Baseball has it right with its playoff system. For me, it's still the best postseason in pro sports. Unlike football, there's no need for manufactured hype leading up to each single game. In baseball, each series builds on itself. Every twist and turn, every individual matchup, every time you hear the announcer say, "Closer X struck out Hitter Y with runners on first and second to end Game 1, now they find themselves facing each other in a key spot in Game 3." The anticipation and drama are unparalleled. The crowds have a special buzz found nowhere else in sports. And unlike basketball and hockey, baseball's playoffs don't see three of your birthdays come and go before they end. One month, one champion, countless drama.
Really, pro football announcers need to stop fawning over the Wildcat formation as some revolutionary tactic. For the last time, it's called the single-wing! You can see this offense all over the country on any given Friday night. It's been in use since Columbus discovered America. I give credit to coaches (especially Tony Sparano) for implementing it and running it to perfection. I would wager that more successful high school tactics would work in the pros if coaches would just commit to executing them. But, please, no more Wildact. It's the single-wing. Always has been.
Entering Week 6, you have to wonder if the Packers' season is in serious jeopardy of unraveling. The offensive line can't keep its quarterback upright. An again veteran coming off major knee surgery is regarded as a significant upgrade over a bunch of young guys who were supposed to be getting better. The team's best defensive player is questioning his defensive coordinator's schemes. And the team's best receiver is wondering why he's not getting the ball more. This team needs to get its act together, and it needs to get its act together starting Sunday. No more excuses, no more talk. Get it right.
This weekend is the start of something I've been looking forward to since fall rolled in: the University of Wisconsin men's hockey season. The Badgers start their long and winding road against Colorado College Friday and Saturday night at the Kohl Center. I'll be there Saturday. Can't wait. College hockey is vastly underrated, and the Badgers almost always have the talent to be in the national title talk, if not to be be a serious contender.
That was a decent effort by the UW football team last Saturday. Ohio State won that game with The Official Chicago Bears Blueprint to Winning. Total yardage? Not interested. Running a competent offense? We'll pass. Letting the opponent repeatedly drive deep into your own territory? Go right ahead. Because we're going to return a couple picks for touchdowns, take a kickoff to the house and rely on you to miss a couple field goals for good measure. Just very fluky for the Buckeyes, but still a win. Wisconsin must get better at finishing. I feel like this team is on the verge of legitimately contending for the Big Ten title, but I also feel like they're on the verge of going to another bowl game that takes place before you even get your Christmas decorations up. Iowa will be a huge, huge test.
Seriously, LSU was the fourth-ranked team in the country? Seriously? I know Florida's defense is good, but how can LSU justify that crap performance they put on Saturday night? I was all fired up for that game, even DVR'd it as my wife and I went to Chili's, requested to be seated where I couldn't see the game at Chili's, got home, popped some cold ones and got all settled in for what I thought would be a classic. Instead, the LSU offense was so painful to watch I almost joined my wife watching a movie on Lifetime. Just brutal. And I don't even want to hear about Florida's defense. LSU couldn't execute a 3-yard pass. That team's done.
Utterly painful. If you asked me to use two words to describe what it's like to listen to Jon Gruden “call” Monday Night Football games, that’s what I’d pick. Is it possible for anyone to get more excited over the simplest of plays? This guy treats every 5-yard pass like the Immaculate Reception. Even if it’s incomplete. Please, for the sake of everyone involved, get him out of there. At least Tirico and Jaws are good.
Come Oct. 30, the Bucks begin their quest for the first overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. Best of luck, Bucks. I know you can do it!
Kyle Orton’s team is 5-0. The guy just wins. Don’t know how, but he just does. Obviously, it’s too early to critique the Jay Cutler trade. But could Cutler be Drew Bledsoe, the million-dollar arm, the superstar talent who just never developed into a franchise player, to Orton’s Tom Brady, the lowly-touted “ragarm” who made a habit of winning and developed into a star? Probably unlikely, but an interesting thought.
So, you must be wondering why I just wrote a bunch of random paragraphs. Well, for one, I’m tired and didn’t have any great ideas, so I thought I’d just jot down some thoughts. Secondly, I wanted to make it through one whole column without mentioning Brett Favre. I figured writing down random thoughts would be a good way to avoid this. And I did it. No Favre. But if you put together the first letter of each paragraph, you’ll find out how I feel about the traitorous punk. Was it a coincidence? I’m not saying.