DSRTSV - 11/12/08

Today's Daily Somehow Related to Sports Video comes from my home town (area). Apparently some overzealous fans of the local field hockey team pushed their support too hard...

Oh the joy of puns...

Pissed Off Bengals Fans Get Smart - Get a Billboard

As reported by FanHouse this morning (early...like 3am), phase two of the "WhoDey Revolution's" Project Mayhem has begun.

The WhoDey Revolution is a group bent on ending the long straining grip Mike Brown has maintained on the Cincinnati Bengals since 1991 (of which he's just not terribly successful...is that an understatement?..98-183).

WhoDey's Project Mayhem has two basic themes:

1. Disrupt the natural order of Mike Brown's Bengals
2. Reduce Mike Brown's profit

Phase one was to call the Jerk Line (literally: 513-381-JERK) and say "As a Bengals fan, Mike Brown is mentally and emotionally abusing me from his owner's box.". Seems like a plan to me

Now phase two has just amazed me. You see WhoDey's Project Mayhem is collecting cash (18 dollars is suggested, one dollar for each year of Brown's incompetency) to post (as seen above) and maintain billboards through Cincinnati during and after the season. They're pushing over $1,500 already and have even received a $500 donation.

Say what you want about the Bengals, and their ridiculously hideous uniforms (and their arrest record), but at least their fans care.

Plus those billboards are fucking spectacular

On Schedule "10 Things I Think Smell Like Shit" (11/12/08)

10 Things... appears to be back on schedule. Our handsome deuce-dropping compadre has been brought back after a 2 week hiatus and we're back to declaring 10 shitty shitty things each week.

So if you're watching your 401k sink again today, sit back, relax and enjoy 10 things...

1. World Series Whoops! While it appears as though ESPN gave as much face time to this year's World Series (of Baseball) as World Series of Poker, Josh Elliot of ESPN made perhaps the biggest gaffe in the history of ESPN and the WSOP's relationship. You see, ESPN went to some length in order to protect the integrity of its replays, attempting to push of the final table event until last Sunday and allowed it to be boiled down by the replay last night. Of course, Josh Elliot, simply reporting the news, reported the winner regardless (though taking some effort to warn potential viewers). Perhaps the worst part is...ESPN's bottom line took care of whatever viewers Josh Elliot managed to help.
   
2. Official Complaints are Trendy. As we led with yesterday in the Daily Links and our newest BNBer SSReporters followed up on, Monday's 49ers-Cardinals matchup featured a bizarre. The latest on this? Mike Martz and Mike Singletary are now blaming the officials for confusion as to the spot of the ball, the time on the clock and the relaying of information regarding the two formers. It was the officials damnit, they didn't tell us!
3. The Dodgers top...well, themselves. Baseball free agency doesn't start until Friday, but the Dodgers are already in a bidding war. With Themselves. After essentially having their two year 45 million dollar offer rejected, it appears as though the Dodgers have now offered a three year deal worth close to 60 million. Scott Boras is expected to still rejected and Manny seems primed to be looking for at least a four year deal worth upwards of 80 million. 37 year old outfielders deserve that, right?
4. In our TMZ moment, we think Yoko Romo is still a bitch. Seriously, how pissed is Eli Manning. He's healthy. His team is 8-1. He's got a ring. And yet Yoko Romo still toys around with the football bobbling, goofy grinning, spotlight shying, "aw-shucks" alternate QB. Well, at least we know they're still dating. Could be worse...
5. Phuck the Nation. Entertaining (if not overzealous) thefightins.com writer "How Do You Spell Retard" (his name, not ours...) does not believe Phillies Fans will ever form a "Nation." He's right, but it wouldn't be HDYSR without at least a few "Fuck Bostons" thrown in there for good measure. I agree though...stupid name. Does Yankee Country secede the union then (or is it the other way around?)
6. Your Schillings Worth. If you're a Phillies fan, you have a certain respect for Curt Schilling. You may think he's a dick for his exit from town, but you understood why and you sorta know he was right. Now MLBTradeRumors is suggesting he is interested in both the Phillies and D-Bags (though the Red Sox could also be an option, in my opinion). Naturally, I don't see Schill being anywhere during Spring training and the signing will be as much dictated by the teams and money as by injury issues for each. Of course the Phillies could then start two players with a combined age of 90 (and a combined fastball of 90 as well).
   
7. Fire Andy Reid. This concept has been swirling around almost since the Super Bowl loss, but really since about last year, when the Eagles finished 8-8 (winning their last 3...pointlessly). Now, with the Eagles stuck in neutral (5-4) and Reid's playcalling becoming apparently loosey goosey at best, Eagles fans are at a crossroads. To me, he's built some of the best Eagles teams in history and is arguably the best Eagles coach ever, but his gameday skills are poor and his personal decisions (though often fueled by money and the men upstairs) are questionable at times. If Reid got fired and/or kicked upstairs at season's end, I can't say I'd be too upset, but if something doesn't change the path this team is following, I know many of my fellow fans will only become more restless.
8. Sean Avery (no further comment needed). He's a dick. He treats the game like shit. He's dangerous and apparently he's an asshole in the lockerroom. If that guy was on my team, I'd just let him get his ass beat on the ice. I hope Dustin Brown levels him tonight
9. Stephon to San An. With the Knicks dotteling around the Stephon Marbury situation and Starbury sitting in limbo, we're (along with Marbury himself) left to ponder what's next. Apparently Marbury seems open to the idea of playing for a contenda'. I can't say I'd blame him but I would be curious to see what effect Starubury would have on a team like that, especially when he has to play second fiddle to Mr. Longoria in December. Whatever, Marbury still sells sweet 15 dollar sneakers.
   
10. And this one doesn't stink: Welcome our newest BNBer Mookie (A.K.A. SSReporters). We at BNB have admittedly lost our groove at times, postings have been irregular on occasion and that's why we've brought Mookie on board. He's a fellow/former AGMer and runs his own blog at SSReporters. He should be a nice addition and a west coast personality to compliment the numerous east coasters we've already got.
    

It's Back: Daily Somehow Related to Sports Video (11/11/08)

Oh ho ho, the DSRTSV has made it back. Our short-lived segment regarding a random video that involved (I guess) athletic activity and/or could be somehow related to sports has returned. Perhaps we'll try to keep it going this time.

Regardless, this "tubular" video is pretty fucking hilarious.



Tubing's a sport, right?

That's it, Fire Peter King

I'm breaking the rule...again, but isn't it about time we can that fat tub of lard Peter King and all his mindless dribble, political or not.

Why?

Petey was curious as to whether it was "acceptable" to talk about politics in his column (its really not) but then again, did he really give a shit or did he just want someone to placate his ego?

Multiple folks appeared to have written into King either support or decrying (probably mostly bitching) his ridiculous waste of 5 minutes (for reading that garbage).

He picks and chooses such that they support his opinion (duh).

Adam Leonard of Austin begins to felate Petey by saying: "Just a word of support for your second MMQB lead this week. I agreed with your decision to not use the column to discuss your personal opinions on the election but discussing the impact of it and using players' reflections to help set the context was perfect in keeping with the scope of your column.''

But there are detractors. Gregory Wall or Burlington, WI said "If McCain had won the election and a woman held the job of VP for the first time in the history of this country, I doubt you would have given her a whole page.''

Petey took a swipe by retorting with "You're right. I don't cover the WNBA, where players would have seen that as an emotional moment."

No shit Petey, you don't cover the WNBA. You know what else you don't cover?

Politics.

You're columns have turned to crap. You have a ridiculous self-serving agenda that has less to do with football and more to do with how awesome you are, how right you've been and why you're God's gift to football news.

You know what? You're worse than Rick "I got to go to the Swimsuit shoot with my 13 year old son" Reilly

You and your stupid gray spot can get bent.

Tired Tuesday Daily "Linkin' Logs" (11/11/08)

Something about an "NFL" game yesterday. I use the quotes because frankly the Cardinals and 49ers isn't exactly the height of competition in the NFL, or at least at the height of what the NFL would like to show in primetime. Could have been worse, it could have been last year's editions.

Apparently the game turned out fairly well, with the Cardinals winning 29-24 with the game winning score coming late in the 4th. Must be nice to play in such a shitty division (against which the Eagles are 3-0)

The big news appeared to be out of baseball; where the Rockies traded Matt Holliday to the A's for a trio of "prospects," to include Huston Street (the non-prospect ML ready Closer), Greg Smith (A left handed starter) and Carlos Gonzalez (a slugging outfielder).

Keith Law of ESPN is reporting that the Nationals have acquired Scott Olsen and Josh Willingham for, among others, Emilio Bonafacio. Law claims it was a good move, I just don't see it.

And perhaps the most interesting info was a non-move. The Padres pulled their 4 million dollar 1 year offer for Closer Trevor Hoffman (which included a club option of 4 million for 2010). GM Kevin Towers has refused comment regarding the move and Hoffman, by my account, could be miffed at the move.

• ArmchairGM is having another "Hottest" competition: This one is Hottest Female Athlete. Check out Regions one, two, three and four
• AwfulAnnouncing fills us in on Todd Blackledge's taste of the town tour-de-force.
• The fascinating case of Daunte Culpepper's contract...
• With Leather informs of us of Jared Lorenzen's competition (not Jesse Palmer...)
• My life for Eyre!
• And finally, we're a little late on the getgo, but this little bodybuilding thread and all that was involved made me almost complete numerous body functions (from vomiting to peeing myself from laughing so hard...no, I never did that)

And finally part II: Via MLBTradeRumors, apparently Yahoo!'s Jeff Passan 183 FAs. A fascinating endeavor that is, most likely going a bit too far...

But there were highlights (Jeff, at least you enjoyed yourself somewhat)

• 117) Richie Sexson, 1B: From consistent 30-homer masher to … below Sidney Ponson. Oy.
• 118) Carl Pavano, SP: Hehe.
• 125) Julian Tavarez, RP: Hey, he’s always up for throwing at batters, if nothing else.
• 141) Ramon Martinez, UT: Three more seasons and he’ll actually have had as long of a career as the good Ramon Martinez.
• 142) Mike Timlin, RP: Wait. He’s really not Bob Howry’s twin?
• 143) Josh Fogg, SP: Penance for accepting the nickname "The Dragon Slayer" is a 7.58 ERA the next season.
• 144) Horacio Ramirez, RP: The White Sox actually gave up a player to trade for him in ‘08.
• 150) Kevin Mench, OF: He could end up in Japan.
• 164) Toby Hall, C: He is better known in the White Sox clubhouse for his facial hair than his talent.
• 166) Javier Valentin, C: Actually isn’t half-bad.
• 167) Gary Bennett, C: Actually is.

Me's thinks Passan had a little fun writing that past about 100. Once he got to Vance Williams (last at 183) he turned from "ok, this guy kinda sucks, but he's still better than you" to "what the fuck? This guy was in my copy of 'Triple Play '97'! and he's still showing up?"

Walker-Sports Top 25 Poll:Bama Survives

It seems like this college football season just gets better and better every week. This past weekend was no exception. Alabama was taken to the limit down in the Bayou, Utah had to fight to keep their BCS hopes alive and Texas Tech is still proven critics wrong by blowing out a top 10 team. Now let’s take a look and see how the top 25 shakes out as teams are feeling the pressure with crunch time getting closer.

1) Alabama: Nick Saban took his boys into very hostile territory but they stayed focus fought hard and came away with the win. This may have been the most impressive win of the season for Alabama. They locked up the SEC West, but they got a Gator buzz saw waiting for them in the SEC championship game.

2) Texas Tech: The Red Raiders flexed their muscles Saturday night against Oklahoma State. The Cowboys never had a chance. Graham Harrell was simply amazing as was Michael Crabtree. I have a sneaking suspicion that Texas Tech is going to screw something up in the BCS this year.

3) Florida Gators: The best team in football right now. The Ole Miss game is long forgotten and Urban Myers has his team on a mission. If they win out it would be hard to deny this one lost team that is for sure.

4) Oklahoma Sooners: The Sooners were underrated all season and that seems to work for them. Remember they began the season ranked 19^th in 2000 when they won a national title. Oklahoma gets a week off, and then they will be thrust into the national spotlight when they take on Texas Tech. A win there and the Sooners will have a major claim to get back into the title hunt.

5) USC: The Trojans fell into this spot simply because they have stuck around long enough. And hopefully that will not be the reason the sneak into the BCS Championship game. Although USC vs. Penn State in the Rose Bowl is not appealing either. This is not Pete Carrols best team and they proved that with another lackluster performance again Cal on Saturday.

6) Utah: They may just be legit this season. Utah survived a tight scare against an upset minded TCU on Thursday night. As a result they live to fight another day, and their BCS hope are a live and well, which actually could spell trouble for fellow BCS buster Boise State.

7) Texas Longhorns: The Texas Longhorns have gotten a lot of love in the BCS Poll and in all honesty it is difficult to dispute that love either. Texas is a very good team and if given a chance they could ruin some ones trip to a bowl game.

8) Boise State: They have done everything right, except they do not have a marquee win. And in the end that could be what cost this team even when they complete the year undefeated. When it’s all said and done Utah will have wins over TCU and BYU both ranked teams. Boise will just have another successful run in the WAC. You cannot live off the success of 2007 for so long.

9) Penn State: I was given the hint to bet Iowa in this game and I should have taken them up on it. Joe Pa’s crew finally found reality on a cold windy Saturday afternoon. So the National Title is out of the question, but Penn State still has the inside track to make the Rose Bowl and they better remain focus if they want to keep that effort up.

10) Ball State: Much like Boise State, Ball State will do everything right this season but still be left sitting on the sidelines. When your marquee wins are against Indiana and Navy there’s just not much to hang your hat on there. Maybe they should create a special “Best of the Rest” Bowl game where Boise State and Ball State can match up.

11) Missouri Tigers: The more I watch this team just hanging out in the Big 12 North the more dangerous I think they are. Missouri got beat up when they had to travel through the Big 12 South, but now they have had easily sailing and they will continue to as they go through the end of the season. The Tigers will be on upset alert when they walk into the Big 12 Championship in a few weeks.

12) Ohio State: The Buckeyes have not had a bad season, their only loses have come against Penn State and USC, plenty of other teams can claim losing to either one of those schools. However, OSU has not done anything exceptional this season either. Even if they manage to blow out Michigan, I doubt anyone will be surprised or impressed.

13) Florida State: I can honestly say I did not expect to see the Florida State Seminoles sitting this high in the rankings this year. Granted they have not done a whole lot to deserve this spot, but they have handled their business. Much like OSU and several other teams this season FSU have not had any impressive victories, but they keep plugging along and racking up the wins. I like this team to make the Orange Bowl.

14) Georgia Bulldogs: When the dust settles, this will be considered a disappointing season for the Bulldogs. They will not play for a national title or an SEC title. However, the rumors and the possibility of losing head coach Mark Richt could prove to be more devastating than any lost on the field.

15) BYU: Just hanging around and waiting to play spoiler to Utah’s BCS party, that is what the Cougars can hang their hat on this season.

16) Michigan State: Michigan State could have a massive year if they can keep their heads on straight. A win against Penn State in a few weeks and MSU can pack their bags for the Rose Bowl. I’m not sure they want to square off against USC, but just making the Rose Bowl would be a massive accomplishment for this team.

17) Oklahoma State: Saturday night was ugly. There’s really no other way to put it. The Cowboys had no answer for Texas Tech. Their defensive line could not get any penetration and the secondary acted like they had never heard of Michael Crabtree. Well, I am sure after three touchdowns, they know who he is now.

18) North Carolina Tar Heels: Butch Davis is doing his best to leave his mark on this program. They racked up another impressive win over a conference foe. Now they have to win out and make it to the ACC Championship to make this season a success.

19) TCU: They tried to play spoiler twice this season, and unfortunately they just did not have enough in the tank.

20) Tulsa: Not a whole lot to this Tulsa squad, because of the conference they play in they don’t have many options to reach a big bowl game, and that is a shame. This is a fun team to watch, and everyone should catch them at least once just so they can see what the spread offense looks like when it is run to perfection.

21) Wake Forest: Wake Forest pounded the Virginia Cavaliers early in the first half then held on in the second half to get the win. The important part of this victory is it gave WFU a little bit of life to look forward to going ahead into the season.

22) LSU: It is not LSU’s year. There is really no other way to put it. A young quarterback means a lot of growing pains, especially in a conference like the SEC where teams like to apply pressure and get after you.

23) Cincinnati Bearcats: Two big wins in consecutive weeks and the Bearcats have broken into the Top 25. Not only that, but with the jumble that is the Big East, it is not out of the question for the Bearcats to sneak into a BCS game.

24) Pittsburgh: This Pittsburgh team is playing their ass off right now. Perhaps they are trying to save their coaches job. No matter what it is, they are in the thick of things and have a chance to reach a BCS game as well.

25) Oregon State: How about the Beavers just hanging around out west and with that win over USC they have earned the right to make this list. It would take a bit of luck, but Oregon State could luck up and make the Rose Bowl, now that would be something.

Our Peter King MMBBQ - 11/10/08

I think I've frequently said, its not really part of my element to mock sports writers, especially ones who are significantly more successful than I.

In Peter King's case, I think we'll have to make exception to mock the crap out of him. Its not that I hate Petey, its just that his holier than thou, I am the all knowing NFL writer attitude kills me...and when it spills out beyond football (as you'll see) I just can't take it.

Today's MMBBQ is politically charged:

You see Petey thought it'd be nice to charge his Democratic friends with a nice one pager during the election, something that nary raised an eyebrow in 2000 or 2004...

He focused on the election of a black man to the presidency (to be fair, a historic moment in many ways). He touched on Brandon Marshall's potential touchdown celebration (and black and white "Power Fist") and the status of minorities in the NFL (something I feel is fairly represented with respect to the US population, but not with respect to the NFL population). And of course, he let us know how NFL stars feel. Rather than fight through mindless partisan dribble, I'll leave you with the good quote (pretty much the only one, though Scott Fujita's was ok, though not to insightful), courtesy of Hines Ward: "We'll all remember where we were when our first black president was elected. It used to be that a black coach was unheard of; now I'm playing for one. A black president was certainly unheard of, and now we have one. Martin Luther King talked about having a dream, and now we're all living it."

But that fact of the matter is, Petey chose to focus on the election. Not because it was historic (he claims that was the rational) but because he's a partisan arrogant son of a bitch. It is ridiculous to use your national article as a way to trumpet your political views which, while slightly clouded here, is very clear in retrospect. Its even more offensive that such an illustrious (get it!) magazine's editor would allow for this.

Fire Peter King? That's change I believe in...

And moving on Peter's added a few new sections this year, specifically: What I learned about Football this week that I didn't know last week. Now, I can understand the point, but the title of this one says it all: The NFC Might be the stronger conference at the top right now, but the AFC is decisively better in one area: special teams. Perhaps I'm interpreting the wrong way, but it took you 9 weeks of NFL football (where you continuously ranked the Giants, Redskins, Eagles and Cowboys in your top 10...and that's just one division) to realize the NFC was better...

That's ok, you focus on special teams...you're special Petey...very special...