Bill Walsh was diagnosed with leukemia last week. While certainly not appropriate or accurate to begin eulogizing him, the recent game between the Jets and Patriots made me think of him and his impact on the game. The Jets game had Belichek's protégée, Eric Mangini facing against the old master himself. In the build up to the team game or after neither side acknowledged their lineage. Belichek was quick dismiss any accomplishments of the Jets coach and The Mangina rarely noted that any of his skills, plays or schemes have Belichek's hand behind it. Too often in my opinion is the term genius thrown around in football. In my opinion part of genius is legacy. Are the schemes carried on? Do the assistants you train go on to perform at a high level? Do those assistants use your schemes? It’s a question of penetration of the league's psyche. Belichek with all of his victories will leave a fairly questionable legacy. It is one of those reasons why I term Walsh as the last true genius of the NFL. Not only is Walsh's West Coast design the corner stone in some form of a sizeable percentage of team's offenses but the lineage and offspring of Walsh did and continue to make impressions on the league. Anyway get well soon Bill.
Some Quick Analysis....
College Football:
As always the train wreck that is the BCS Championship is thinning out to a manageable crowd. Where once there was projected hundreds of contenders for the BCS Championship game (which I think is being held in March or something. Hey NCAA real College Football Bowl Games are played on New Years Day while I'm nursing a hangover and summoning my final bit of strength to defeat a turkey sandwich). Anyway the current BCS standings are 1. OSU 2. M*ch*g*n, 3. USC 4. Florida and 5. Notre Dame 6. Rutgers and 7. Arkansas. So who's going to the dance? Well the winner of the Blood Bath in Columbus has their ticket punched. USC was the main beneficiary of the losses by Louisville, Texas and Auburn. USC still has three average to tough opponents in Cal, Notre Dame and UCLA and if they can continue to win they are as good shot as any. The other main contender is Florida. While Florida hung on to beat the old Ball Coach himself (Steve Spurrier) Florida has lost momentum and the inside tracks by winning close. The SEC Championship Game (between Arkansas and Florida) is a high enough profile game to possibly leap frog USC. It should noted though that USC's thumpin of Arkansas gives Southern Cal a leg up (or I'm guessing since I don't know any voters). The final alternative I'm willing to bet Colonel's money on outside of USC and Florida is the loser of the Big 10 Championship Game. Its certainly possible, who would've thunk it…..
Ughh... you again? Pro Football
I would try to analyze who's up and who's down but there just doesn't seem to be a discernable pattern. One trend that will appear is a late surger. Every year there is some team that puts together a winning streak (which given the state of the league might be 3 games) to finish with 7-9 wins just missing out of the playoffs and in doing so becomes the dark horse favorite to make the playoffs next year. Last year's choice was Miami. This year…well I put forward two teams….San Francisco and Miami. San Francisco seems to be improving each week and Frank Gore seems to have a highlight every week. Given the state of the NFC West, it's not too hard to make a serious push. The other team ironically might be Miami. Would anyone doubt that if Miami finishes at .500 that somehow the media would once again wax on about Saban's genius and fall in love with the reclamation project of Joey "I can play the Piano which makes me cool" Harrington?
Joey during sharing time at Rancho Dolphins
NBA
Two players I just want to highlight. 1) Deron Williams point guard for the Utah Jazz came to camp in shape and has been weaving and bobbing the Jazz to a 6-1 record. Williams is currently fourth in the league in assists with 8.7. Coupled with a healthy Carlos Boozer who, while a jack-ass, is averaging 20-10 a night and the Jazz could run away with the division. The other fact of note was tonight Yao Ming dropped 34 points and pulled in 14 boards against Shaq and Zo. If there was any doubt left, Yao Ming is officially now the most dominant center in the league. While it's partially a comment on the state of the center position, Yao is averaging 26.2 points a game, 9.3 rebounds and nearly 60% from the field. Those are all-star numbers, in any era.
Me v. Toilet: Rubber Match
For those that are interested. Round 1 of the liquor contest went to the toilet as Publius came in from the outside and symbolically hit me with a chair when he order a jager shot. Round 2: The Rematch came in New York. Despite beer and enough vodka to kill Boris Yeltsin, I survived and avoided the Porcelain Overlord. Well Round 3: This Time its Personal occurred this weekend. The toilet encouraged me to stray from my tried and true Vodka path with the foul temptress that is Scotch (which I do love as well as my dog Baxter). While I was on the ropes for awhile, I somehow powered through and defeated the Toilet. With this victory, I can set my sights on the rematch I've been waiting for...finishing The Turkey Sandwich.
Yeah, that's right I'm calling you out Sandwich...
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