NCAA Football
tOSU 37, Michigan 21: Someone said last Thursday that the team with the most to lose always seems to lose this one. Again, that was the case. Meanwhile, Ted Ginn, Jr.'s fourth punt return TD of the year is turning the Cleveland-area product into even more of a local legend.
Florida 20, FSU 13: Say what you want about Ron Zook - he got to go out on top in this one. Meanwhile, both Wyatt Sexton and Chris Rix were given fair chances to suck it up in this one.
Iowa 30, Wisconsin 7: Well, apparently I overrated Wisconsin this year. Shows what I know. Of course, when you spend all year covering up a weak offense with a great defense, you're bound to be in trouble when the defense has an off day (or two straight off days in this case).
Clemson 29, South Carolina 7: When I saw the fight, I smiled and thought about the good old times with Lou. Unfortunately, the end of Lou's career won't be good old times - South Carolina and Clemson decided to pass up any bowl offers as punishment for the fight, ending Coach Holtz's career on somewhat of a sour note.
The NFL
Jets 10, Browns 7: That's the kind of year it's been for the Browns. Phil Dawson hadn't missed a field goal since October '03, and he goes 0-2 in this one. Also on Sunday, the Knicks beat the Cavs, and Kaz Matsui apparently came to Cleveland to give CC Sabathia a kick squar in the nyuts. Enjoy it, Dave. (Hey, at least I got the fantasy win.)
Falcons 14, Giants 10: Well, Ellen, I finally got to watch a Giants game. Eli Manning had poise, I'll give him that. But I wouldn't put the blame of all those drops entirely on the receivers - on each of those drops, he threw the ball behind his receiver. Should NFL receivers still catch those? Sure, probably. Gee, you'd really think I was more of an expert on dropping the ball.
Packers 16, Houston 13: If you missed the second half, you missed a lot of the action. And I definitely missed the second half. David Carr put together a great first half. But, apparently he fell apart in the second, as Brett Favre went to work. Final tally - master 383 yards, student 164.
Where are they now? ND Edition
Nick Setta: Participated in a tryout for the Broncos along with four other kickers.
Julius Jones: Ran for 81 yards in his return to action last Sunday. Julius had 30 carries while Eddie George had 3.
Gerome Sapp: Special teams/occassional DB for the Colts, he has 20 tackles on the season.
Ruth Riley: Plays with the Colorado Chill of the NWBL during the WNBA offseason.
Kelley Siemon: Well, she's now Kelley Deyo, and she's an assistant basketball coach at Liberty College.
Niele Ivey: Just signed with the Spanish team Mann-Filter to play during the WNBA offseason. Special thanks to reader Tara Pillai for the update on Deyo and Ivey.
Apparently I'm Still Doing a Mailbag
Kanka,
What are your thoughts of a Peyton v Eli superbowl in the future? Would it
be a crazy day of face making? Who would Archie and The Other Manning
Brother root for? - Ellen, Colonia, NJ
Wow, that would be a crazy day of face making. My guess is that this will be the debut of the Eli Manning "I can't believe this is the one time my brother chose not to choke in the playoffs" face. Meanwhile, I wouldn't be surprised if Archie sold advertising on his body, since he's bound to get more face time than the Coors Light twins in that Super Bowl.
Kanka,
Has Notre Dame hit rock bottom yet? First I thought they did with Bob
Davie, then with George O'Leary, now with Ty Willingham. Are they there
yet? I am eager for upward movement. - Ellen, Colonia, NJ
Well, the 19-30 Joe Kuharich/Hugh Devore was nothing to hang your hat on. Plus, at least the current team isn't following the John Cooper philosophy of "Get away with everything just like the Florida schools but suck anyways." Of course, maybe I should say that ND has hit rock bottom, because that means things can only get better from here.
ND Bowl Predictions
| Bowl | Affiliation | Probable Team | Probable Opponent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fiesta Bowl | Big East 1 | BC | CBS Sportsline predicts Utah. |
| Gator Bowl | Big East 2 | West Virginia - the Big East may be tempted to screw over BC to give ND this spot, but after WVU CoachRich Rodriguez's whining over ND's Big East bowl tie-ins a few years ago, there's no way WVU gets passed up for this spot. | Florida State (Miami/Virginia?) |
| Continental Tire | Big East 3/4 | Pitt or ND - depends on which bowl has the most pull. | North Carolina (ACC 4/5) |
| Insight | Big East 3/4 | Pitt or ND - is it possible this one would outdraw its "big brother" Fiesta Bowl? | UCLA (Pac 10 4) |
| Liberty Bowl | Mountain West 1 (At-Large if Utah goes to BCS bowl) | Looks like this one goes to MWC #2 Boise State. | Louisville (C-USA 1) |
| Emerald Bowl | Pac 10 (Not enough eligible Pac 10 teams) | Navy has already accepted the Pac 10 spot. | CBS Sportsline predicts Wyoming. (Normally MWC 3) |
| Silicon Valley Bowl | Pac 10 (Not enough eligible Pac 10 teams) | Toledo. I believe that it's already been agreed this spot will go to a MAC team - they only have 2 bowl tie-ins but deserve more. | |
| Houston Bowl | SEC (Not enough eligible SEC teams) | CBS Sportsline predicts UConn. | Texas Tech (Please no!) or Iowa St (Big 12 5/6) |
| Independence Bowl | SEC (Not enough eligible SEC teams) | CBS Sportsline predicts Troy. | Texas Tech (Please no!) or Iowa St (Big 12 5/6) |
| Hawaii Bowl | WAC (Not enough eligible WAC teams) | CBS Sportsline predicts Akron. | UAB (C-USA 3) |
| Las Vegas Bowl | Pac 10 (Not enough eligible Pac 10 teams) | Apparently, this one also has a MAC "backup tie-in." CBS Sportsline predicts Miami U. | CBS Sportsline predicts New Mexico. (Normally MWC 2) |
Miscellaneous Ramblings
By no means "miscellaneous" - congrats to the Irish women's basketball team for winning the Preseason NIT. En route to the championship, the Irish knocked off #6 Duke 76-65. The finals, a 66-62 win over Ohio State was highlighted by 3 notables: 32 points by tournament MVP Jackie Batteast, a 12-0 Irish run to end the game, and a block by Batteast on what would have been a tying 3-pointer with 2 seconds left. On the same day they climbed to #6 in both polls, the Irish went to 5-0 by knocking of Colorado State (hey, Colorado is a state) 69-47.
So, I was wearing my ND tie today, and I realized that many ND ties have famous quotes on the back of them. So, I turned it over, and sure enough, there was a very famous ND quote on the back: "The University name and logo featured on this product are trademarks of the University of Notre Dame."
KankaNation-related Things I'm Thankful For
- "Loyal KankaManiacs" who actually read what I write.
- Friends who would listen to me even if I didn't have a website.
- People who LOOOOVE me.
- The fact that, when I wake up the next morning, it's still just a game.
- A loving family, roof over my head, and a good job - even though I may complain about all from time to time.
- The fact that, no matter how bad I think things are here, I could be risking my life in Iraq instead.
- The fact that the friends I do have in Iraq right now have managed to stay safe.
- Lou Holtz, the '97 ALCS, NFL Week 17 2002, the Joe Montanas of the world and especially the Rudys, the Indians farm system, the Cavs of the early '90s and mid-2000s, the '48 Indians and Browns' first 20 seasons, die-hard fandom, hope, and "next year."
Finally, part of one of Dave's comments from the message board:
"I'll put this here because we should all be thankful to this great man. I have always loved Lou. Ok, so it's bordered on an obsession at times. Aside from the '86 Mets, the only other team I've ever truly identified myself with has been ND football, and it's largely because of Lou. He was so charismatic, so good at preparation, and so open in his love for ND. He just made everyone feel it. He brought in talent like Rocket, Rice, Zorich, Mirer, and Bettis. He wasn't ashamed of football greatness, and the way it made Notre Dame look. He embraced it as part of God's plan. (it's getting little dusty in here). Christmas 1994, all I wanted was the hat that Lou wore on the sidelines: navy blue, ND over IRISH on the front, Reebok on the back, all stitching in gold. The following summer, I wrote Lou a letter to ask if he'd still be wearing that hat in '94. He wrote me back, saying he wasn't sure. Lo and behold, he switched hats, and the Irish faltered badly. When Lou retired from ND, I retired Lou the Hat, and still it sits in an honored place in my room. God Bless Lou Holtz."
