Best line of the day, so far

Further proof that college football’s so-called postseason is a joke: Even the coaches treat it like one.

Can you imagine, say, Sean Payton quitting the unbeaten New Orleans Saints on the eve of the NFC Championship Game to take his “dream job” coaching the Dallas Cowboys?

Sideline Chatter

Referring of course to coach Brian Kelly leaving his undefeated Cincinnati team to take a new job.

The FCS semi-final games were not a joke. Villanova beat William and Mary 14-13 and Montana defeated Appalachian State 24-17. Both were exciting well-played games.

Manning and Saturday

A nice article about the relationships that make a good football team great — Manning and Saturday Have Kept Colts on Leading Edge.

Big Game

William and Mary (11-2) at Villanova (12-1)
ESPN2 6PM MT Today

Winner advances to the Division I Football Championship Subdivision National Championship next Friday against the winner of Appalachian State (11-2) @ Montana (13-0) tomorrow at 2PM MT on ESPN.

Championship? Playoffs? Unlike the Football Bowl Subdivision presidents, the presidents of the 145 FCS schools must want to be football factories.

Ouch!

On this rare occasion, black coaches actually are being hired at places with a chance to succeed. Memphis should be one of the better programs in Conference USA and sits on fertile recruiting ground. Same could be said for Virginia and the ACC. And Louisville is one of the more committed football schools in the Big East. . . .

Last year black coaches got dead-end jobs at New Mexico State, New Mexico, Eastern Michigan and Miami (Ohio) at a historic low ebb.

Pat Forde — ESPN

Best anagram line of the day

“It’s an unfortunate ending to a storied career.”

Barry Bonds agent Jeff Borris

Best Tebow wore the wrong Biblical citation line of the day

The black stripes under Florida QB Tim Tebow’s eyes during Saturday’s loss to Alabama noted the New Testament citation John 16:33.

Deadspin suggests another more appropriate passage — John 11:35.

“Jesus wept.”

Best line of the day, so far

“Could TCU beat Texas? Could Cincinnati even stay on the field with Alabama? Maybe, maybe not. But I’d sure like to find out, wouldn’t you?”

Deadspin

Football Championship

If you like your college football to end in a real championship, consider the Football Championship School (FCS) playoffs which continue tomorrow. The eight teams that won in the first round are matched:

Stephen F. Austin State Lumberjacks (10-2) @ Montana Grizzlies (12-0) 2PM ET
Appalachian State Mountaineers (10-2) @ Richmond Spiders (11-1) 7 ET
New Hampshire Wildcats (10-2) @ Villanova Wildcats (11-1) 3:30 ET
William & Mary Tribe (10-2) @ Southern Illinois Salukis (11-1) 12 ET

There are 125 FCS schools (and 120 Football Bowl Schools).

Richmond won the championship last year. Appalachian State won in 2005, 2006 and 2007.

Four of the eight teams still contending are from the Colonial Athletic Association. Yet, meanwhile, two of the league’s 12 schools have just announced they are ending their football programs (Northeastern and Hofstra).

Tiger

Charles P. Pierce wrote an incredible profile of Tiger Woods for Esquire in 1997.

Here Pierce reflects on the Accident.

But read the 1997 profile.

Thanks Avelino.

The $3 Million Dollar Men

“The 926 players in the major leagues before rosters expanded in September averaged $2,996,000, according to the annual report of the players’ association, which was obtained Monday by The Associated Press.”

AP via Huffington Post

Average. Nearly. Three. Million. Dollars.

For six months.

(I do wonder what the median is.)

College Football Coaching Corps Facing Huge Losses

If, as expected, college football loses Charlie Weis of Notre Dame, Mark Mangino of Kansas and Ralph Friedgen of Maryland, we’re talking a good 1200 pounds.
  

Best lines of the day

When you get what you want in your struggle for pelf,
And the world makes you King for a day,
Then go to the mirror and look at yourself,
And see what that guy has to say.

For it isn’t your Father, or Mother, or Wife,
Who judgement upon you must pass.
The feller whose verdict counts most in your life
Is the guy staring back from the glass.

He’s the feller to please, never mind all the rest,
For he’s with you clear up to the end,
And you’ve passed your most dangerous, difficult test
If the guy in the glass is your friend.

You may be like Jack Horner and “chisel” a plum,
And think you’re a wonderful guy,
But the man in the glass says you’re only a bum
If you can’t look him straight in the eye.

You can fool the whole world down the pathway of years,
And get pats on the back as you pass,
But your final reward will be heartaches and tears
If you’ve cheated the guy in the glass.

Dale Wimbrow, “The Man in the Glass,” 1934

Recited in full today by Al Groh, football coach, University of Virginia. The Cavaliers were 3-9.

Groh continued, “When I visited the guy in the glass, I saw that he’s a guy of commitment, of integrity, of dependability and accountability. He’s loyal. His spirit is indomitable. And he is caring and loving. I’m sure I will always call the guy in the glass a friend.”

And that was his whole press conference. Bravo Coach.

Update: The poetry didn’t help. Groh was fired. He was 59-53 for nine seasons.

If you are interested in football at all, watch this

From the The Fifth Down Blog:

NFL Films has been putting microphones on players since 1965. Its president, Steve Sabol, said recently that no player’s wiring had ever been as dramatic as Matthew Stafford’s in a comeback victory against the Browns.

The video, which has many memorable moments, culminates when Stafford, after sustaining a serious injury to his nonthrowing shoulder, eludes the trainers and runs back on the field for the final play. But words can’t do it justice; enjoy the clip.

The World's Most Famous Lobo

The Sports Pickle wonders if UNM soccer player Elizabeth Lambert is related to the great Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Jack Lambert. Click for an awesome photo of Jack, a nine-time Pro Bowler.

Meanwhile, at The New York Times there is an adult-like interview with Ms. Lambert — Those Soccer Plays, in Context. Well done, and worth your time if you’ve paid any attention to this story.

Idle thought

Alas, I wasn’t watching the Colts’ great fourth quarter comeback last night (they won 35-34 after being down 31-14 with just 14 minutes to play). I think New England Coach Belichick made the right call going for it on fourth and two at the Patriots’ own 28 with two minutes left ahead 34-28. The Pats didn’t make the first down and the Colts took it in on four plays, but it was a gutsy call, statistically correct.

Guess the UNM football coach is conducting clinics

… for other sports.

A Fan

Committed to the team [photo].

Stupid or Evil?

Yes.

Washington Redskins Owner Bans Fan’s Signs.

Here’s the source article.

And a great piece about the team from a two-time Pulitzer winner: Monday Night Football.

Hey ump, one more eye and you'd be a cyclops

Alas, this play doesn’t appear to matter in the longer scheme of things, but these umpires get paid to get it right, don’t they. This wasn’t even close.

ALCS Gm 4: Yanks catch a break on controversial play [short video].

It’s being titled the worst call of all time.

Losers

Only three major league franchises have never been to a World Series.

Washington Senators/Texas Rangers (49 seasons)

Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals (41 seasons)

Seattle (Washington) Mariners (33 seasons)

What is it with franchises related to Washington?

His Brother's Keeper

Peyton Manning telling Bob Costas about watching Eli play:

“I get so into it. I get so worked up. I remember last year they were playing Philly, or maybe it was two years ago. They beat them and he drove them down there late and I remember standing on top of the bed, yelling at Toomer or one of his receivers because they ran a wrong route, and Joe Buck is just ripping Eli, just because that’s what he seems to enjoy doing.

“So I’m yelling at Joe Buck, ‘Just call the play-by-play, Joe! Let Aikman do the commentary.’ I said to myself, ‘Peyton, what are you doing? Why are you on top of the bed yelling at the TV?’ I’ve got a game here in four hours against New England or something . . . But you know what, I love watching him play. That’s the first thing I do after a game when I get to the locker room. I’m asking for the Giants score.”

As reported by Neil Blast, Newsday. They have the video.

The best part, of course, is the dis of Joe Buck.

Jennifer Plays Hard Ball

Back in July near Miami, 12-year-old Jennifer came away with Phillies player Ryan Howard’s 200th home run ball. Florida Marlins officials asked her to give up the milestone ball so Howard could autograph it.

Turns out the team pulled the old switcheroo on Jennifer, handing her a polished, new ball autographed by Howard. She didn’t buy the trickery and went home and told her mom, who asked the Phillies for the ball she gave up. After a long struggle, which included a lawsuit, she’s finally gotten the Phillies to back down.

Consumerist has more.

A Dog's Life

Malcolm Gladwell writes about Football, dog fighting, and brain damage in this week’s New Yorker. An excerpt:

“Lately, I’ve tried to break it down,” [Kyle] Turley said. “I remember, every season, multiple occasions where I’d hit someone so hard that my eyes went cross-eyed, and they wouldn’t come uncrossed for a full series of plays. You are just out there, trying to hit the guy in the middle, because there are three of them. You don’t remember much. There are the cases where you hit a guy and you’d get into a collision where everything goes off. You’re dazed. And there are the others where you are involved in a big, long drive. You start on your own five-yard line, and drive all the way down the field—fifteen, eighteen plays in a row sometimes. Every play: collision, collision, collision. By the time you get to the other end of the field, you’re seeing spots. You feel like you are going to black out. Literally, these white explosions—boom, boom, boom—lights getting dimmer and brighter, dimmer and brighter.

Hey, Red Sox Nation

Na na na na na na na na
Hey hey hey goodbye

Saddest line of the night for Detroit fans

“Detroit led Minnesota by seven games on Sept. 6.”

SI.com