There were a number of former athletes and sports personalities running for public office last night. Here's a quick rundown of the results.
Former New Jersey Nets and Portland Trailblazers center Chris Dudley was locked in a tight race for the position of governor of Oregon. The resuluts are still unknown.
Former Philadelhia 76er Shawn Bradley was defeated in his bid for a spot in the Utah Legislature by Rep. Tim Cosgrove, a Democrat.
Former WWE CEO Linda McMahon lost her bid for a seat in the U.S. Senate.
Heath Shuler, formerly of the NFL's Saints and Redskins won his re-election bid for his seat in Congress,representing North Carolina.
Jon Runyan, who has University of Michigan ties won his election to the U.S. House in the State of New Jersey.
Former BYU kicker Jason Chaffetz was re-elected to Congress in Utah.
Hall of Famer and ex-Minnesota Viking Alan Page kept his seat in the Minnesota Supreme Court.
Senator Jim Bunning of Kentucky retired and Milwaukee Bucks owner Herb Kohl wasn't up for election.
The great grandson of the legendary Connie Mack, Connie Mack was re-elected to Congress in Florida. Also in Florida, Kendrick Meek, formerly a Florida A&M Rattler was defeated in a Senate race. Miami Dolphins rookie Nolan Carroll has some bragging to do about his mother Jennifer, who along with Rick Scott won the governorship of Florida.
Former Furman basketball player lost a spot in the Senate in Indiana. Ex Washington Huskie Norm Dicks won a spot in the U.S. House in the State of Washington.
Last but not least, was the race in the Tennessee Legislature which former MLB umpire Dale Ford won. He ran unopposed.
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Buffalo Claims Merriman
Even though the Bills are 0-7, this could be good pickup. Especially since they haven't gotten anything from former first round pick Aaron Maybin. I just wouldn't expect Merriman to stick around past the rest of this season.
Ugly Saturday
Both Michigan and Michigan State, to put it mildly, had a lousy Saturday. Let me start with the mighty Spartans. I can't really say too much negative about State since they are having an exceptional season. I won't let the loss to Iowa ruin what they've accomplished thus far. Unless they somehow blow any of the last three games.
You see, at the start of the year I didn't figure that State would be in this position. Iowa is a better team and proved it Saturday. They were coming off a loss to Wisconsin and were fighting for a BCS spot. I just didn't expect a performance where they would be down 23-0 in the span of time it took me to make a sandwich. They couldn't stop the Hawkeyes if their life depended on it. Kirk Cousins picked the wrong time to go in the tank. Every time it seemed the Spartans would start moving and show some signs of life, there was an interception that cost them points on the board. I don't have much else to say. The Spartans need to regroup against Minnesota. This is a winnable game as are the games against Purdue and Penn State. If they can get a little help they can still land in the Rose Bowl.
Now i can get to Michigan. For the second straight year we get to see a fast start go down in flames. Two of the three losses are somewhat forgivable. Iowa and Michigan State are better and more physical teams. But Penn State?! That was shades of Purdue and Justin Siller. They let a walk on stater kick their tails. McLoin, McLovin, whatever the hell his name is. That's a game the Wolverines should've won. The Nittany Lions offense had been anemic for most of the year and they let them march up and down the field on them. They just had their heads handed to the by Illinois. And they couldn't beat them.
The defense just doesn't work. That Big East style 3-3-5 scheme just doesn't cut it in the Big Ten. They're too light in the ass and not physical enough. Hell, that scheme wasn't good enough to stop UMass. How do you think it would work in the Big Ten? The Wolverines couldn't come up with a stop if they took the field with baseball bats. The offense performs when they're behind. So spare me the fake comeback excuse. This team hasn't showed the kind of improvement that is needed to tough some games out. I just don't see it in them. Where's Mike freakin Barwis? He was the greatest strength and conditioning coach of all time and they look tired all the damn time. Greg Robinson's schemes don't work. And for all the offensive improvement, it's basically a one man game.
Rodriguez has to go and take Robinson with him. Hell, bring back Gary Moeller, since it's no guarantee they can't get anyone else at this point. Since that statement seems so true right now we might be stuck with the guy. In that case, get some bigger players and scrap that damn 3-3-5 and play some real football. Rich Rod can talk all he wants about being positive. What is there to be postive about. Being a home underdog? Yeah, real positive. How about the defense getting shredded week after week. That's also positive. Rich, whose eyes are you trying to pull the wool over? The offense looks good and all the problems are on defense and it doesn't get any better with JT Floyd going down for the rest of the year. Hey, that's also positive. It's looking real bad. Illinois quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase hasn't passed so good this year, but he'll look like Dan Fouts come Saturday.
You see, at the start of the year I didn't figure that State would be in this position. Iowa is a better team and proved it Saturday. They were coming off a loss to Wisconsin and were fighting for a BCS spot. I just didn't expect a performance where they would be down 23-0 in the span of time it took me to make a sandwich. They couldn't stop the Hawkeyes if their life depended on it. Kirk Cousins picked the wrong time to go in the tank. Every time it seemed the Spartans would start moving and show some signs of life, there was an interception that cost them points on the board. I don't have much else to say. The Spartans need to regroup against Minnesota. This is a winnable game as are the games against Purdue and Penn State. If they can get a little help they can still land in the Rose Bowl.
Now i can get to Michigan. For the second straight year we get to see a fast start go down in flames. Two of the three losses are somewhat forgivable. Iowa and Michigan State are better and more physical teams. But Penn State?! That was shades of Purdue and Justin Siller. They let a walk on stater kick their tails. McLoin, McLovin, whatever the hell his name is. That's a game the Wolverines should've won. The Nittany Lions offense had been anemic for most of the year and they let them march up and down the field on them. They just had their heads handed to the by Illinois. And they couldn't beat them.
The defense just doesn't work. That Big East style 3-3-5 scheme just doesn't cut it in the Big Ten. They're too light in the ass and not physical enough. Hell, that scheme wasn't good enough to stop UMass. How do you think it would work in the Big Ten? The Wolverines couldn't come up with a stop if they took the field with baseball bats. The offense performs when they're behind. So spare me the fake comeback excuse. This team hasn't showed the kind of improvement that is needed to tough some games out. I just don't see it in them. Where's Mike freakin Barwis? He was the greatest strength and conditioning coach of all time and they look tired all the damn time. Greg Robinson's schemes don't work. And for all the offensive improvement, it's basically a one man game.
Rodriguez has to go and take Robinson with him. Hell, bring back Gary Moeller, since it's no guarantee they can't get anyone else at this point. Since that statement seems so true right now we might be stuck with the guy. In that case, get some bigger players and scrap that damn 3-3-5 and play some real football. Rich Rod can talk all he wants about being positive. What is there to be postive about. Being a home underdog? Yeah, real positive. How about the defense getting shredded week after week. That's also positive. Rich, whose eyes are you trying to pull the wool over? The offense looks good and all the problems are on defense and it doesn't get any better with JT Floyd going down for the rest of the year. Hey, that's also positive. It's looking real bad. Illinois quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase hasn't passed so good this year, but he'll look like Dan Fouts come Saturday.
Randy Moss Claimed By Titans
What I Saw In College Football
The Big Least, I mean the Big East, and the ACC should give up their BCS bids at least for this year. Granted, Pittsburgh has picked it up since league play has started. But they were also embarrassed in their non-conference games. So their goes their credibility. West Virginia should be the class of this league, but they've underachieved since Rich Rodriguez left town. Imagine that. UConn was thought of as the favorite, and the Huskies haven't recovered from getting beatdown in Ann Arbor. The best story is Syracuse, who is 6-2 and 3-1 in league play. But do you really want to see any of these teams endure an ass kicking in a BCS game. NO!
The ACC has been just as bad. Miami and Florida State should win this conference on reputation alone, with Virginia Tech right there. It seems like every time one of these teams looks like it's gonna turn the corner, they get hit by a bus on the way to the corner. Virginia Tech suffered an embarassing loss to James Madison, Florida State was shamed by Oklahoma, and Miami shot itself in the foot against Ohio State. The NCAA killed North Carolina's season before it started. Butch Davis should get a medal for what he's done, but he might get shown the door. Add to that, they barely survived William & Mary.Clemson underperforms every year. NC State is a pleasant surprise and Virginia Tech has kicked it up a notch in league play. They might be worthy of a BCS showing, but there's also the memory of the James Madison Dukes that tells me they're not worthy.
Ron Zook is quietly putting together a solid season at Illinois. Being a Michigan fan this team has always been a thorn in my side. The Illini have a solid running game and play hard nosed defense. If they had any kind of explosiveness on offense they might be leading the Big Ten. They are favored over Michigan, on the road, this week.
I genuinely feel sorry for Turner Gill.
How did Navy lose to Duke after thrashing Notre Dame? Speaking of the domers, nice call at the end of the game. Keep losing games to the likes of Tulsa and NBC might terminate that tv contract.
Tommy Tuberville might be the right coach at the wrong place. It seems odd that he stayed with the Mike Leach based offense. It just doesn't seem right. He also should stay away from onside kicks.
How many more beatdowns before Cal tires of Jeff Tedford. I don't like to see anyone lose their job and believe Tedford can right the ship. Everytime I look at the ticker they're getting beat by 38.
Florida and Georgia put on a show despite both teams having a down year. A high five goes to both teams that could've packed it in for the year.
Baylor thoroughly surprised me by going in to Austin to best the Longhorns. Robert Griffin is the man. You can't stop RG III. Washington should be ashamed. There's no way they should be getting shut out at home with Jake Locker under center. His NFL stock is way down.
Game of the week: TCU vs. Utah for Mountain West supremacy. This is almost like Flair vs. Sting in a loser leaves town match, since the Utes will be gone after this year.
Under the radar game of the week: Hawaii vs. Boise State. You gotta give the Broncos the nod on the blue turf. Remember that Warriors quarterback Bryant Moniz has put up monster numbers and gave USC all they could handle in the opener. I doubt it'll happen, but there could be a surprise here.
Condolences to Mississippi State defensive end Nick Bell and Notre Dame videographer Declan Sullivan. You two young men are in a better place.
Moss On Auto Tune
Thanks to DJ Steve Porter we get to hear some of Randy Moss' finest quotes on auto tune.
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