The Recycle Bin

For those of you that thought football was over, think again. Today is that great time known as National Signing Day. My dad used to really get into this (after he retired – too much time on his hands I guess), but I never put much stock in ranking signing classes because these kids have not even stepped on the field. My opinion is that you have to withhold judgment on your team’s signing class for a couple of years.

To be fair, I understand the importance of recruiting, going after blue chip prospects, and landing that next stud that will take a team to the promise land. Some freshmen will contribute, but most of these kids will not make an impact for two or three years. I guess my point is that these guys are just kids. Kids – the great hope of over zealous football fans.

Things happen. Some of the kids never step foot in the school. Some of the kids become home sick. Some flunk out. And some turn to a life of crime; was going to make a joke here, but I guess it is really not a laughing matter.

From what I have read, the SEC did a great job. rivals.com has seven schools in its top ten (three in the top five). espn.com also has three SEC schools in the top five. Georgia is consistently in the top ten, and Texas is in the top five. So all around, high hopes for my teams.

I still think guys that sit around living for this stuff have too much time on their hands, but different strokes I guess. When does spring football start?

The monkey is off the collective back of the collective backs of Tony Dungy and Peyton Manning.  I think this victory just earned both of those guys a trip to the HOF.  Dungy for a great winning percentage and of course the social significance of being the first black coach to win the Super Bowl.  Manning, just because of his numbers – they compare well to other HOF QBs – and he now has his ring.

I know I predicted the Colts at the beginning of the season (and stood by that prediction last night), but you may want to know why the Colts are my pick. For starters, despite the over exposure of Manning, I actually like the guy, and want to see him do well. I am not an Indianapolis or Chicago fan, and other than being a huge Elway fan, I am always typically an NFC type of guy. Last year was an exception because of the UGA connection on the Steelers was stronger than the Seahawks, but I digress.

Tonight I see the Colts defense continuing its impressive playoff run. I see the Bears defense performing well, but they will be hampered by an offense that cannot make big plays. I think Rex will play a better than average game, but he will be limited to one big play and that will only come after the Bears are down by 13.

I do not see the rain being a factor, and I do not think Manning is going to “choke” in the big game. I think the Bears running game will be solid, but the Colts will actually put up a better performance on the ground.

In the end, the Colts are going to pull away to a 33-17 victory.

The giggles you here resonating from the Big Three are all from the Bing N.  Nintendo must be pretty happy these days.  I am getting a small tax refund this year (will comment on pros/cons later) so I figured I could “float” a Wii and pay it off with the expected return.  No such luck; at least not around Columbus, GA.  Same goes for the DS Lite; figured I may actually play that more than my PSP, but those are not to be had in these parts.

So Nintendo is laughing all the way to the bank, MS continues to build its user base (although still not tempting me), and I have no idea WTF Sony is doing these days.

Possible content warning for younger readers. I just came across what has to be the worst site ever (or damn near close to the worst ever) – gadgetcandy.com; tag line is “because girls love gadgets too.” Maybe so, but I do not see how this site will help the cause. Two samples of rubbish from the above link follow

“While the Xbox 360 is content to be middle-of-the-road, and Nintendo’s Wii oozes simple-minded fun from every pore, PS3 is the console of choice for the person who wants their gaming with a hefty side-order of multimedia.”

“Of course, buying a console and not playing games on it is like buying a car just for the cigarette lighter, so you’ll be pleased to hear that the current titles don’t disappoint.”

Come again? You can thank baby Joseph for your late night (or early morning – 4:30AM Sunday morning right now) reading pleasure.

Interesting Braves blog article in the AJC about fan favorite Adam LaRoche who was recently traded to Pittsburgh for closer Mike Gonzalez. The one quote that caught my eye?

He also said this about Atlanta fans: “They got spoiled, and they’ve got to know that. Somebody’s got to have told them by now. They were spoiled, and we were spoiled as players.”

Thanks for that LaRoche.

I actually liked LaRoche and hate to see him go, especially for a closer that has had recent arm issues. I know the bullpen needs to be improved, but still, trading LaRoche seemed almost like a panic move on the part of Braves management.

Of course GM John Schuerholz has a knack for knowing when to hold, fold, or run. Well, at least within the limits of their budget. Good luck LaRoche!

Just in case I run out of time, I will make my prediction tonight.  I am going to stay with my beginning of the season pick – Indianapolis.  Just do a search; the rest of my picks may be a bit of a mess, but I am going to ride the Colts.   

When I learned that Michael Irvin made the NFL Hall of Fame my first thought was that this was due to popularity; ESPN is a mighty fine marketing machine. I decided to dig into the numbers a little bit to see if I could make a legitimate argument to support my case.

The Hall of Fame bio/press release states

Irvin, the Dallas Cowboys’ first round pick in 1988, caught 750 passes for 11,904 yards and 65 touchdowns during his 12-season career. He was named to five Pro Bowls and is a member of the NFL’s All-Decade Team of the 1990s.

Fair enough. Did Irvin get in on the merit of being one of the top receivers of the 90s? Maybe, but I keep hearing that Andre Reed and Art Monk deserve to be in the Hall. Why Irvine, and not Reed and Monk?

Some interesting numbers come to light if you look at the Top 20 receivers (courtesy of the Hall of Fame; current as of 2005). Andre Reed and Art Monk not only have more receptions than Irvine, they also have more yards and more TDs. Hmmm.

After poking around a little, I do think that Irvin is a Hall of Fame receiver, but the only reason Irvine goes in the Hall in front of Reed or Monk has to be marketing. Or maybe popularity contest.

I was looking at the OOTPB 2007 feature change list and came away very impressed. I was going to quote a few of my favorite items, or general items on the list that caught my attention, but to be honest, the list is too long!

There is always eternal optimism prior to the release of any new game, especially one with the loyal following of OOTPB, so I am going into this one with guarded optimism. I am hopeful that OOTPB 2007 is everything (and more) that OOTPB 2006 should have been, but the proof is in the pudding.

Please oh please, SI, do not f’ this one up. If we can really see an improved version of OOTPB that actually pays attention to the needs of online leagues (and historical leagues) then I may have to do a jig.

8:15AM Saturday morning as I write this, so hopefully no one thinks I am skint up so early in the Super Bowl weekend. Last night I decided that Busch Light was better than Budweiser Select, but was not close to Miller Lite. Hey, someone has to try the stuff to keep everyone informed.

Busch Light, served cold, reminds me of another beer flavored water favorite – Natty Light. Busch is pretty much water with a little alcohol mixed in for good measure (4.2% ABV). I picked up a 24 pack at Sam’s Club and now have to figure out what to do with the stuff. Coming in at $0.48 a can was certainly a bargain, but I doubt I will be able to give this stuff away. I guess it could be somewhat refreshing after a run around the park, or while cooking some burgers on the grill, but in the battle of cheap light beers, Busch is not a favorite of mine.

For those keeping score at home, current order of preference is:

• Miller Lite (4.5% ABV)
• Bush Light (4.2% ABV)
• Budweiser Select (4.3% ABV)

Warming up in the bullpen, Michelob Ultra and Ultra Amber.

What’s the world coming to Michael Vick is being handed more responsibility, which is something that the previous staff did not think Vick could handle.

“We’re going to put it all on him,” the new coach [Petrino] said Friday while making the rounds at the Super Bowl media center.  “It’s new to him, but he’s excited about the challenge.  I think that’s the way you train a quarterback.” [source:  AP]

Is it somewhat odd that a six-year QB needs to be “trained” – seems somewhat like an insult to me.

I always wondered why the Mora did not like Vick make adjustments at the line.  Was it because the staff did not think Vick could handle the responsibility?  Was it because they did not think Vick had a solid grasp of the offense?  Some other reason?

The other interesting part of Petrino’s quote is that he is going to “put it all on [Vick]” – be careful of what you ask for Vick, you just might get it after all.

Most of us Falcons fans have a love-hate relationship with Vick.  We love his athletic ability – he can make crazy plays – but we continue to be frustrated with his inability to progress as a QB.  At the end of the day, we want the Falcons to win, and if Vick can turn it around, we will all be happy.  The question is can Vick really take the Falcons to the next level?

I hate this time of year.  College football is long gone, and the NFL has pretty much come and gone.  Of course there is that Super Bowl XLI on the weekend slate, but for the most part TV viewing this time of year, well, sucks.  I could care less about the NBA and I did not realize that the NHL was still around (ha, just kidding, but I do not watch that junk).  Hot Stove happenings are interesting enough to read about, the NFL draft is still too far away to be very interesting, and college basketball is just not my thing until March Madness rolls around.

Sure there is some good soccer to be found, but the dead air time between football and baseball … and back to training camps is just a not so fun TV time of year for this sports fan.

For those of you keeping score at home, I have decided that Miller Lite is a much better beer than Budweiser Select.  Yes, for those of us that buy cheap light beer, this sort of revelation is important.

I am a fan of beer; good beer.  So long time readers often wonder why I bother to drink cheap beer, typically of the ‘ght’ variety.  For one thing, cheap is good.  More money in my pocket is a good thing.  Why would I not want to get a 30 pack of Miller Lite at Sam’s Club for what amounts to $0.55 a beer?  I can use the extra coin to buy more junk food or better yet, just not spend so much money on beer.  Who am I kidding; the extra money goes towards all the wonderful junk food or even more cheap beer.

I typically buy something good (say SweetWater 420 Pale Ale) to sprinkle in amongst the various cheap light beer in my cupboard.  At the end of the day, I can drink more cheap beer, guilty free – cheap is good, and a light beer makes me feel like I am doing ‘the right thing’ while I am drinking beer.

I am probably not making much sense, but that is excusable, at least in the mind of a sleep deprived dad.  No I am not drunk (yet).  Getting back on topic, the Budweiser Select seemed like a better deal at $0.48 a beer, but it just does not taste all that great.  I am not even sure what is ‘select’ about this beer.  This is possibly the worst cheap light beer that I have purchased in the last couple of years.

When it comes to cheap beer, Miller Lite is a better choice.  I know Budweiser Select is competing against Michelob Ultra, but that is beside the point.  We will discuss other cheap beers later.

Sports Interactive all but killed off Eastside Hockey Manager. The knee jerk “we couldn’t sell the game because of piracy” comments in the forum left me scratching my head. I read somewhere that the NHL All Star game had lower ratings than Andy Griffith re-runs aired during the same time (actually I think Jim Rome said this during his radio show). Hmmm.

Could we be staring at Out of the Park Baseball’s future with another lackluster release this year? If OOTPB 2007 turns out to be as bad and bug-ridden at release at OOTPB 2006, then I am closing my league down and that’s the end of my OOTPB playing. Lots of other folks will do the same. For the record, piracy will have little to do with OOTPB’s demise should SI decide to close down its baseball franchise.

To quote an owner in my league and one of OOTPB 2006’s harshest critics “Sounds like they actually listened to all the complaints about the piece of crap that we’re using currently.”  His words, not mine, but I understand where he is coming from.  For complete info visit the new forum.