Band Boy Immortalized

Many people may have forgotten about Michigan St. sticking their flag in the middle of the field at Notre Dame Stadium following their victory 2 years ago. Apparently Irish WR Golden Tate was not one of these people. I'm not sure which will have the longer legacy, Tate's leap or this dudes face, ha!

Video of the Day

A good friend of mine, we will call him "Robbie," sent me this video. Over time it is inevitable that things will and do change. We used to have console televisions now we have flat panels, we used to have windows on the house now we have windows on our computer. As we grow older we learn to accept these truths. Some change is for the better and some is not depending on who you ask. Now with that said check out this video of how they used to kiss back in the day and let me know better, or worse nowadays?

Reactions to this Weekend

By: Brandon Phillips

Happy Monday peeps, and as you know I frown upon "Aww it's Monday," guy so don't be that guy! Let’s get started at the Top Gators vs Gator Bait (ie former Tennessee Vols) I think this was the game everyone was looking to, interesting it fell at 2:30 on Saturday but we’ll take it. Vegas said Florida by 29.5, a few of my Gator friends said 88.5 and at the end of the day, thanks to 2 Tebow turnovers, we were left with 23-13 (YUCK)!

Had a chance to listen to the UT postgame show and you would have thought they won the game (I think they made rings). I can’t fully hate on the moral victory, Lord knows I played that card last week following WKU vs S. Florida, I guess the distinction would be WKU has been IA for all of 3 games and UT houses a BCS Championship Trophy, but perhaps I am blinded by Orange hate.
Moral victories aside Kiffin’s justification that his verbal diarrhea all summer had worked in removing pressure from his players is BS, UT’s recent record against Florida and their 7th grade QB lowered expectations so much that if anything you put pressure on your guys. No one expected you to win that game, good sakes you are unranked playing the #1 team in the country, in the Swamp, with Superman at QB, and a 29.5 point underdog, what pressure could you have possibly had? At this point Kiffinis clown shoes to me, but time will tell if he is Bozo or Krusty!

Other quick hitters, USC ran into their Achilles heal and lost yet another PAC 10 road game to a team they should probably beat by 2 scores or more. How great of a coach would Ty Willingham be if he could coach up his own players the way those who follow him do? Just weird. Either way I don’t think it’s coincidence that another former USC assistant, Steve Sarkisian, came in to this Washington program, kept his mouth shut, worked hard, and got his boys to do what Kiffin’s couldn’t.

The BCS probably sent out Thank You cards and $100 Itunes gift cards today to every coach and player at Florida St. and Oregon after knocking the Cougars and Utes out of the BCS picture and saving the Bull Crap Series a lot of headache. A big win for the Ducks ending Utah ending the nation’s longest winning streak, perhaps Legarrette Blount should punch one player from Boise St. in the face every two weeks to keep the momentum.

On the NFL side the Bengals, Raiders, and Bills impressed the hell out of me coming back from terrible, terrible, and did I say terrible losses last week and getting big W’s this week. The Jets talked smack then smacked the Patriots right in the mouth so hard it knocked Rodney Harrison out of his broadcast seat and caused a domino effect as he knocked into Tony Dungy who then knocked into the other 175 ‘analysts’ at NBC. Tonight big MNF game as the Colts look to take a commanding lead in the AFC South and the Dolphins look to avoid the NFL’s version of “The Red Ring of Death,” an 0-2 start. Vegas likes the Colts by 4.

Lastly my Hilltoppers, my poor, poor Hilltoppers. Following WKU’s 28-7 loss to IAA Central Arkansas Coach Elson is catching it from the Topper faithful. Maybe you can defend a trouncing to the Vols, and claim a moral victory against S. Florida (that’s what Kiffin tells me) but Central Arkansas? I don’t think you can spin this one, and if the Tops don’t fix some things, and fix them fast, things are going to get ugly. On a side bar we did celebrate the 1-year anniversary of WKU’s last victory at our house on Sunday, so at least it was a reason to party!

Everyone Murders, duh

Lovin Terelle Pryor's response to Vick eye black. "Not everybody’s the perfect person in the world. I mean everyone kills people, murders people, steals from you, steals from me, whatever."

Like umm

Thanks to Colts Crusader for turning me on to this video. I feel terrible for this kid but it's like a car wreck, you can't help but watch!

The Presents Are Opened

By: Derek Hottell

We woke up on Christmas, ran downstairs, and opened all of our gifts. The college football season is under way, and it is time to figure out what we have been given in the forms of WKU, UK, and UL this year for our proverbial Christmas. Are they our Red Rider BB Gun, something we treasure forever? Or, are they the pink bunny suit from our aunt we never see?

WKU - It is hard to say what we have in WKU this year. The Hilltoppers are eligible for a bowl this year as they complete their transition to Division 1-A (I still like the old terminology.). What is difficult to know from their game against Tennessee is how successful this season can be because with teams from the Sun Belt Conference success isn't measured by games against the SEC.

For sure, they are young. For sure, the offense must be better, especially the passing game and play calling. For sure, WKU must improve their depth and front lines. They are no longer a powerhouse in Division 1-AA; they cannot line up and run teams over.

However, the defense played well for the first quarter until they began to wear down, and the special teams performed better than expected. You would usually expect to see the vast discrepancy in speed and talent in special teams where big plays by the superior team are the norm, but there wasn't any of that during the game indicating that there is at least raw talent at the skill positions.

The final verdict is ...: WKU is not as far away from completing their transition to Division 1-A as the Tennessee score would have you believe. If they improve their depth, beef up their front lines, and become more creative in their play calling, they will turn the corner. Based upon the first game, I would predict a final record of 6-6. They will have a chance to have a record of 8-4, but will lose some close games at the end as their young players still become more seasoned.

UK - The Wildcats were by far the most exciting gift we opened from the local universities this weekend. They showed more explosiveness on offense than they did all of last season, especially in the passing game, and the defense still looks stout. Granted this was all against a Miami (OH) team that will be lucky to win one game in the Mid-American Conference. But, this was opening weekend, and playing Miami (OH) on the road is a tougher test than most major teams experience (see the University of Louisville vs. Indiana State).

The final verdict is ...: The SEC East is still difficult, but it is not the beast that it normally is. Georgia is still good, but not great; South Carolina still has difficulty moving the ball on offense; and Tennessee has talent, but it is young talent. The out of conference schedule is extremely manageable, and the Wildcats will be favored in every one of the games. I predict that UK and Coach Rich Brooks will finally make the hurdle and achieve a .500 record in the SEC, and they will end the season with an 8-4 record and return to their fourth straight bowl game. If a few bounces go their way, it is not inconceivable that they could have a final record of 9-3 and make some noise.

UL - Hmmmmmm. What to make of the University of Louisville? Let's start with the positives. Special teams, while still not great, looked much better than last season. Trent Guy at times looked like the guy that showed flashes of brilliance while returning punts and kick-offs on the Cardinals way to the Orange Bowl three years ago. The kicking game with Shoeless Joe (Ryan Payne) wasn't nearly as woeful, and while the punt average wasn't very high, this was because of the number of pin-backs that Goettsche had.

The defense played looser, faster, and with more abandon than it has in two years. Anderson looked like he will be more formidable than he was last year in route to being named Big East Rookie of the Year. Powell looked like he may start to show the promise he did as a freshman. The receiving corp is fast and deep. Graham will be the type of tightend that Louisville fans are accustomed to having with Ibn Green, Gary Barnidge, and the like.

Now, for the bad. Indiana State is not good. They make Miami (OH) look like the Pittsburgh Steelers. This is a team that lost to an NAIA school the week before playing Louisville. Justin Burke at times looked talented, especially when moving outside of the pocket, but he was shaky at best when throwing the ball downfield, and he must be able to stretch the field, especially in play action, to free up space for Anderson and Powell. The recievers dropped and tipped too many balls. The third down conversion rate was deplorable on both sides of the ball (too few for Louisville, too many for Indiana State).

What is most disconcerting about the play on the field is the play of the offensive and defensive lines. Louisville could not and did not line up and run over the Sycamores, and likewise, they did not force the type of pressure on the quarterback on the defensive side of the ball that you would expect. This has to improve, if they have any hope of being competitive.

The final verdict is...: The play calling wasn't as bad as the score would have you believe. But, Justin Burke, if he remains the starting quarterback, must hit the open receivers downfield that were available. At least 21 points were lost because receivers that were wide open were overthrown. The penalties are more concerning because it is evidence of either a lack of discipline or of being over matched, which if the Cardinals are over matched by the Sycamores, they are in trouble. The Big East isn't great, but there is enough talent that UL will struggle, but they will win one game that they shouldn't and will have a final record of 6-6, but will not go to a bowl game.

So, this is the season that I foresee for us in Kentucky after we experience College Football Christmas, and I plan to enjoy all of the gifts, even the pink bunny suit.

Never Turn The Game Off Early

All of my excitement from yesterdays official kickoff of College Football had me really worn down by the end of the day.  So as the Smurf Turfs finished off the wingless Ducks of Oregon I thought surely it's safe to go to bed, the excitement is bedhind us for the day.  In the words of Lee Corso, "No so fast my friend!"

NCAA Football Is Here and I Want to Dance!

By Brandon Phillips

Here at last!  We are just under 9 hours away from the kickoff of College Football, and I feel like a kid in a candy store, with a Sears catalog turned to the toys section on Christmas Eve.  At some point in my life the wonderful anticipation and excitement of holidays that I once felt as a kid was no longer!  No longer were birthdays, Easters, or Christmas Eve's quite the celebration that they once were.  Not to sound all Vince Young after losing his starting job and disappearing into the night, for they were still fun, but the anticipation and excitement was simply not the same.  I was wondering in a maze of darkness searching the globe to find something to bring back that inner child and the days of slap bracelets and freezy pops!  Sure enough it was under my nose the entire time!

You would think at the end of the college and professional football seasons you would be somewhat ready for a break from the gladiators of the grid iron.  Not me!  I eat every second of it up like Joey Chestnut in a Nathan's Hot Dog Outlet Store, and miss it to no end when it's gone.  In some way, however, the down time is not all bad, for as some fru fru poet or writer once said "Absence makes the heart grow fonder," and I am about as "fonded,"as I can be come September.  That period of time from late February to September serves a fountain of youth, renewing a thirst I thought I had lost!

Tonight my thirst will be quenched to the tune of 9 games, 3 of which will be carried by ESPN.  South Carolina vs NC State at 6 on ESPN, North Texas vs Ball St at 6:30 on ESPNU, and the grand finale Boise St. and the Smurf Turf vs The Fighting Nike Swoosh's of Oregon at 9:15 on ESPN.  Honestly at this point the lineup could include Buttcrack St. (Hotel's Favorite) vs Montana Polytechnic Institute A&M Jr. College playing on ESPN Ocho, I don't care bring it!  

Excitement breeds excitement, and it's more contagious than swine flu!  This is why I contest football season is so great for it brings so many people together to celebrate one cause, and harness the energy of every person in the crowd.  Not to mention everyone is undefeated come week 1, and every fan (realistically or not) has a since of optimism about the potential of their team.  And don't forget the best part, we get to b!&$ch about the BCS for 4 months, woo hoo!!

So here's a toast to you fellow football fans, sit back and enjoy what is about to be another great season of college football.

Brett Favre

By: Brandon Phillips

I almost feel like I am feeding my own frustrations by even acknowledging Brett Favre but below is some commentary from a recent show to pictures, hope you enjoy.