Beckham followers?

First it was Zidane. Now Robbie Fowler is being mentioned for a possible move to the MLS. This article says he's not interested. But the mere fact that it is being discussed is, I think, a testament to the ripple effect of Beckham's move.

For those of you who don't know him, Fowler was briefly a star at the front end of his career. The striker's goal scoring dropped off and never returned to meet the early expectations.

SU DirecTV Commercial

Brilliant

Can you figure out which five players are on the court? I did. See comments below for the answer.

Found it while looking for a clip of Boeheim on SportsCenter yesterday. If anyone knows where I can see that, please let me know.

That's more like it

Caught the SU-Georgetown game about 20 hours after it was played without knowing the final score. Very, very satisfying. The best part was Syracuse was playing well even before they started blowing Georgetown out. The first half was the best basketball I've seen the Orange play all year. They were leading practically the entire way despite starting off quite cold from the field.

The best part was our intensity. Mostly, I'm thinking of Terrance Roberts here, who McDonough and Co. kept talking up because of his knee injury. Maybe it was senior day, but he wanted to do whatever he could to win the ball game.

The Orange really have Georgetown and JT3's number. Their offense just doesn't work when the Syracuse zone is clicking. Remember the Georgetown game in the Big East tournament last year? I wrote in this space that, in the first half, any average fan who turned on the game would be rooting for Georgetown because of the way they were passing the ball around. It was that pretty, and the Orange were getting dominated. But in the end, the zone was too much. Georgetown went the last five minutes without a field goal just as Gerry was heating up.

It was the same story Monday, except Syracuse played well in the first half. Certainly, Rautins and Nichols got hot from outside the stripe. But they've both been shooting like that. The reason the game got out of hand was Georgetown's inability to score.

I'm sure it has something to do with the fact that Syracuse keeps beating them even though they're good, but I like Georgetown these days. I love the basketball they play. And I agree with Boeheim that they're underrated right now. Unlike most Big East teams, I'll be rooting for them in the NCAAs. I hope Syracuse gets to play them.

Beckham Reality Show

...because this is what the MLS needs before it can be taken seriously.

Ugh.

Turns out that just because we knew it was coming doesn't make it any easier.

Hak

Just found this highlight reel of Warrick's SU dunks. I'm becoming more and more certain that he's my favorite ever to wear Orange. At some point we'll get other players as talented as Carmelo or as clutch as Gerry, but Hak was a once in a lifetime freak.

Enjoy the inappropriate lyrics, too.

Big Game

Just flipped to the Wisconsin-Ohio State game LIVE on NASN...you can tell in a second that the game is excellent just by the noise in the arena, the edge in the voices of the commentators, and the intensity of the players on the court. I'm serious. Within 5 seconds of switching, even Liz could sense it: "Good game!"

Do you ever get that feel in a regular season NBA game? Not with 10 minutes to play. MAYBE in the last 2 minutes.

I love college basketball.

* * *

The other comment on this game. 39-37 Wisconsin right now with 8:30 to play. CLASSIC Big Ten game. I love how Big 10 basketball is a mirror image of Big 10 football. Good defense. Each point is a grind, each possession methodical. Pac-10 is similar (and opposite): no defense, flying back and forth. Certainly, all conferences have their own distinct feel, but football and basketball don't reflect each other as much as they do in the Rose Bowl conferences. Must have something to do with the geographical region...?

* * *

Finally, I haven't mentioned this yet in 2007, but I love Thad Matta. Insanely tricky task for him, to bring in the youth at the beginning of the season to a team that was so successful last year, and THEN bring in Greg Oden after the season had started. And they've only lost 3 games.

I might be taking crazy pills but...

I was just pondering D-Nic's chances in the NBA. The Pros: A.) He can shoot, and B.) He's 6'8". The Cons: quickness and athleticism might be below-average for an NBA player. If he grabs Big East Player of the Year honors and has one or two good games in the tournament, I could see him sneaking into the back end of the draft.

Four years ago, the Post-Standard season preview asked its sports writers to pick which Freshman had the best shot at the NBA. They unanimously went with Darryl Watkins. They still could be right. He's gotten better each year and that progression could continue. We all know how the NBA values potential.

Meanwhile, Roberts is a huge question mark. In retrospect, he could have dominated the Big East this year. We're talking about Nichols as player of the year, but we all know Roberts was better than Nichols for their first three years at Syracuse. Unfortunately injuries held him back, and now there is no telling where he'll end up.

But Louie McCroskey should be drafted 3rd (after Oden and Durant) because he's a great rebounder and because he groined Hilton Armstrong in the face while dunking over him on a fast break last year.

SU v. Providence: Live in London

Woohoo! NASN showed the SU game live today. AND the Orange won. I think that's the first game I've seen Syracuse win this year. It get's us to 20 wins and puts us on the right side of the bubble. I think we can lose the next two games, pick up one win in the Big East and still make the tournament.

A few thoughts on the lads...

On Nichols... No-show in the first half and he still gets player of the game honors. Sean McDonough and Doris Burke were even talking about him for Conference Player of the Year. You've come a long way, Demitris.

On Watkins... He is what he is: good rebounder, fine defender, acceptable on offense, solid all around, we'd be lost without him.

On Devendorf... I've gone from dreading him handling the ball in the final minutes to dreading him handling the ball every posession. Needless to say, I'm concerned about the point guard spot for the next two years.

On Wright... OK Josh. Just go in there and play under control. No crazy passes. Don't force things...no! NO! NOOOOOOO! ...have a seat Josh.

On Harris... Our point guard of the future?? He waved off the other guards down the stretch, insisting to take the ball down the court. He had the best pass of the game (to Rautins). He's only out of control when he's driving to the bucket, as opposed to Devendorf who's out of control when he's driving to the bucket and when he's throwing a quick pass. Seriously though, I like it when Paul's on the court.

On Roberts... Non-factor because of his knee. Sadly, I doubt we'll ever see him have a good game for Syracuse again.

On Rautins... The flip side of the point guard problem is that it's indirectly given Rautins more playing time, and he's suddenly a CLASSIC college 3-point shooter. His new ceiling is Marius Janulis. Of course, Marius Janulis could never make a tip-in like Andy did today off that Devendorf three-point attempt.

USA 2010: The Roster

Last week, Yanks-Abroad.com posted this prediction for our 2010 World Cup roster. They list more than 11 players, thankfully, and opt for the levels approach — guys who are definitely going to make it, etc.

The top few levels were encouraging:

Pack your bags, boys
1. Oguchi Onyewu. (Obviously).
2. Clint Dempsey. (My favorite USA player).
3. Tim Howard. (OK).
4. Bobby Convey. (Surprised to see him listed this high).
5. Steve Cherundolo. (He's like a good pain of jeans: comfortable).

Nearly a lock
6. Landon Donovan. (Wow. Not a lock!)
7. Jonathon Spector. (Now playing defensive mid for West Ham).
8. Benny Feilharber. (Impressive in Holland last year for U-21s. Very classy first touch).
9. Carlos Bocanegra. (Gots to love the nasty streak).
10. Freddy Adu. (America's Adu-mania has been officially dampened).
11. Heath Pearce. (Been reading about him. Never seen him play).
12. Michael Bradley. (Prototypical MLS workhorse. Son of current USA coach, Ben).

Anyway. There are many more layers. It's a very interesting link.

I was disappointed not to see Marvell Wynn, an Ashley Cole wannabe, make any of the lists, however. — So disappointed that I actually complained to the Soccer By Ives Q&A blog. ...Anxiously awaiting that result.

Carmelo Anthony

Bill Simmons on LeBron James...

"I had four conversations with connected NBA people over the weekend that centered around the same themes: LeBron isn't playing nearly as hard as he did last season; it looks like his only goal right now is to get his coach fired; he's regressing as a basketball player (especially his passing skills and his shot selection); he made a huge mistake firing his agent and turning his career over to his buddies back home (all of whom are in over their heads); he was a much bigger problem during the Olympics than anyone realized; he doesn't seem to be enjoying himself anymore; he has an overrated sense of his own worth and his own impact in the sports world (as witnessed by the ESPN interview last week when he answered the "What are your goals?" question with two words: "Global icon"); he's been protected by magazine fluff pieces and buddy-buddy TV interviews for far too long; he doesn't have the same relentless drive to keep dominating everyone like Wade and Kobe have; and basically, we're much closer to LeBron re-enacting the career arc of Martina Hingis, Eric Lindros and Junior Griffey than anyone realizes."

Ignoring the unfortunate jab at (steroid-free) Griffey, this paragraph immediately made me wonder if Carmelo Anthony might be positioned to surpass James over the long run after all. On pure talent alone, of course James is better. But James was handed the "King" title before he ever had to do anything to earn it. Maybe the reason Wade got so good so quickly is he was drafted behind Anthony and James. And maybe, just maybe, all these set-backs for Carmelo - missing all-star games, negative publicity at the Olympics, regular questions about his character - are going to make him better in the long run.

Carmelo's not a bad guy, like a lot of NBA players are, so if he gets the right people around him the character questions will fade away. He keeps improving every season and he's still very young. And he's had to re-prove himself since he enterred the NBA.

Keepers

I'm keeping Robbie Cano. Hafner, Crawford, Felix, Cano. Papelbon and Delmon will likely head back to the draft pool.

Dan? Paul? Who are you guys keeping?

Zizou! MLS!

Talk of Zidane coming to the MLS heated up again last week, but might have finally died. Apparently, he wanted a guaranteed $15M a year, and officials with the Chicago Fire wouldn't bite. Bummer. I think everybody understands that Zidane is still at the top of his game.

Also, an intriguing nugget from the blog of a Washington Post reporter: "I just might have a good story for you late tonight with significant U.S. soccer implications. Be sure to check the main sports page at www.washingtonpost.com before bedtime."

Anybody want to take bets?

Here's one: Ben Bradley will be named the U.S. National Team coach. Interim no longer.

I've said it here multiple times, but I might as well repeat it: The Washington Post has the best soccer coverage in America. It is difficult to navigate because it doesn't have its own section (Sports page, reporter Steven Goff's blog), but worthwhile. Read it. In the spirit of Paul, let me offer a 'Best of the rest' list:

1. CNNSI.com (easily the best commentary available)
2. ESPN Soccernet.com (solid England/Europe summaries)
3. BBC (for European rumors)
4. Yanks-Abroad.com (for far-flung Americans)
5. Soccer By Ives (for American rumors)

Demetris - WHOA! Pauly!

I started this post so that I could clear the air with Demetris Nichols, who definitely reads this blog regularly. Nichols, I wanted to say, I love you. Nichols, I was going to type, I think you're great. Keep shooting, man. Keep hoisting it up there. But, please please please, I intended to finish, make sure that T.Rob and Watkins are involved. Only with them will we make it to the Sweet Sixteen and beyond.

So, I was doing a little Sports Sauna research on that, when - holy hell - I happened across Paul's preseason NFL predictions.

Let's forget about the wildly erroneous, if excusable "Keep an eye on the Lion's" bit, and ignore the always-obvious "Brees will be better than Culpepper" sideline, and instead focus on his two final and exceedingly accurate predictions. Here's a copy/paste:

-The Bears and the Panthers will play in the NFC championship game. The over/under will be 17.
-The Colts will beat the winner in the Super Bowl.

Wow. Well played, sir! I'm not sure how much money that would have won you, but I'm going with "a lot."

Bracketology

Joe Lunardi said on Seattle radio this morning that if Syracuse goes 2-2 in its final four games, including a loss to Georgetown, it needs to win at least two games in the Big East tourney in order to make the Dance.

Wow. Scary. We must beat Georgetown.

In other basketball news: Two worthy John Amaechi stories that might otherwise slip below the radar:

1. John Amaechi Comes Out As Former NBA Player. "'I had no idea,' former Cavaliers teammate Terrell Brandon said. 'Sure, I saw John around the Cavaliers, but I didn't want to jump to any conclusions. He was tall, yeah, but he didn't look like a basketball player. He didn't act like a basketball player. And just because he hung around with a lot of basketball players and sometimes wore flashy jewelry, that didn't necessarily mean he was one, y'know?'"

2. (ESPN.com's Chris Broussard's) Take on John Amaechi: "Since Amaechi came out, I've read lots of columns about being "progressive." The implication -- or outright assertion -- is that anyone who believes homosexuality is wrong is not progressive or enlightened. That's where this thing becomes problematic, because those who hold to that view are saying I must change my entire belief system/religion because of your belief system."

I suppose it would be irresponsible not to link to the LZ Granderson article that made Amaechi's saga even remotely interesting...

3. Another ex-athlete comes out? Not impressed: "An athlete in 2007 who stays in the closet during his playing days does more to support homophobia in sports than coming out after retirement does to combat it."

This is Love

Tomorrow, Yahoo! opens fantasy baseball. I can't hardly wait. I'm freaking giddy over here. I just read Peter Gammon's new piece — "I don't know about you, but I can't wait to see Gary Sheffield in a Tigers uniform, or Daisuke Matsuzaka, or Barry Zito in the uniform Carl Hubbell once wore, or Greg Maddux, period. I can't wait to see Jon Lester take PFP, Eric Gagne pitch and Aaron Rowand on the field" — and I'm going nuts.

Baseball!

My self-imposed Sonics boycott — and my general ambivalance towards the NFL — has turned me into a rabid Mariners fan. I cannot express to you how thrilled I am by the prospect of a Yuniesky Betancourt - JoLo - Richie Sexson 6-4-3. Brilliant! Adam Jones in center? Are you kidding me! The boys of summer.

Also, my keeper league fantasy players are like sons to me. It kills me that I'm going to have to cut either Delmon Young or Jonathon Papelbon loose. That is a horrid fate. At least I've got Hafner (Pronk!tastic), Crawford and — I almost made it an entire post without mentioning him — King Felix.

Baseball!

Sports Guy Ad-Lib

I came across this today, and thought I should share it: Sports Guy Ad-Lib Site.

Pretty funny.

NCAA Mock Selection

Wow. The NCAA actually did something reasonable and good, instead of their normal policy of committing only illogical and evil acts. They got 20 college basketball journalists together and had them run through a mock selection process in the same room with the same equipment and information as the committee has. You can read Pat Forde's and Andy Katz's takes yourself.

It seems that what ESPN.com's Bracketologist Joe Lunardi has been preaching is true. The process really is as scientific as the committee tries to convice the public it is. There is just not enough time to consider anything but the criterea they say they consider. Still, the one or two glaring omissions the committee does make each year can be explained by the speed with which they have to work.

If I may second-guess the selection of the mock selection committee, how was Lunardi not invited to the gang? Pat Forde is more of a basketball and football guy. Lunardi has to be the biggest name bracketologist. He should have made the cut.

Running Log: Syracuse v. Connecticut

10:00am - Monday night my college buddy Dubbers IMed me to say, "I have given up on Syracuse basketball." It was 2:07am my time, 2 hours and 7 minutes after the SU-UConn game had started. I had been planning on avoiding the score all day Tuesday so I could watch the replay today, Wednesday, on NASN. So now it's time to find out if Dubbers has "given up" in the sense that he's confused by their down and up play, meaning that SU beat UConn, or in the sense that SU sucks.

10:04am - Huge redeeming factor to watching this game. McDonough, Bilas, and Raferty. Any time I can watch a game with ONE of those guys, I'm excited. The trio have been working together solidly for the past few years and have their chemistry down.

(Switching to game time)
16:15 - Paul Harris, already in the game, gets an easy put back. Remember when I said he'd be starting for Nichols by the end of January? No you don't? Thank goodness...

At the TV-timeout, they run an NCAA "going pro in something other than sports" commercial. It's weird to see that in the UK. Another thing about living here: don't even try to explain the appeal of college sports to Brits. They have no concept of why following your "uni'"team might be more excited than the professional version.

14:53 - SU is up 8-4. I have hope. If there was one person in the world who would IM me a random negative comment about SU immediately after they won a big game, it's Dubbers. Everybody who knows him are nodding their heads right now.

13:55 - Paul Harris rejected badly. He can get to the rim, he just needs to find a way to beat that last big man. Next trip down... he's SO active around the boards. There is still a lot of reasons to expect he'll be great.

11:39 - If you had told me any time during his previous 3 seasons that Nichols would be having the best season out of the three seniors, I would have laughed in your face, punched you until you were unconcious, rolled you up in a rug, driven/flown to New York City, and dumped you in the East River. But I would have apologized now.

9:30 - Syracuse is boringly up 16-9. So boringly, I've navigated over to ESPN.com, where the ombudsman has a new column up. Always interesting, although lately, if I may be the ombudsman to the ombudsman, I think he's leaning a bit too much on reader emails.

6:04 - Just replayed the Big East Quarterfinals from last year. You know, the one where Gerry hit the shot at the end? Right, that game. (It was against UConn. Gerry hit a 3 with about 7 seconds left to send it to OT, where SU pulled it out.) What a run. Meanwhile, UConn is leading 17-16.

5:05 - Suddenly, Harris is playing a heck of a game here, and the ESPN guys are loving it.

2:28 - Harris is now running the point. Fascinating. Orange have actually outplayed the Huskies in the first half. The 3-ball is keeping the Huskies in the game. 27-25 SU.

1:17 - Some freshman named Eaves just checked into the game for UConn. And he's from England! I LIVE in England!

HALF - 28-27 UConn. But the Orange are in this thing. They just need to get someone else scoring.

19:06 - Moments after Watkins picks up a cheap offensive foul, Harris comes right back and sneaks in a bucket while getting fouled by that big brute in the middle. 30-28 SU.

16:33 - Interesting nugget from McDonough. Syracuse is the all-time winningest team on the road in the history of the Big East.

14:20 - Both Roberts and Watkins are now on the bench with 4 fouls. You know what that means! It's Gorman at the five!

13:40 - I've never heard a more boring account of how a kid in Africa came to play basketball. McDonough: "Thabeet was a soccer player. He was passing by a basketball game one day. They asked him to play. He didn't WANT to play. Then he finally got talked into playing."

I think the explanation is obvious. He's mixed up his response to an interview question with the response Jim Calhoun told him to give to any police investigation he might become involved in. "I was just passing by a laptop theft one day. They asked me to take the laptop. I didn't WANT to take the laptop. Then they finally talked me into taking the laptop. Therefore, I should not be suspended from the basketball team."

10:49 - 46-46. Nichols has 16. I can see next week's Sports Illustrated now: "This week's Sign of the Apocalypse - Demetris Nichols is leading the Big East with 18.6 points per game."

9:20 - 50-49 UConn after a Gorman three. Every time UConn has looked like they were going to make a run, Syracuse has answered. That's tough to do on the road. One thing you can say about Syracuse this year is they've played well on the road. Could be a good sign for the tournament, if they get in.

8:05 - UConn is 11 of 23 from the free throw line. Syracuse has only shot 6 FTs. That disparity is so common in recent SU-UConn games. Usually I blame the referees, but haven't had too much to complain about today.

7:00 - 55-55 after a sweet Nichols mid-range fadeaway. Suddenly this is a quality basketball game. Not sure what Dubbers was talking about at this point. Even if Syracuse loses, they've done an amazing job at preventing a single UConn run on the road in a matchup that has been the best, toughest rivalry on the SU calender in the last decade.

6:07 - Roberts fouls out. The UConn fans do the old "left-right-left-right" (stolen from the Dukees, of course) as Roberts walks off. But Roberts starts messing with them, moving his feet fast then pretending to sit down and jumping back up again. SU fans behind the bench are LOVING it. The UConn fans are confused. Some of them start to cry. 57-57.

5:00 - Devendorf make his first stupid play of the game right on time, leading to a rare breakaway bucket for UConn. 62-57 UConn. Slipping away.

3:42 - Watkins fouls out. He and Roberts barely played in this game and it's taken Calhoun this long to figure out his big men are primarily facing Matt Gorman underneath. In about a minute, Nichols will be playing center. You know what? I do blame the refs for this one. No game should have that big of a foul differential. 63-57 is UConn's largest lead. 8-0 is their largest run.

3:18 - 44-28 rebounding edge to UConn. With all of Harris's effort on the glass, I hadn't noticed. But that's what you get when Roberts and Watkins are barely in the game.

2:42 - Shot-clock violation on UConn. Huskies can't close this thing out. 63-59, Orange with the ball. Aaaaannnnd Devendorf has met his quota for stupid plays in the last 5 minutes of the game early tonight (three). UConn ball.

1:54 - UConn misses a shot, Rautins gets clobbered going for the rebound. Out of bounds off Syracuse????!!!! HuhhhwhhaaaAAAA????!!!!

Marge: We're eating genetically modified vegetables! Look how big they are!
Homer: This corn doesn't look so big...
Marge: That's baby corn!
Homer: HuhhhwhhaaaAAAA????!!!!

1:19 - Huskies are doing a TERRIBLE job of getting good shots after letting the clock wind down. Remember this when you're trying to figure out how they'll do in March. Meanwhile, Harris has his fifth double-double of the year. 13 points 10 boards. 60-63 UConn.

:57 - Rautins called for a foul with 13 seconds on the shot clock just as UConn was about to take a bad three. Dyson hits both FTs to make it 65-60.

:49 - Devendorf goes over his bad plays quota. UGH! SU is not going to win this game. But I'm not ready to give up on the season. Harris had a great game. Nichols is still playing well. The fouls took Watkins and Roberts out of the game. (25 team fouls for SU to 14 for UConn.)

But the bigger problem is at point guard. Boeheim has to settle that position. He's lost faith in Josh Wright it seems, who started the season with such promising assists-to-turnovers numbers. But we the fans have lost faith in Devendorf, particularly down the stretch. Not sure what the answer is there. Either play Devendorf most of the game then Wright down the stretch, or just hope Devendorf gets better.

Final Score: 67-60 UConn.

Super Bowl: Grossman

Unlike Chris, I thought going in that Grossman was underrated. Of course, that statement comes with my standard 2006 NFL season disclaimer: I'd never seen him play a game. I was aware of his up and down season and thought he was a young quarterback trying to settle into the game. I thought that he was the biggest reason the Bears were such heavy underdogs coming in, and so I thought the game might be closer than people thought.

Well, Grossman is worse than I thought. The weather was brutal and could be blamed somewhat for the fumbles, and slightly for the INTs. He didn't have the passing weapons that Peyton has, but Muhsin Muhammed could possibly have been a Hall of Fame WR if he had played his entire career with a Hall of Fame quarterback, don't you think? He had a great running game, though the Benson injury was a severe blow.

I've only read John Clayton's column about Peyton Manning and glanced at some of the headlines on ESPN.com. (Actually, by the time I finally got around to clicking on ESPN.com, less than 24 hours after the Super Bowl, the event had virtually vanished from the homepage. Thus is life in the 21st century. Football season is over. It's basketball season now.) The 2007 Super Bowl will be remembered as Manning's first win. And it'll be remembered for the rain. But the game itself should mainly be remembered for being lost by Grossman.

In everything they did, the Colts dared Grossman to beat them. Dungy's insane conservativeness? He knew that he was facing Grossman in the rain. I completely agreed with his 2nd quarter call not to go for 2 to put the Colts up by 3. Way too early. No team should go for 2 until the third quarter at the earliest, ever. He also had a chance to get a 4th and short on the Bears doorstep in the 3rd quarter. A TD would have almost put the game away. But he declined the penalty and took the FG. A 3 point deficit for Grossman in the rain was almost like a 7 point deficit to a good QB in regular weather.

In the end, he had to lead the Bears back and he couldn't. If the Colts are good at one thing on defense, it's stopping the pass when they know it's coming. With Grossman throwing the ball, it was almost too easy. Hence the late INTs.

Meanwhile, watching the game in England was, once again, an interesting experience. They were using an English-language international feed produced by the NFL network featuring commentary from Sterling Sharpe and a play-by-play guy by the name of Spiro Dedes. I've never heard of the guy. It brings to mind a few quotes from the two most quotable TV shows in world history. I'll let you decide which is the best:

Kramer in "Seinfeld": Frankly it sounds made-up!

Moe in "The Simpsons": Homer that's the worst name I've ever heard.

I think the former works best in this situation. You could even substitute Spiro Dedes for Todd Gack and the episode would work almost just as well, except Dedes doesn't sound Dutch like Gack does. Anyway, even though I would have rather had the CBS feed, whoever they were, the commentary was fine. Stirling Sharpe wasn't as good as I remembered him being from his ESPN days, though that was in a studio show.

There are 5 basic TV stations in England, and ITV was the one with the game. They had one sideline reporter and three guys in the booth. For some reason in England, TV sports broadcasters don't feel a need to dress up as much as they do in the US. You almost NEVER see them in ties. The Super Bowl was no exception. The three guys in the booth were wearing button-up shirts with the top button open. They probably picked them out themselves. No "wardrobe supplied by..." It's possible that they were crammed into a tiny booth in the upper reaches of the stadium but it's also possible that they were just sitting on stools in front of a green screen with a video feed from a high camera. Couldn't tell for sure.

The funniest part though was who they were. The host was some generic English broadcaster who follows the NFL. His two partners were Merrill Hodges, former NFL player and American TV analyst, and Martin Johnson, former captain of the English Rugby team that won the World Cup. Johnson is this massive brute of a man. He looks the part of rugby player. He probably follows the NFL, but he was out of his element as a TV broadcaster. Hodges, meanwhile, looked embarassed to be a part of the broadcast. He looked like he felt he had been banished to the far corners of the football announcing universe. Occaisionally, he offered some insightful analysis that I appreciated, but I could sense all the British eyeballs glazing over across the nation as soon as he mentioned "Cover-2".

That's it for me. I'm going to fall asleep and try to assume that Dubber's pessimistic comment about SU basketball that he just randomly IMed me in no way implies that they lost to UConn tonight in a game that I was trying to go the next day without finding out the result to so I could watch it replayed on NASN on Wednesday morning. Ugh.

Super Bowl XLI

Somebody needs to say something here at the Sports Sauna. Let me fulfil our quota: The Colts won, 29-17.

I like Peyton. I was happy for him. I had been thinking that Rex was better than his reputation, but I now think he is pretty awful. Too bad.