-cool/half-douche squad for their first WBC title. A semifinal battle against Japan would define this country's baseball abilities, and I would call in sick to watch it if I had to. But, a WBC title on Lackey's resume would be pretty cool, eh?

I don't know if this point has come across or not, but I like the WBC. I'm not sure how many people reading this blog (0) are against the WBC (which, would also be 0 based on readership), but I wouldn't know why you would be against it. I have always wanted baseball to become like European soccer in its excitement and supportership (word?), and I think the every three years WBC really takes the sport in a step in the right direction. Now, if only I could figure out how to get people singing my made up songs at the Halo games: 

Sung to the tune of "Frosty the Snowman": 

"Kurt Suzuki,

Is a slant eyed catching bitch.

And the rest of the A's are mighty gay, 

'Cause their pitchers cannot pitch."

Sung to the tune of "Jingle Bells":

"Chone Figgins, Chone Figgins, 

Dear God, get a hit. 

Although a shitty lead off man, 

We love your 3 bag mit."

Sung to the tune of "Jingle Bell Rock":

"Vladdy G, Vladdy G, swing at that pitch. 

Who cares if it is ball 4?

Just hit jacks, and make yourself rich, 

Who could ask for more? 

Torii Hunter, Torii Hunter, brings back sure-thing jacks. 

Drives a Bentley, swings bats gently, 

Big Game Hunter always gives his max.

Howie K, Erick A, double play dudes, 

Robbie Q's on the bench.

Scioscia and Guillen had a couple of feuds, 

Kendry's causing a stench."

Sorry about the Christmas themed songs, but this is the consequence of the time of year.

I'm done. 

Five unanswered goals marks impressive win.

Roberto Luongo really wanted to get revenge on the Florida Panthers after years of helping the team to suck that much less. Unfortunately, he was on the bench thanks to his continuing groin injury, and he was relying on rookie Cory Schneider to prove the Blue & Green can dominate the Kittens. Schneider had a fairly good game, but it was the impressive offense getting five unanswered goals (four in the second period) to get back to their winning ways at home 5-3. 

It was 0-2 early on, and 7th Canucks around the Garage were a little shaky on the 'Nucks ability to get back in the game for Schneider. Oh, ye of little faith. After scoring twice in the opening seven minutes, the Panthers were on the way down, as Vancouver netted four second period goals (two power play goals and a shortie included in the mix). Despite being the hero of the game, Pavol Demitra gave Darcy Hordichuk all the props for getting the Canucks to swing the right way with his late first period goal on the assist from Kesler. Whoever got it going, it was a thrilling second period that sealed the deal. Po Po was skating in on net when a Florida defender lost the puck right near the post, and Demitra smashed the dropped puck in for the game tying goal. Demitra would score less than 6 minutes later on the advantage with a sweet pass from Mason "Linden" Raymond. 1:30 later, on the power play, the Twins were out with Kyle Wellwood, and they made some magic. Henrik dropped a behind the back pass to Nintendo DS, who then fed a quick pass to Wells. Wells was able to one time the puck out of the air (that's right, it was kind of a bad pass), and easily beat Park Ridge, IL native Craig Anderson (who has been surprisingly solid this year) to gain the lead. Less than one minute later, the Canucks were on the kill, Bieksa got an interception and drilled a long (two-line, thanks to the "new" rules) pass to Ryan Kesler, who was streaking into the offensive zone. Anderson had no chance against the Livonia, MI native. Three goals in 2:08 staked the 'Nucks to the big lead, and despite a Michael Frolik goal in the third, there was no chance for the Ps to get back into this one. A solid 5-3 home win against the East. 

Since the Canucks were back at the GM (which, rumor has it, will get a name change due to the suffering that GM is going through), the media was pretty kind when handing out the three stars. The official stars were 1) Po Po Demitra, 2) Ryan Kesler, and 3) Jannik "Great Dane" Hansen. Despite it being all Canucks officially, we have to go with the LSF underrated three stars of the game, and they are as follows: 1) Salem Witch Trial native and rookie stud Cory Schneider (now 2-2-1 on the year, 18 saves on 21 shots in a crazy offensive game), 2) Port Hope native Shane O'Brien (2 blocked shots, a +1 rating, and a solid fight with Greg Campbell), and 3) Henrik "H-Bomb" Sedin (1 really cool assist and a 60% faceoff winning percentage, which was good enough for a share of #1 across both teams in the game). The debate begins. 

At 17-11-3 (37 points), the Canucks have regained their hold on the top spot in the Northwest. Below, the table sits as follows: Calgary (-2), Minnie (-6), Colorado (-6), and the new basement buddies Edmonton (-7). Van-ca-tesh gets a rematch against Edmonton, after dropping a 0-3 bout last weekend, tomorrow night. This time, the bottom dwellers of the Northwest will be coming into the Garage to help tune the Canucks up for their Saturday battle with the Chicago Blackhawks (just another shot at LSF pride). As we approach this game, the news dominating the Pacific Northwest is all about Bromma, Sweden native and soon to be 38 year old Mats Sundin. The grandfather with 32 goals and 46 assists (that's 78 points for you all keeping track) has apparently narrowed his choices for return to the NHL to New York (the Rangers, not the Yankees) and Vancouver (the Canucks, not the Giants). The rumor is that Mats (or as I will call him if he comes to BC: "MS") "Torontonian" Sundin is going to make his decision by tomorrow. Most of me realizes that the Canucks are good enough for first place as they are right now, and most likely don't really need another forward, especially a center. With Wellwood playing so well, it is hard to bring someone in for a half of a season and watch everyone else drip down a line, pushing someone out who has been here all along. But, part of me thinks about how Mats could give that extra push that might help us to go further in both the regular season and the playoffs. What to do, what to do. 

I wonder what Andrew thinks. 

P.S. I think this is funny: Mats is currently owned by 58.2% of ESPN NHL Fantasy teams. 

P.P.S. I think this is really funny. 

Weekly football post #15.

As American football reaches its finales, I continue to push things forward with the LSF weekly football post. We'll take this brief walk around the football landscape, and hopefully learn some interesting things about my favorite footie squads. 

The word from the Post Tribune is that Notre Dame players were completely listing the Hawaii Bowl as their top pick for reasons other than the beautiful weather. Yeah right. The press conference for the players was inside a building protected from 5 inches of snow on the ground. The Christmas Eve battle between 6-6 ND and 7-6 Hawaii will be a drop dead all out fight, and the Irish are looking forward to it as the launching pad for a prosperous 2009. Weis was handed his job back, and if he wants to get off to a good start and prove that it was the right choice, he's going to need to break the bowl losing streak. Remember, I predicted a 31-28 Irish win. Hold me to it. 

The Rams had their lone chance to get win #3 on the 16 game season this weekend, and they blew it. A 20-23 loss to the Seattle Seahawks cost them that chance, and I don't think they'll be able to equal last season's thrilling 3-13 record. My mighty STL's earned a 7-0 lead on a TD pass from Bulger to Tory Holt (can you believe it?), and they escaped with a nice 17-7 halftime lead. Things were looking pretty nice after 30 minutes for my boys in the horns, but they have looked that way so often this season. I guess you could have figured where this bad boy was headed. My grandparents favorite football team put a 16-3 second half together to beat up on Flipper Anderson's former digs and earn the win. The Rams finished with 333 total net yards (just 9 less than the Hawks), but just couldn't make the moves needed to hold the fort in this one. Marc "I grew up Catholic" Bulger went 19 for 32 for 207 yards in the air, tossing 1 TD and 0 INTs. Not really big numbers, but it wasn't an awful day. Las Vegas native Steven Jackson was getting back to the basics with 91 yards on the ground, and Torry Jabar Holt led the way with 64 receiving yards in the match. Holt still hasn't had a game over 100 yards this season, and that holds the key to the problem at large around Rams Nation. At 2-12, the Rams continue their pathetic run to the end of the season next week against Jon's San Francisco Forty Niners on December 21 before a post-Christmas finale against Atlanta. What can this team possibly do to not suck in 2009? 

With high school and CFL on the shelf, we switch from American football to what the rest of the world calls football. After a 2-0 stomping of Villareal in Champions League play on Wednesday, Celtic took to the SPL field on Saturday, and got stalled again, this time by Heart of Midlothian. It was a late strike from Stephen "Mick" McManus that broke the hearts of Hearts fans, and helped maintain the Hoop's four point lead over the Protestant Reformers from Rangers. It was a 23rd minute blast by Heart to get on the board, but Papa Poland Artur Boruc held strong between the pipes, and a beautiful cross from Mr. Ninja Warrior Shunsuke Nakamura led to the match tying goal from our boy Stevie Mac. With 44 points in 18 games here in the campaign, the Mighty Celts line up against Falkirk next weekend to try and prove that 1 is better than 9.  

What the heck got into Newcastle this weekend? The Mags ripped up Portmouth 3-0 to shock the EPL and pull all the way up to #14 in the table. Michael Owen, who was offered a contract extension after the weekend, netted the opening goal for the Boys in Bars and was followed up by Obafemi Martins and Danny Guthrie to just completely jack the Porters. The 'Castle goals were all scored on turnovers by the home side, and it was pleasing as hell to see the Black & White actually take advantage of the miscues to secure a rare victory. Has Newcaslte Nation been more excited since the start of the campaign? Maybe the fact that the next match is against relegation buddies Tottenham will make all of us Toon Soldiers even more pumped up. At 4-6-7 (W-L-D), the Pies are working toward getting back to .500, and it is mostly thanks to Michael Owen's 7 EPL goals and Oba's 6. Shay Given has played more minutes than any other player this year, and he has really been turning things around with 2 clean sheets in his last two games. With 19 points in 17 games, #14 Newcastle will battle #15 Totts for a huge EPL match here on the upcoming weekend, and we may be looking to push all the way into the top half with a win and a couple of clutch losses. Can you believe it? 

With both Chivas teams sitting at home watching football, this brings us to the end of this week's football post. All LSF eyes are on the pitch as we roll through the end of the month, with Rams/9'ers, Everton/Chelsea, and Celtic/Rangers all getting ready to be damned exciting for us poor damned fans. 

Since it's over, let me just step away to the hardwood to give some brief updates: 

1) UCSB bullied Loyola Marymount 81-61 over the weekend with Sarah Palin fan Chris Devine dropped 15 on the Leos. At 5-4, and now #3 in the Big West, the Mighty Mighty Gauchos are getting ready to face 4-4 Weber State on the road mid week. The Ogden, Utah school is proud to be the home of Heber C. Jentzsch, who is the President of the Church of Scientology. Just for that, I can't wait to see the 'Chos crush these guys.

2) ND slapped Boston U around over the weekend with a 74-67 victory, with Schereville, Indiana native Luke Harangody leading the way with 23 points. Despite being #12 in the nation, the Irish are sitting at 7-2, which is only good enough for 10 out of 16 in the Big East (this is the biggest, baddest conference in the world). Despite having to say that they are getting ready for their match against Delaware State this weekend, us real Irish fans know that they're focusing on Saturday February 21, 2009 when they match up against the punks from Prov. Bring it! 

3) And finally, the 23-2 Celtics from Bean Town are off to the greatest start in franchise history, if you can believe it, and I could give two dumps. Merced, CA native and Big East graduate Ray Allen leads the team with 18.9 points per game. The most underrated of the Big 3 is just putting up numbers to shut you up. So, shut up. Later this week, the C's go up against the surprisingly 15-9 A-Hawks, and hopefully they can improve on their dramatic 15.5 game lead (by my count) on Brandon's really stupid Clippers. Really, it's not cool to be a Clippers fan, so I hope you like them because you actually like them, and not because you think it's cool to like them. Sorry, I know you actually like-like them, but I'm just trying to talk recycling bin material to further the rivalry. The day the world stood still is February 25, 2009, because that is when the greatest sports rivalry in the history of sports takes to the tip. 

On my way out, I'd like to point out that the Halos offered 8 years/$20 million to Mark Teixeira to try and fight off the offer may by the surprise Nationals, and he better make a decision one way or the other soon, because we need to move on. 

Orca crush Pussy Cats.

The kittens from Nashville may have complained about the physical play from the Blue & Green, but clean hits and clean goals led to a solid 3-1 Vancouver win with Curtis Sanford between the pipes. Burrows laid the best hit of the night and netted an empty net goal in a game where Daniel Sedin fed Alex Edler with a nuts no look backhand pass for the game winner. 

Po Po Demitra got on the board early with a 3-on-2 break. Kyle Wellwood was streaking down the side and tried to center a pass to Mason Raymond. The puck was out of Raymond's reach, but kept traveling until it hit the tape of Demitra, and PD easily one timed the shot into the net despite Orangeville, ON native Dan Ellis' best attempts to keep it out. A sloppy Vancouver change led to a too many men penalty, which I think happened in another recently played game (what the hell is the problem?) led to a power play goal by Radek Bonk at 11:03. After the goal score was wrapped up at 1, Rob Davison slammed a check on Scott Nichol right near the 'Nucks bench that would completely break this game open. It was like Nichol skated into a brick wall, and it sent off a brawl by Mr. Bitch, J.P. Dumont. Penalty flags were dropped like they were hot , and it would spill over into the middle frame. The second period had no scoring, mostly because both teams were dead set on getting at each other physically. Alex Burrows left his feet and crushed J.P. Dumont with one of the most intense checks I've seen this season. Jason Arnott felt it was a dirty hit and completely attacked Burrows. The refs, obvioisly, got the call right, sending Arnott to the dressing room and leaving Burrows on the ice. Really good, physical stuff. Just 24 seconds into the third period, Kevin Bieksa blasted a slapper that rebounded to Daniel Sedin. Nintendo DS couldn't get a shot off from the angle, and pulled off a nice little behind-the-back backhand no look pass to Alex Edler. AE easily blasted home the game winning power play goal, just his second of the year. Pincourt, Quebec native Alex Burrows was later able to avoid an attempted leg to leg hit by former Oiler and still a knob Jason Arnott to shoot a deep empty net goal that iced the game with under 1 minute to play. 3-1, game over. 

After the game, Nasvhille's coach Barry Trotz was angry, "The league will handle it. I'm trying to protect my players. There's two things that's unwritten (poor English, my friend). Don't go after the head, and you don't go after the knees (you mean, like Arnott?). I think in the hoekcy code, I think they crossed the line a few times." What? Coach Alain Vigneault set things straight from the BC point of view, "The only think I found special with calls in the game [was that] we were not allowed to hit them. Every time we threw a good strong clean hit, there was a scrum after. It is part of the game. It was a physical game. They took offense to some of the hits we threw." Exactly. 

The Nashville media chose three stars, with one huge glaring problem. The liberals went 1) Edler, 2) Dan Ellis, and 3) Po Po. Dan Ellis as the #2? He gave up two goals and lost the game. I don't care if he made 25 saves on 27 shots, he lost to Sanford, and he shouldn't earn a star, right? The LSF's underrated three stars are 1) Curtis Sanford (20 saves on 21 shots and getting a Lu-less win), 2) Mattias Ohlund (led all players in the game with a +2 rating), and 3) Alexandre Burrows (crazy hit, mixed things up, and nailed an empty netter from yard away). There you have it. 

The road win lifts Van-ca-tesh to 16-10-3 (35 points) and pick us back up into the lone top spot in the Northwest. There division follows with Calgary (-2), Minnie (-4), Colorado (-6), and Edmonton (-7). The top of the table is still damned close, but if the 'Nucks can skate through this non-Luongo period of the season and stay near the top of the heap in the division, I'm going on record with saying we'll win the whole darn thing (the division, I mean). We are now looking ahead to a Saturday Hockey Night in Canada (on NHL Network) matchup against the division rivals from Edmonton, Alberta. I'll take our team leader Daniel Sedin (12 goals/28 points) over their team leader Alex Hemsky (9 goals/28 points) any day. Keep in mind they somehow beat the Sharks last Saturday 3-2.

A quick note on a really minor deal between two LSF squads, although it'll add to the rivalry: The Canucks sent James Sharrow (who never dressed for an NHL game while with Vancouver) to the Chicago Blackhawks for a conditional 2009 draft pick. The former fourth round draft pick will continue to play in the AHL, most likely, after earning 28 points in 61 AHL games with the Moose, including just six points with one goal so far this season. Does this very minor insignificant move make me hate Jon's Blackhawks even more? Sure.

Weekly football post #14.

Welcome to the fourteenth weekly football post here around the LSF. We are officially 40 full days into the post boycott of Brandon/Jon/Andrew around here, but at least we're keeping the flame alive. While a lot of the my favorite football seasons have come to a close, we'll keep it going until they all reach their completion. 

First off to the college ranks, everyone's favorite Notre Dame Fighting Irish squad has earned another chance to break their insane bowl losing streak. This time we'll get to kick back on the night of Christmas eve and watch Charlie and the boys match up with the University of Hawaii in, brace yourself, the Hawaii Bowl. The seemingly annual home game for the Warriors is going to get more Catholics watching this year than ever before. Besides this being a chance for the Irish to finally get to their winning ways in NCAA bowl games, I see this game as a huge chance to prove LSF was right all along about June Jones being a loser for leaving UH. I don't know how the Irish beating Hawaii would prove that, but if they do win, I'll be the first to point out that it does. The question is, will Notre Dame stand a chance against the Rainbow Warriors? It is tough to imagine that our Irish will have a much going for them against the 7-6 Hawaiians after their recently well publicized poor play. Charlie has continually proven that he is not the offensive genius we've been looking for, but with a little more time to prepare, maybe he can make this game the coming out party for our actual offensive identity. You know, the one he plans to put on the field in 2009? This home is pulling with the Domer, and I guess that I'm going to go on record with the Irish winning 31-28. Anyone on board?

10-34. That was the final score in the latest drubbing suffered by my St. Louis Rams, this time at the hands of the (now) NFC West Champions from Arizona. It was Kurt Warner's chance to ram his former team (yes!) and prove that they should have stayed with him, rather than going with Senor Fantasy under center. How did they match up? Kurt finished 24/33/279 with 1 TD and 1 INT, while his counterpart Marc "I grew up Catholic" Bulger finished 22/37/228 with 1 TD and 1 INT. The numbers are fairly close, but unfortunately, the Rams turned the ball over 3 times (2 fumbles and the aforementioned 1 INT), and the Red Birds took advantage of those mistakes. The score was 20-7 at the half, and it was another yawner that most Rams fans could easily pass up for a hilarious rerun of "I Love Lucy." While being down by 13 at the half, the Ramie offense could only muster 3 points in the final 30 minutes, just furthering their pathetic season and showing that they just don't have any of that "stuff" this year (I think I mean motivation). Steven Jackson rushed 19 times for 64 yards, with Tory Holt finishing with just 61 yards through the air (to lead the team!). Despite getting 17 first downs and 308 total net yards, the Rams were flat embarrassed (again). Only three games remain until the bleeding stops for the 2-11 Rams (maybe they should ask for a bail out from congress), and there is only one chance for the Rams to get things up to par from their 2007 campaign of 3-13, and that is next week's match against the equally pathetic 2-11 Seattle Seahawks. Will it happen? Can the Rams climb at least to last year's mediocrity? I sure hope so, because this is flat sad. 

As I shift gears from American football to World football, I'd like to give out my hugs and support to the Notre Dame women's soccer team, who fell to North Carolina in the final minutes of the NCAA title game. Despite really wanting the girls to get it all, I had a sigh of relief knowing that my 2004 Championship t-shirt is still legit. We'll get them next year girls. 

Speaking of losing on the pitch, the Mighty Celts blew their game against Hibernian over the weekend in a rare SPL loss. It was an 0-2 lashing that including a very poor failure by Artur Boruc on a shot from 45 yards out. 45 freaking yards, no joke! The ball slipped past the Polish keeper, and the Hoops simply couldn't record their 13th straight SPL win. The now 14-2-1 (W-L-D), which is still pretty freaking amazing, Green & White have 43 points in their 17 games played and lead Rangers by 4 in the table. Next up is a Champions League match with Villarreal, which is also the last name of one of Karen's friends from elementary school (or maybe it's "Del Real". Hm, this may be a tough one for Naka and the boys. 

The Boys in Bars up in Newcastle stoked me in a game against Stoke City with another draw this weekend, this time 2-2. Michael Owen was just plain nuts in this game (I was going to say "stoked", but I thought it was a bit much) getting two goals in 24 minutes to stake the 'Castle to a huge 2-0 lead and a hopeful win in EPL play. Of course, it isn't easy for the Mags to hold on for a win, even when up by two. Midfielder and Shrewsbury native Danny Guthrie was hauled off the field for a penalty at half time, and the lack of depth for Newcastle really showed. The 47,422 in attendance were sad. Not shocked, but sad with the result. Usually the Toon Army (fans of Newcastle) are crazy happy with a draw, but when you're up 2 clear at the half, you kind of are expecting a win against a team like Stoke. Even with the sorry tie, the boys have again (temporarily) pulled out of the relegation zone with their 3-6-7 (W-L-D) record and 16 points in 16 games. 'Castle sits just +1 on the #18 spot, which should keep everyone nice and motivated to actually try getting a trio of points with a win, right? Next weekend, it's Portsmouth lining up to battle the Magpies, and Port being the #7 squad and having more wins than losses in the season makes everyone in the Newcastle Nation realize that this will be a tough one. 

I know this is the football post, but just quickly to the MLB Winter Meetings. Daren Oliver was the lone Angel to accept an arbitration offer, as this LSF writer predicted. Meanwhile, Francisco Rodriguez is reportedly "on the brink" of being signed by the New York Mets (the favorite club of Apu Nahasapeemapetilon- if you were interested in a little Simpsons trivia). Enjoy the East Coast, you chubby wubby record holder. According to the ADC, the Angels are also "the dark horse in discussions for Peavy", which I think is just a nice way of saying we have no chance of getting him. 

Finally, I would like to send my "rest in peace" notice to Jon's undefeated record atop the LSF standings. It was a battle lost by his UCLA Bruins at the hands of Andrew's Trojans that dropped his record to 5-1-2 in LSF play. Meanwhile, Do has improved to a table leading 6-2-4, as the top two in the table continue to widen the gap between themselves and the bottom of the table (me with 6 points and Brandon with 4 points). The battle between the Sabres and the Leafs on Friday could shake things up, but I'm really looking forward to the 'Nucks/Hawks rematch on the twentieth.