Bony Scribe's Olympic Blog Part 2

Good morning everyone, and wasn't Sunday a doozy in Rio? Mother Nature wreaking havoc, broken bones (including one frightening injury), breakthroughs, enormous upsets, records falling, another frightening incident in gymnastics and more medal triumphs. Sunday pretty much had it all...and then some!

Mother Nature Playing Havoc

Day 2 was supposed to kick off with preliminaries in Men's Rowing Single Sculls. However, treacherous conditions caused the entire program for the day to be cancelled. Can you blame them? For starters I would not be kayaking if there was a chance my boat would capsize; and did I mention that the water there isn't very good? As in, too polluted to hold a proper competition in? Nonetheless, they will try again today at 7:30am EDT.

That Ain't No Road Course...That's A Roller Coaster

If any of you saw either of the two cycling road races over the weekend, you are probably well aware of how dangerous that course is. But for those who didn't, let's look at a profile of said course, shall we?
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Profile for the Olympic road race <a href="http://t.co/s5Yi6Hpjck">pic.twitter.com/s5Yi6Hpjck</a></p>&mdash; Fleur (@vamosalberto) <a href="https://twitter.com/vamosalberto/status/625224666370678784">July 26, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

That's a 1500-ft climb and descent...FOUR TIMES on the last part of the course.

Saturday's men's race, won by Belgian Greg Van Aldermaet, was dangerous enough. Sunday's women's race, on practically the same course as the men's, was just as terrifying and almost tragic; Netherlands' Annemiek van Vleuten was leading the race when she lost control of her bike and crashed into a ditch. Thankfully, van Vleuten is recovering and appears she will make a full recovery.

That descent though had riders going at speeds upwards of 50mph, and with tight hairpin turns going down the hill, it's more like a roller coaster than a steep descent. Hell, even the Tour de France doesn't usally have courses that fast! And you may have noticed if you were watching a red circle with the number 30 on it on said hill? That's the speed limit for automobiles...in KILOMETERS per hour. So going 50mph in a not quite 20 zone on a bicycle. That's not reckless riding, that's reckless endangerment. Hopefully an issue the UCI (sport's governing body) will address soon, even though this particular course will thankfully no longer be used.

A Breakthrough And Feelgood Story:

Yesterday, I mentioned that the former Yugoslav region of Kosovo, who broke away from Serbia in 2008 and declared independence, was making its first appearance in an Olympic event with Majlinda Kelmindi in the 52kg Women's Judo event. Well not only did Kelmendi, a two-time champion while competing under the Serbian flag, represented Kosovo in its first ever event, she won the gold medal! Talk about a debut! One event, one gold medal. I don't know if outside of the first Modern Olympic Games of 1896 if an athlete won its first ever gold for his/her country in that country's first ever Olympic Event (and I don't have time to do the research). What an accomplishment for a nation that has it's share of conflict and strife over the past two decades plus. Congratulations, Majlinda!

Upset City:

While Kelmendi's win wasn't really considered an upset, there were two notable upsets on the tennis courts. First the Williams sisters, Venus & Serena, suffered an upset loss in their opening round women's doubles match. Ouch. Serena had won her singles match earlier in the day, but Venus was bounced Saturday in her singles match. Although that upset was noteworthy, it was not THE upset in tennis on Sunday. That belonged to Argentine Juan Martin del Potro who took out world #1 Novak Djokovic for a second straight Olympiad in straight sets. With Joker out, it appears that a likely showdown between Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal will take place for the gold medal on the men's side.

And speaking of upsets...


Rio, We Have A Problem...

No, I'm not referring to the multitude of gaffes and problems plaguing Rio in the buildup to these games, but Brazil's men's football team. Quick recap to put things in perspective. Brazil has more World Cup championships than anyone with five. In 2014, they hosted the World Cup and appeared to be a shoo-in for title number six.

Then in the semifinal round, Germany happened.
Then in the third place game, Netherlands happened, and Brazil didn't even get a medal, in their own World Cup.

Fast forward now to earlier this summer and La Copa America here in the United States. Brazil certainly didn't look like the classic Brazil of before, opening with a scoreless draw against Ecuador. An easy win over Haiti set the stage for a showdown with Peru, where a draw would put Brazil into the knockout round.

Then the handball happened:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/09geZmN9VaQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Ouch. Out of the tournament, and as JP Dellacamera correctly predicted, Dunga was sacked.

So now here we are at the Olympics, and their soccer tournament, which is by the way much different than the World Cup. Brazil as the host nation, were hopeful to win...or at least get into the knockout stage with Denmark, South Africa and Iraq in their group. However so far, all they've mustered are scoreless draws vs. South Africa and Iraq.

South Africa and Iraq. Drawing against mighty Brazil.

This is like seeing North Carolina basketball plummet to the bottom of the ACC, or the LA Lakers having a woeful season...oh wait.

So now Brazil enters their last match vs Denmark on Wednesday needing a win, OR a draw AND a draw between Iraq vs South Africa AND Brazil scores one more goal vs DEN than Iraq does vs RSA. If both Brazil and Iraq draw and both score the same amount of goals, then a drawing will take place to determine who advances. Sheesh!

Gymnastics Drama

The outstanding performance of the US Women's team during their qualifying rotations wasn't the only storyline from the gymnastics venue on Sunday. First, there was an interesting dichotomy in the first session of the day, one of the mixed groups featured Eun Ju Lee, a gymnast from South Korea, and Un Jong Hong from North Korea. In one of the more poignant moments of these Games, the two actually got together to pose for a picture:

(Reuters)

It should be noted I watched this particular grouping via the internet, and I didn't really see Jong interact with the other competitors. I can only hope that this picture doesn't raise the ire of officials in Pyongyang. However, Un did qualify for the final in the Vault apparatus, where she was second only behind Simone Biles (who is also the highest All-Around qualifier, more on THAT later). Eun on the other hand, was unable to qualify for either the all-around or any apparatus event.

In that same subdivision was the team from China. Now if you remember eight years ago in Beijing, there was a huge controversy that surfaced surrounding the ages of the gymnasts from there. Well, take a look here in this picture taken by the Xinhua news agency and look at the front row. That's the women's gymnastics team. Tell me those girls are at least 16 years of age (the minimum requirement for Olympic participation). I sure don't think they are. They finished second in the team qualification, but I'm sure this may be a developing story going forward.

And to point out how emotional the Olympics are, check out this photo I took yesterday at a despondent Larissa Miller of Australia as she finds out her score on the Uneven Bars aren't good enough to advancer her to the Final:





One other noteworthy news item was incredibly frightening but inspring at the same time. Elissa Downie of Great Britain was on floor exercise when she miscalculated a tumble and landed on her head and neck. Miraculously she stood back up and appeared to shrug it off before leaving the mat and being assisted to the locker room. Even more incredibly was she came back and competed in the vault routine despite the sore neck. And not only did she help Great Britain qualify for the team event. She qualified for the All-Around Final! Now that's some serious grit!

So after all was said and done, the defending All-Around champion, Gabby Douglas, wound up being the odd girl out. Despite finishing third overall in qualifying, a quirk in the rules will prevent her from defending her gold medal. Only two gymnasts per national team can participate in the All-Around Final, and the two that qualified ahead of her just happen to be her US teammates; Biles, and Ali Raisman.
.

Ruling The Pool

After failing to grab gold on Saturday, The US Swim Team got back its gold swagger with two wins, Kate Ledecky's DOMINATING performance in the women's 400 free, and the US Men's 4x100 Medley Relay team climbing back to the top of the podium with their win, led of course by the greatest swimmer of all time, Michael Phelps. He didn't swim the fastest leg of the group (that was anchor Nathan Adrian), but his reaction time off the starting block at the first exchange won the US the gold. That and an incredible push off the blocks at the turnaround. He took an advantage of 0.02 seconds and turned it into nearly a full second. Adrian's anchor leg was just as impressive as the Americans won by six tenths of a second.

(AP/Yahoo)


Monday's Highlights: (All times EDT)

And now a rundown of key events to look forward to by sport:

Archery: American McKenzie Brown participates in the early elimation rounds of the women's individual event. Her first match is at 8:26am against Claudia Mandia of Italy. Should she advance she shoots at 9:05 against either San Yu Htwe of Myanmar, or Taru Kuoppa of Finland.

Gymnastics: Men's Team Final starts at 3pm (likely to be tape-delayed for US Prime Time viewing). Team US is involved along with the teams from China, Russia, Japan, GB, Brazil, Ukraine and Germany.

Basketball: Both US Men's and Women's teams are in action today. The women against Spain at 11am, while the men take on Venezuela at 6pm

Beach Volleyball: Jacob Gibb and Casey Patterson square off against Austria's Robin Seidl and Alexander Huber at 3:30pm

Canoe Slalom: David McEwan and Casey Eichfeld are in the men's canoe doubles qualifying heats at 11:32am and 1:22pm, while Ashley Nee is in the women's kayak singles heats at 12:20pm and 2:10pm

Diving: David Boudia and Steele Johnson compete in the 10m men's synchronized platform final at 3pm.

Equestrian: The cross-country phase of the Eventing three-day (both individual and team, including four riders from the US) starts at 9am.

Fencing: Women's Sabre Individual tournament starts at 8am. Three Americans are competing; Mariel Zagunis, Dagmara Wozniak (I wonder if she's related to Steve Wozniak of Apple?) and Ibtahaj Muhammad. Gold Medal bout is at 4:45pm

Field Hockey: US Women take on Australia at 9am.

Judo: Early rounds of the Men's 73kg tournament starts at 9am featuring Nicholas Delpopolo. The Women's 57-kg tournament with Marti Malloy (who's already in the round of 16) also takes place. Repechage bouts and medal matches start at 2:30pm

Rowing: already underway (7:30am). Featured events include heats in Men's and Women's eights, Men's and women's Double Sculls, Women's Pairs, and Men's Fours.

Rugby 7: US Women take on Fiji in a classification match at 1pm. Gold Medal match at 6pm.

Sailing: begins at 12:05pm

Shooting: 10m Men's Air Rifle begins at 8am. Americans Daniel Lowe and Lucas Kozeniesky compete with the finals at 11am. The Men's Trap competition also takes place, with semis and finals starting at 2pm. No Americans are competing.

Swimming: Finals in the 200m Men's Freestyle, Men's and Women's 100m Backstroke, and the Women's 100m Breaststroke beginning at 9:21pm

Table Tennis: Lily Zhang competes in Round 3 of Women's Singles at 9am.

Tennis: Serena faces Alice Cornet of France at 5:45pm

Volleyball: US Women vs Netherlands at 2pm

Water Polo: US Men vs Spain at 10:40am

Weightlifting: Men's 62kg starts at 9am; Medal Round at 6pm. Women's 58 kg starts at 11:30am; Medal Round at 2:30pm.



WHEW!! That's a lot for a Monday. Enjoy!

Bony Scribe's Olympic Blog...part 1

Sorry I'm way late doing this (considering there have been four days of competition complete, including 12 medal events), but I thought I'd dust off this blog page to I guess give a preview of sorts of each day's events.

But first a review of yesterday: if you happened to catch the women's 400 individual medley swimming event last night, you probably heard the husband and coach of Hungarian gold medal winner Katinka Hosszu, Shane Tusup. He was the one that sounded like the cross between Ric Flair and his famous "WOOO!" and an annoying alarm clock. Oh by the way, in case you didn't see him on TV or the web last night: (screencap courtesy of thecomeback.com)

We get it bro, you lift.

Seriously though, Hosszu's performance was mesmerizing; 4:26.36, which shattered the previous World Record by more than two seconds...

Hmmm...now I don't want to call shenanigans here, but a world record being obliterated like that reminds me of another such performance; Ben Johnson in the 1988 100meter sprint. And what happened after that? A positive drug test and disgrace from thereon out.

This isn't to say that this is the case here, because Hosszu is the iron lady of swimming; holding numerous titles in Europe as well as the World Record holder in the 200 IM, plus she is the two-time defending FINA Female Swimmer of the Year. She is that damn good...

...but America's Madeline Dirado won silver, so if something did happen.

Speaking of Americans taking gold, 19-year old Virginia Thrasher of Springfield, VA took home the first gold of the Rio Games, winning the Women's 10m Air Rifle event in Shooting. While the triumph was noteworthy, the fact that it came in a shooting event is a cruel irony considering the headlines that have emanated from these United States the past 12 months. And if you look around on the web, you'll probably find a lot of snarky comments on Twitter and other social media outlets regarding said feat. Can't we as a nation enjoy the fact that this was the first medal event and we got gold in it???

Thrasher's gold was the only one for America yesterday, but Team USA did get three additional silver medals (not including the Dirado silver mentioned above):

Men's team archery
Chase Kalisz in the Men's swimming 400 individual medley
Women's swimming 4x100 freestyle relay.

In total the 5 medals ties the US with China and Japan. Australia and Hungary each have two gold medals to lead that category.

Oh, and the last event of the day, a beach volleyball contest between the US team of Kerri Walsh-Jennings and April Ross against the Aussie team of Mariafe Artacho del Solar and Nicole Laird, finished at 1:09am Rio time...by comparison every sporting event in the US had concluded by that time except one: Angels and Mariners baseball from Seattle. Talk about pushing it to last call!


Sunday's events (All Times EDT)

Day 2 of the Games starts bright and early (7:30am EDT) with preliminaries/second chance races (or as the Programme calls them, repechages) in Men's and Women's rowing. There are medal events in eight sports:

Archery: Women's team knockout stage, which unfortunately does not include the US; we sent only one female archer to Rio, a team consists of three. First round starts at 8am. Gold medal match start time 4:07pm

Cycling: Women's Road Race with 68 riders from 39 countries, including four from the USA. Start time 11:15am

Diving: Women's 3m Synchronized Springboard Final. No Americans in the field. Start time 3pm

Fencing: Men's Foil Individual. 35 Fencers from 19 countries, including three Americans. Prelims start at 8am, Gold Medal bout at 4:45pm

Judo: Men's 66kg and Women's 52kg. No Americans in these events HOWEVER, the first ever Olympic participant from Kosovo is in the women's event, Majlinda Kelmindi. Tournament starts at 9am, final session starts at 2:30pm

Shooting: Women's 10m Air Pistol and the Women's Trap. Lydia Paterson competes in the Air Pistol while Corey Cogdell competes in the Trap for Team USA. Preliminaries start at 8am for both events. Air Pistol Finals are at 10am, while the Trap Gold Medal match is at 2:45pm

Weightlifting: Women's 53kg and Men's 56kg. No Americans in either event.

Swimming: Men's 100m Breaststroke Final, including Cody Miller and Kevin Cordes of the US. This event has not been won by an American since 1984. Start time approx. 9:53pm

Women's 100m Butterfly Final, including American Dana Vollmer. Start time 9:03pm

Women's 400m Freestyle. Both heats and Final are today. Medal favorites Kate Ledecki and Leah Smith represent the US. Heats begin at 1:30pm, Final is at 10pm

Men's 4x100 Freestyle Relay. Heats begin at 1:54pm. Final at 10:52pm.



Also: Serena Williams begins her repeat gold medal quest in Women's Tennis, US faces Canada in Men's Volleyball, Women's Rugby vs Australia (God help us), Women's Basketball begins their gold run against Senegal, as well as prelims in Beach Volleyball, Slalom Canoeing, Equestrian Eventing Dressage, and Rowing.

Enjoy your Sunday!

Was It Just Me Or... ...Plus Other Thoughts.

Good Morning. Haven't had the itch to do much writing lately, until this morning as I was leaving work.  Was it just me or did everyone on the roadways around the greater Tampa Bay area seem extra antsy? I couldn't tell at times if I was on Memorial Drive or Daytona International Speedway with all the traffic whizzing by me like there was no tomorrow, and that was with me going about five over the posted limit of 45mph as it was! Then on US 41, more of the same. People, seriously, chill the bleep out. If you're afraid you're going to miss out on that early bird special at Cracker Barrel (what I think those drivers on Memorial were heading towards), don't worry because you can have breakfast all day there...

...speaking of all-day breakfast, McDonalds has started their venture into serving all day. Two issues though; if you live in the south you can have biscuits for an option--unless you live in Florida. McDonalds in Florida has McMuffins instead of biscuits. Blasphemy I say!! Then again, maybe chalk one up to snowbirds screwing everything up down here. Them and maybe #FloridaMan. But I digress.

The second issue I have is this: if they're going to serve breakfast on non-breakfast hours, then they better have certain other sandwich items available during late night and breakfast hours. True story, I was on 95 South in Orangeburg, SC one late night about 2am or thereabouts. I stopped at one of the very few 24-hour McDonalds in the Carolinas (because after all the Carolinas are Mayberry; nothing is open after 9pm). I asked for a quarter pounder and was answered to in a nasty tone, "We're only serving breakfast right now!" Pffft. Thanks, miss. And remind me never to stop in Orangeburg ever again. Like the old saying goes, what's good for the goose is good for the gander, and that means if I'm on the road at 3 in the morning and craving a Big Mac then dammit I better be able to get one!

Hey congratulations to the New York Mets on winning the NL pennant last night, which happened to be the day their opponent, the Chicago Cubs, was supposed to sweep the World Series according to Back to the Future Part II. Instead of that now-debunked prophecy, we now have the plotline for Back to the Future Part IV; Parts I-III were actually a dream that Marty McFly had falling asleep in Doc Brown's laboratory.

...speaking of movies, show of hands how many of you have NOT seen the new trailer for "Star Wars: The Force Awakens"? Nobody? Good. Now, have you bought your advance tickets yet? Spoiler alert I won't be able to go to opening night. The Postal Service and the Holiday Season doesn't not bode well for participating in extracurricular activities on a night where I have to be at work. So much for asking someone out on opening night. Uggggghhh...

My football picks haven't been on this blog lately with the lack of activity but they have been on my twitter page (@boneyscribe). Currently I'm 60-31 after a 7-7 week. Tonight Seattle travels to San Francisco in a game that suddenly may make or break the Seahawks season.  They don't seem so invincible anymore especially after that collapse at home against Carolina, who have McGyvered their way to an unbeaten start to the season. The Niners aren't the team they were two seasons ago, but they still have Colin Kapernick, who can more than make plays, and the emergence of Carlos Hyde at running back. Still though I think the Legion of Boom gets their act together after two successive fourth quarter collapses to win on the road.

Rest of my picks will come Saturday, whether they're here or on twitter.


On a personal note, I have an appointment with my therapist on Monday. Much needed to be honest; I've had some ups and downs lately and if you know me well enough, you know what I'm referring to. Also, I've had some rather bizarre dreams of late, including one where I was an unlikely hero in a science-fiction action-adventure film. Plus other dreams where I felt I was still in the Navy yet working at my current job. Weird stuff.

On that note, I guess I better take my meds and head to sleep; enjoy your Thursday.

Beef With The Bucs and The Rest Of NFL Week 4...

Well, I had originally planned on attending tomorrow afternoon's game at Raymond James Stadium between the Carolina Panthers and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. However, in light of one particular event that took place this week, I will not be doing so.

What event am I alluding to? Well, in case you either missed it or aren't from the Tampa area, let me fill you in. At the end of the 2016 college football season, Raymond James Stadium is slated to host the College Football Playoff Championship Game. As part of agreeing to do so, several renovations must be made to the seventeen-year old facility; most notably a brand new surround sound system, improved concessions, and new HD video boards at both endzones, something that has not changed since the stadium's debut in the fall of 1998. So, this week news broke that the Glazer Family, owners of the Bucs, and the Tampa Sports Authority, who owns the stadium, were close to an agreement in which the Glazers would spend $75million in stadium upgrades.

But there is a huge catch.

Little known to many of us who follow the Bucs was that there was already an agreement in place that allowed the Glazers to move one regular season home game per year to a site other than Tampa. It has only been used twice; 2009 vs. New England and 2011 vs. Chicago; both games outsourced to London's Wembley Stadium as part of the NFL's International Series (more on that later in this post). Well, as a condition for the Glazers to pay for the stadium upgrades, they now want to move a SECOND regular season home game away from Tampa.

Oh.
Hell.
No.

I have been a Bucs fan since I was a little kid; since the days of Doug Williams, Jimmie Giles, Hugh Green, and God bless their souls, Ricky Bell and Lee Roy Selmon, and never have I been as disappointed and angry with this franchise as I am now. Their putrid play since 2011 only scratches the surface; ten consecutive home losses dating back to December of 2013. No playoff wins since their triumph in Super Bowl XXXVII; thirteen seasons ago. Only three winning seasons since that season and two home playoff losses. An 8-33 record since starting the 2012 season 6-4.

Growing up a Bucs fan was difficult enough with fourteen straight losing seasons (double digit losses in thirteen of them); but this is a whole new level of incompetence, and now I may have to see as many as two home games played somewhere else??! Come on, man...

Of course, had Hillsborough County voters not capitulated in 1995 AND had Art Modell not decided to uproot the Browns to Baltimore because he couldn't get a new stadium deal in Cleveland, instead of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers we could be talking about the Baltimore Bucs, and long-suffering Tampa fans finally were rewarded two years later; the last at old Tampa Stadium; when Tony Dungy led the Bucs to the playoffs. It started a new love affair between the Bucs and Tampa, the likes nobody had seen here before...

...until two consecutive playoff losses to the Eagles sent Dungy packing. Followed by one of the biggest coaching search fiascos in NFL history. That was until Malcolm Glazer brokered a deal that would bring Jon Gruden here, and that magical season of 2002.

Since then? Pffft...GM Rich McKay bolted for Atlanta after 2003, supposedly after a rift between him and Gruden regarding the drafting of Chris Simms. The rest as they say is history, or should I say in this case, misery; Josh Freeman, Schiano, MRSA, blackouts, etc...

Of course, there IS precedent for a team to play home games regularly somewhere else. The Jaguars already do (what is it with  NFL team ownership and Florida, by the way, do they not like us?), playing an annual game in London. The Bills had done so the last few years in Toronto. But the more notable precedent in my mind is the Green Bay Packers. Unless you're an NFL fan over the age of 30, you probably aren't aware that the Packers played home games in Milwaukee from the 1930's to 1994. Should the Bucs decide to play two home games away from Tampa, it would make some sense to relocate them to Orlando and their newly-renovated Citrus Bowl, some 90 miles away. However, the Bucs haven't played in Orlando since a 1997 preseason game against the New York Jets. Also, the set of circumstances regarding the Packers vastly differs the current situation with the Bucs; Milwaukee is Wisconsin's largest city for starters and many season ticket holders for Packers games are from greater Milwaukee. Furthermore the Packers are publicly owned by their ticket holders.

Also, it's not like there is a lot of love lost for the Tampa area from sports fans in Orlando. For starters, Orlando Magic games are not on a local radio station in the Tampa market. Plus the last time the Magic scheduled an exhibition game in Tampa, slated against the Miami Heat and then-new acquisition LeBron James no less, they never even tipped off. Then there's also the snafu from Orlando local TV on week 1 of this NFL season when WKMG, the local CBS affiliate in Orlando, opted to air Ravens-Broncos instead of the Bucs' home opener (and the debut of FSU's Jameis Winston) against the Titans. Add that to the "War on I-4" and the newly-formed rivalry between UCF and USF in college sports, and you would probably get the sense moving Bucs games to Orlando wouldn't go over very well in EITHER market.

But this is the last straw with me regarding the Glazers, ever since they bought Manchester United in the early part of the last decade (and alienated THAT global fanbase), it seems most of their attention has drifted away from the Bucs and more on Manchester United. Sure MUFC has a far more popular brand worldwide than the Bucs, but have we seen an MUFC game in Tampa? I didn't think so. It's like the Glazers just don't want to stop sticking it to the Tampa area.

So, you know what? Why should I (or any other self-respecting Bucs fan) pay to see them if the franchise isn't willing to play all their home games here? That said, unless the Glazers are willing to fully commit to Tampa OR they sell the team, I won't be attending any more Bucs games.


Now on to my picks:

Carolina at Tampa Bay
Bucs are honoring fan favorite Mike Alstott at halftime by putting him in their Ring of Honor. Sure Glazers, throw us a bone after kicking us in the nuts. Or is that the other way around? Anyway, after how I feel it should not be any surprise who I'm picking. Make it 11 straight home losses...
Panthers win to go to 4-0

NY Jets vs. Miami at London
Another game as part of that aforementioned International Series, where the NFL is hell-bent on teasing London into thinking that they may get an NFL team someday. Newsflash, it's like me going on a date with Katy Perry; not happening. As for the game, how fitting that the disappointing Dolphins are playing this game. Britons love their fish & chips, and with the suddenly improving Jets in town, they look to have a feast. Calling Arthur Treacher!!
Jets drown the Dolphins 

Jacksonville at Indianapolis
Hey, break up the Colts, they won last week...barely. Their reward? The Jaguars, who apparently have just given up another touchdown.
Colts in a romp

Green Bay at San Francisco
Aaron Rodgers may the best QB in the NFL this year, even without Jordy Nelson. The Niners meanwhile, well they're worried about whether or not head coach Jim Tomsula passed gas at a presser this week. They may have cut the cheese on Friday, but not Sunday.
Packers are my survivor pick this week.

...and now my other picks:
Oakland over Chicago
Cincinnati over Kansas City
Buffalo over NY Giants
Atlanta over Houston
Philadelphia over Washington
San Diego over Cleveland
Denver over Minnesota
Arizona over St. Louis
New Orleans over Dallas (upset special)
Seattle over Detroit

Time for me to grab some Italian and watch the Gators whoop up on Ole Miss...


...I hope.

Enjoy the weekend.

  
 

 

Baseball going Back to the Future(?), Joaquin, and Rising to the Occasion.

Good morning. A few quick thoughts this morning; I wish I had more time to devote to this, but when you work a couple of hours overtime it kind of puts a clamp on this little project that is this blog. Nevertheless, let's get to it...


Back To The Future, Or Back To The Past?

 For those of you who follow baseball, the Postseason is right around the corner. For those who follow classic movies, in particular the "Back To The Future" trilogy, you would know that this year (2015) was where Doc Brown, Marty McFly, and Jennifer Parker time travel to in Part II. If you recall towards the beginning of the movie, this scene appeared:

Yes, that's right, the Cubs win the World Series. Well, that being said, wouldn't you know the Cubs are indeed in this year's playoffs. However, they won't sweep Miami in the World Series; although (and I suppose much indeed to Marty's surprise) the Marlins (not Gators) are in Miami, they play in the same league as the Cubs and cannot face them in the World Series. Twelve years ago though, they DID meet for the right to play in that year's World Series, and had it not been for a bespeckled dork in the left field stands, life may have indeed imitated art:

.

Last I heard he was still in exile, probably under an assumed identity in DeKalb (ok, not really but still...). Suffice to say I'm still a little bitter about that...but I digress

Back to the movie; now of course the start of the movie (which was concurrent with the end of Part I) was in October of 1985. In baseball that year, the Toronto Blue Jays, Kansas City Royals, St. Louis Cardinals, and Los Angeles Dodgers were the teams that made the playoffs. The Royals would rally from 3-1 down to defeat the Blue Jays in seven games to win the American League, while the Cardinals (thanks in large part to that Ozzie Smith "GO CRAZY, FOLKS! GO CRAZY!!" home run) defeated the Dodgers in six games to win the National League. The Royals would rally from ANOTHER 3-1 deficit to win their first, and to date only, World Series title.

Fast forward to 2015, and interestingly enough not only are the Chicago Cubs in the playoffs (albeit a wild card game vs the Pittsburgh Pirates), but ALL FOUR participants in that 1985 postseason are as well. And would you believe that it is indeed possible that the Blue Jays and Royals could meet in the ALCS, while the Cardinals and Dodgers could meet in the NLCS?? And could we have a reprise of that World Series thirty years ago between the Royals and Cardinals???

Whoa Doc, this is heavy!

So although we may be celebrating going Back to the Future, we may be going back in time...


Monitoring Joaquin...

As quiet as this Atlantic Hurricane Season has been, what a surprise to see that one storm actually may pack a punch. Joaquin is wreaking havoc on the Bahamas, and appears to be taking aim for southern New England, much like Sandy did a few years ago.  Now according to the forecast model in the link above, it appears Joaquin will weaken to a tropical storm once it nears the New England coast. In addition, should it make landfall near the New York metro area, it may come in disorganized, incoherent, and possibly drunk.

Ok, so I exaggerated just a wee bit on that last sentence (honestly that was the first thing I thought of when I saw Joaquin could land in NYC; who could ever forget), but seriously if you're anywhere along the east coast from Myrtle Beach north, please be careful the next few days. And if you happen to be in the Carolinas, be extra careful with all that rainfall you've been getting...


I Was Called Out; I Answered

If you remember my post last week, you may recall I mentioned that my nephew Eric had called me out on my football picks. Well, did I ever deliver! 14-2 last week, the only two losses being the Jets and the Ravens. Speaking of the Ravens, they are 0-3 for the first time in their history...that's twenty seasons; quite a remarkable run. Tonight they hope to lick their wounds on another team licking their own wounds, the Pittsburgh Steelers, who will be without Ben Roethlisberger for at least four weeks. Not good for Steeler Nation who now have to turn to Michael Vick...uggggggghhh...

Last year in the playoffs, Baltimore shocked the Steelers in Pittsburgh. I have a feeling history may repeat itself; this is a hungry Ravens team and they can win in the Steel City, and certainly better than 0-3.

I'll take the Ravens in a close one, 21-20.

Rest of the NFL as well as my survivor pick coming possibly Saturday. For now though it's past my bedtime...


...like I said, I wish I had more time to devote to this...

NFL Week 3

Good morning everybody. Sunday number three of the 2015 NFL season is upon us, and after last week if you're participating in a survivor pool and you're still alive, congratulations. In a week that is indicative of how unpredictable this league has become, five of the six teams with the worst records last year all won; Tampa Bay, Oakland, Washington, Jacksonville, and the Jets. The sixth (Tennessee)? Lost to another perennial doormat (Cleveland). Doing some research on the fly as I typed this, it was the first time in NFL history that particular six-team combination (CLE, JAX, NYJ, OAK, TB, WAS) won on the same week. Of course, the Jags have only been around since 1995, and there were no Browns from 1996-1998. I guess it's like hitting the NFL lottery if you have a six-team parlay and pick THOSE teams to win (of course with bye weeks and head-to-head matchups that makes that accomplishment all the more difficult). Will it happen again? Not this week, as the Giants (as I said they would earlier this week) defeated the Redskins on Thursday Night Football. What about today and Monday?

Tampa Bay at Houston
The Bucs knocked a LOT of people out of their survivor pools with their upset win last week in New Orleans. More on the Saints later, but virtually NOBODY saw this coming. However, I did state last week that this game was going to be closer than many thought, which is why I wound up picking Pittsburgh instead of New Orleans. Smart move on my part. This week however, Jameis Winston meets JJ Watt, and Jadaveon Clowney. And the Bucs are without Austin Sefarian-Jenkins until mid-season. Uh-oh...
As bad as they are offensively, I'll pick the home team Texans in a squeaker. By the way it should be noted I'm 0-2 picking the Buccaneers so far, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that trend continues.

Jacksonville at New England 
Speaking of surprises, the JAGUARS winning over the Dolphins? Yep. So much for the Dolphins being that up-and-coming team in the AFC East, especially with that offensive line (more on that later). The depressing thing about that game is that half the fans went home disappointed, then again that ALWAYS happens in Jacksonville, regardless of who wins. Seriously, have you ever been to a game in Jacksonville?? I did when they were halfway decent many moons ago; I thought I was at a Jerry Springer Show casting call, and sure enough a fight broke out between two drunk Jags fans several rows behind me. No wonder hardly anyone likes them, even if Shad Khan is doing a lot for that community from what I hear. Anyway, their reward for beating Miami? A trip to Foxborough. Good. Luck. With. That.
Patriots in a romp.

Buffalo at Miami
Remember when this was THE rivalry in the AFC East? Pepperidge Farm remembers, because it was so long ago. It's the home opener for the Fish in the halfway-revamped SunLife Stadium, which is a good thing because the new aqua seats makes it that much easier to disguise all those empty seats at Dolphins games. Ok, I kid (although South Florida is a favorite target of @EmptySeatsPics on Twitter), but you KNOW the resurgent Bills will have strong showing by the Bills Mafia (I guess that's Buffalo's answer to the Raider Nation). Oh, and did mention the Dolphins offensive line? Oh yeah, and Richie Incognito returns to Miami! Hmm. That ought to be interesting.
Bills take it in Miami.

New Orleans at Carolina
Watching the Saints last week, Drew Brees did not look like the Drew Brees we know and love. His passes were flutterballs, and he was uncharacteristically inaccurate. Turns out he has shoulder issues and will not start in Charlotte today. Enter Luke McCown. I don't know what Jedi mind tricks he has up his sleeve, but he may have to use more than just the Jedi force against a formidable Panthers force in Luke Kuechly. Of note, the last time Carolina started 3-0? 2003. They wound up winning the NFC that year and lost a heartbreaker in a Super Bowl known more for the halftime show (thanks, Janet) than the game itself. Ugh, if only John Kasay had kept that kickoff inbounds...
In my SURVIVOR PICK OF THE WEEK, Panthers win it over a depleted Saints.

Atlanta at Dallas
No Romo? No Bryant? The Falcons are actually good again? Hmm...
Falcons in an upset.

San Diego at Minnesota
Congratulations to Philip Rivers on becoming the Chargers all-time TD leader, surpassing Hall of Famer Dan Fouts. Too bad I cannot trust this team whenever they go on the road; especially in back to back weeks.
I'll take the Vikings.

Indianapolis at Tennessee
This is the home debut for Marcus Mariota, and I wonder which Marcus we'll see? The one who torched an unprepared Bucs in Week One, or the one who butt-fumbled his way to a blowout loss in Cleveland last week? Either way I don't expect Andrew Luck and the Colts to have another putrid performance. Five turnovers? Yuck! They're better than this, and this week is a good time to prove that.
Colts spoil Mariota's home debut.

Oakland at Cleveland
After Johnny Football torched the Titans last week, the Browns decide to go...back to Josh McCown??? Cue the clip of Zach Galifianakis with his wheezy-sounding laugh. How refreshing it was though to see the Raiders have something to cheer for last week? By the way, check out this article by Amber Lee that tells us that Raider fans aren't the thugs many football fans think they are. Still, Mark Davis' haircut, my goodness...better than Josh McCown at quarterback though.
In a tossup, I'll take the Raiders in a mild upset.

Cincinnati at Baltimore
Home opener for the Ravens, and are they glad for that. Consecutive road losses at Denver and Oakland to start the season has to have John Harbaugh in a bad mood, and you know how fiery both him and Jim are.
Ravens roll at home.

Philadelphia at NY Jets
If you had told me at the start of this year that going into this matchup one team would be 2-0 and the other 0-2, you'd probably be right. However, it's the JETS that are unbeaten and the EAGLES who are winless. Come on Philly, get your act together. I thought you were the chic pick to take the NFC East this year and instead you're 0-2 and looking nothing like the offensive juggernaut we thought you would be. Then again, maybe it is Chip Kelly after all...too soon to tell yet though. Although maybe after this week it won't be too soon to tell. Too bad the Birds aren't at home to be blessed by the Pope, they could use it right about now.
Jets in a surprise. 

Pittsburgh at St. Louis
This is an interesting matchup. The Steelers offensive firepower against a pretty decent Rams defense. I like Big Ben though.
Steelers with a road win.

San Francisco at Arizona
Could it possibly be that the Cardinals may just be the team to beat in the NFC West? A convincing win this week could prove that.
Cardinals in the desert.

Chicago at Seattle
Finally, the Seahawks are home in front of the 12th Man, and after last week's debacle in St. Louis it couldn't come at a better time.
Seahawks roll.

Denver at Detroit
Time to sing along with the Peyton Manning Nationwide On Your Side jingle for this pick:
Broncos win on Sunday Night.     

Kansas City at Green Bay
While we're on the subject of auto insurance, the Monday Night game features State Farm pitchman Aaron (discount DAAAA-ble check!) Rodgers against a Chiefs team licking their wounds after their Thursday night collapse at home to Denver. Too bad for them they're in Wisconsin this week; more cheese for their whine.
Packers over KC.

So, to review:
HOU
NE
BUF
CAR (survivor pick)
ATL
MN
IND
OAK
BAL
NYJ
PIT
AZ
SEA
DEN
GB

Hopefully, a better Sunday is in store than last, when I went 7-9. Record for the year after TNF: 19-14.

Enjoy your Sunday everyone!

  
 

 

More random thoughts...

Good morning, a few things on my mind today.


School Zone Worries?
First off, something concerned me on my way to Spring Hill after work the other day; I was turning north on Henderson off Linebaugh, where apparently one of the charter schools in Hillsborough County is located. As I made my turn onto Henderson, I noticed traffic going into the school was at a near standstill as a result of parents dropping off their kids. However, I also noticed after completing the turn a young girl and her sister walking to school. Not that big of a deal, right?

Well not unless the school zone warning light isn't flashing, as was this case here. I did happen to see that this school zone sign was solar-powered, but the sun was BARELY over the horizon, so assuming the flashing light is indeed activated via solar power, there wasn't enough sunlight to trigger the device. Rather disconcerting if you happen to be a parent who has kids that walk to school in that vicinity.  Then again, I'm not 100% certain how these school zone devices truly operate.

If anyone knows for sure, drop me a line in the comment box or contact me via twitter @boneyscribe.


Rock The Vote, or Wag The Dog?
Another thing that happened to catch my ears that morning was that iHeart radio is teaming up with the Rock the Vote organization, which is a non-profit and (supposedly) non-partisan group that attempts to drive young adults to go to their polling places and vote in elections, especially during presidential cycles. When I heard about this partnership, I immediately called shenanigans. Why???

Well, if memory served me correct, "Rock the Vote" was first utilized in the 1992 presidential election cycle, and one of the biggest driving forces behind it was MTV. And, if memory serves me correct, who made an appearance on MTV that election cycle? One William Jefferson Clinton. And I can't seem to recall then-President George H. Bush making an appearance on MTV.

And who won the election that year? Hmmm...

So now, here we are with RTV teaming up with iHeart Media, which up until last year was known as ClearChannel. Their vast group of radio stations has a working agreement with Fox News to air news updates on the hour and half-hour. I don't think I need to tell you which way that organization leans politically. Also, let's take a look at three of their biggest names in talk radio that has many affiliates on iHeart Radio: Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, and Sean Hannity.

Glenn Beck: evangelical right wing homer.
Rush Limbaugh: the most recognizable right wing homer in talk radio.
Sean Hannity: arguably the biggest right wing homer out there.

See where I'm going with this? Hopefully I'm wrong, but this reeks of shenanigans in my opinion.


Football
I was called out this week by my nephew. Why? Because he wants to know how good my football picks are. This just in: they aren't. 7-9 last week after Monday night's debacle in Indy, and that makes me 18-14 on the young season. Tonight, I try to get back on the winning side as the Washington National Football League club takes on the NY Giants. Here's a dubious honor the Giants hold: last week they became the first team in NFL history to lose consecutive games in which they held double-digit leads in the 4th quarter. No, not even the Bucs in their sordid history have done that. (On a tangential note, RIP Richard Williamson, former Bucs head coach who died last night.) With that in mind, I'm a little leery picking the Giants at home, however, these aren't the Falcons and Cowboys they're playing. I should feel a little more confident for tonight. Not my knockout pick (I'm still alive there, thanks Steelers), but I'll take the G-Men tonight.

The rest of my picks will be this weekend.


Papal Matters
I won't see this, but the Pontiff is speaking to Congress in Washington today. I imagine considering the social issues that have been in the forefront of the news cycle this year it will be interesting to hear about Pope Francis will have to say not only today, but this weekend in New York and in Philadelphia. I guess I'll read about it via twitter or hear it on the news. I know, night shift problems.

On that note, I guess I better get some sleep. Enjoy your Thursday!