WBRS Sports Blog

Since 2001, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays have finished 3rd to last, 2nd to last, or dead last in average attendance. The organization is desperate to attract fans to their games. So what are they doing? They're going to Disney World!

"Discussions are under way to move the May 15th through the 17th series against the Rangers from St. Petersburg to Kissimmee (kuh-SIM'-ee), Florida. That's where the Atlanta Braves have spring training at Disney's Wide World of Sports complex."

The Disney stadium also served host to the first-round games in the World Baseball Classic this past March. The venue holds about 9,500, however the outfield berm seating increases the potential attendance to just over 11,000.

So...Who wants to go to Disney World?

At 10-4, the Orlando Magic seem like the surprise team of the Eastern Conference this season. With the way the season has started you wonder how much more exciting things could get for Orlando fans. Well things just got more exciting!!! The Orlando Magic have joined MySpace!

Why create a MySpace page for an NBA basketball team you ask? Matt Gardner, the team's Internet Marketing Specialist who created the MySpace page has the answer...they want to reach the young audience, "We want to show them that the Magic are cool."

But is there anything really that cool on the Magic MySpace page?

Sure you can vote your favorite Magic players onto the All-Star team and you can download wallpaper. But there isn't much more to it.

Until you can see X-rays from Grant Hill's most recent ankle surgery, read J.J. Redick's most recent romantic poetry, hear from Carlos Arroyo what it's like to single-handedly beat Team USA one minute and then find yourself on the Magic bench the next, or read a diary by Darko discussing how nice it is to be the first from the 2003 NBA draft to "earn" an NBA ring, don't bother wasting your time.

If you are curious anyways, you can check it out here...

http://www.myspace.com/orlandomagic

Not even with the help of Romeo, could Tin Cup hit a golf ball as far as Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Tyurin did this Wednesday. Tyurin, located in an international space station approximately 220 miles above the northwest Pacific Ocean, used a gold-plated six iron to hit a golf ball into orbit.

The club used by Tyurin is produced by Element 21 Golf Company, who is paying the Russian space program an undisclosed amount for this publicity stunt.

There is some controversy this incident though. Nataliya Hearn, president of Element 21 claims the ball should return to earth in a few years after it has traveled a billion miles or so. However, NASA lead spacewalk flight director Holly Ridings is calling BS on Hearn. Apparently, "NASA's calculations are that golf balls would only stay up two to three days, which would put the drive closer to a mere million miles."

Regardless of who is right, Tyurin needs to spend more time on the range and less time in space...his shot supposedly sliced to the right like a banana peel.

Happy Thanksgiving!

WBRS Sports

Sit back and relax as I, Mini Me, take you for a spin down Bloggers Boulevard...

Michael Irvin goes racial on us. [The Worldwide Reader]

Antonio Bryant goes too fast on Bloggers Blvd. [The Big Picture]

Suddenly the MLB Awards no longer make any sense. [Complete Sports]

A blogger who admits he would have watched the OJ Special. [The Sports Pulse]

Broncos are cut blocking (aka trying to hurt people) [Atomic Sports Media]

Can life get any better for Dallas Cowboys' quarterback Tony Romo? I don't think it can. First he is named the starting quarterback of America's team a month ago and now it is rumored that he is dating Jessica Simpson!

Apparently Romo had a girlfriend, however she broke up with him "hours before he took over the reins of the Cowboys." So, single and the star quarterback in Dallas, Romo admitted to the media he has a crush on Dallas-native Jessica Simpson. What happens next?

"Media outlets are reporting that Simpson's representatives heard the rumor and got in touch with Romo's people and set up a date. The couple are now rumored to be an item."

This story only gets better...when the media asked #81 about the rumor, Terrell said if it is true, he would love to go on a double-date with Ashlee...That has reality show written all over it.

Ohio State-Michigan? Dallas-Indy? Forget that. The pigskin game of the week without a doubt was the Bothell-Pasco 4A high school football game in Washington. This Saturday, Bothell defeated Pasco 43-40 in a 9 overtime game! The 9 overtimes tied a national record, and here is a recap of each overtime period:

High-school overtime rules call for the teams to exchange possessions starting at the opponents' 25-yard line. Starting in the third OT, each team gets the ball at the 10.

In the first OT, both teams kicked field goals. In the second, Bothell went four-and-out, but Pasco fumbled. In the third, Bothell's defense stuffed Pasco twice from inside the 2. On its turn, Bothell fumbled.

In the fourth and fifth, more field goals. In the sixth, after Bothell failed to score, Pasco's kicker, Kelly, missed a chip-shot field goal.

In the seventh, Kelly hit Perez for a 10-yard TD. On Bothell's turn, third-string running back Robert Schaefer scored from the 2 on fourth-and-goal. In the eighth, Bothell quarterback Cody Atkinson scrambled in from 10 yards. Kelly hit Seth Halliday to tie.

And in the ninth, after Kelly kicked another field goal to put his team up 40-37, Bothell got the ball, took a deep breath and called a fullback dive to the left side.

Talk about an Instant Classic.

AFC MVPs
Alex: LaDainian Tomlinson, SD RB
Ravi: LaDainian Tomlinson, SD RB
Zack: LaDainian Tomlinson, SD RB
Mickey: LaDainian Tomlinson, SD RB

AFC Coach of the Year
Alex: Brian Billick, BAL
Ravi: Tony Dungy, IND
Zack: Eric Mangini, NYJ
Mickey: Eric Mangini, NYJ

NFC MVP
Alex: Rex Grossman, CHI QB
Ravi: Drew Brees, NO QB
Zack: Tiki Barber, NYG RB
Mickey: Brian Urlacher, CHI Linebacker

NFC Coach of the Year
Alex: Mike Nolan, SF
Ravi: Sean Payton, NO
Zack: Sean Payton, NO
Mickey: Sean Payton, NO
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SUNDAY STUDS
Alex: LaDainian Tomlinson, SD RB (20 rushes/105 yards, 4 TD in 35-27 win over Broncos)
Ravi: LaDainian Tomlinson, SD RB
Zack: Lee Evans, BUF WR (11 receptions, 265 yards, 2 TD in 24-21 win over Texans)
Mickey: Chad Johnson, CIN WR (6 receptions, 190 yards, 3 TD in 31-16 win over Saints)

SUNDAY DUDS
Alex: Shaun Alexander, SEA RB (17 rushes/37 yards, 1 rec/2 yds in 20-16 loss to 49ers)
Ravi Jason David, IND CB (Colts lost 21-14 to Cowboys)
Zack: Drew Brees, NO QB (37 completions/52 att., 510 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT in 31-16 loss to Bengals)
Mickey: Chad Pennington, NYJ QB (19 completions/35 att., 162 yards, 2 INT in 10-0 loss to Bears)

UPSET SPECIAL
Alex: Steelers over Ravens
Ravi: Redskins over Panthers
Zack: Packers over Seahawks
Mickey: Cardinals over Vikings

FLEX GAME
NFL: Eagles at Colts
Alex: Bears at Patriots
Ravi: Bears at Patriots
Zack: Bears at Patriots
Mickey: Bears at Patriots

And here are the picks...

Game	Young Daniel	Mini Me	Intern Nate	Mikey C.	Random Boy
Oakland @Kansas City (-9)	KC	KC	KC	Oak	KC
Indianapolis @Dallas (PK)	Ind	Dal	Ind	Ind	Ind
Cincinnati @New Orleans (-3.5)	NO	Cin	NO	Cin	NO
Pittsburgh (-4) @Cleveland	Pit	Cle	Cle	Pit	Cle
Tennessee @Philadelphia (-13)	Ten	Ten	Ten	Ten	Ten
Atlanta @Baltimore (-3.5)	Bal	Atl	Bal	Bal	Atl
St. Louis @Carolina (-7)	Stl	Stl	Stl	Stl	Car
Buffalo @Houston (-3)	Buf	Hou	Buf	Hou	Buf
New England (-6)@ Green Bay	NE	NE	NE	NE	GB
Washington @Tampa Bay (-3)	TB	TB	Was	TB	Was
Chicago (-6.5)@ New York	Chi	Chi	NY	Chi	Chi
Minnesota @Miami (-3.5)	Mia	Mia	Min	Mia	Min
Detroit @Arizona (-2)	Det	Det	Det	Det	Arz
Seattle (-3.5) @San Francisco	Sea	SF	Sea	Sea	SF
San Diego @Denver (-2.5)	SD	Den	Den	Den	SD
New York @ Jacksonville (-3.5)	NY	NY	NY	NY	NY

The disgruntled Oakland wideout Randy Moss is in the headlines again as his "bad mood" is affecting his play. However Moss isn't entirely depressed as there is a different, positive story about Moss that is being less publicized by the major media outlets. Gulf Coast Events and GameDay Consultants have honored Moss by creating a collegiate award named after him....The Randy Moss Return Man Award.

The inaugural award will be given to the top returner in Division 1-A college football this season. Although Moss is known primarily as a wide receiver, in his collegiate career at Marshall he routinely returned kickoffs, and in 1996 he even led the nation in return yardage, averaging 34.6 yards per return.

"Back in college, I took pride in that. That's something I've always had the passion and love for is being able to catch a kickoff, catch a punt and be able to run it back, because that can make a difference in the game. It can bust a game wide open."

Wow...it sounds like Randy Moss actually cared about winning at one point in his football career.

The finalists for the Randy Moss Return Man award will be announced on December 13th, with the winner being selected a month later at the North-South College All-Star game.

The best sport in the world, college basketball, is just getting underway, and with more talent in the college game than ever before, this year is going to be a ton of fun.

Let's break this thing down, 25-1, bottom of the rankings to top of the rankings. Keep in mind that these rankings are in order of what I think will happen at the end of the season. It's kind of hard to argue that Florida is not the best team at this moment, considering they have pretty much everyone back and they won last year, but it's much more up in the air as to whether they'll be the best team at the end of the season.

Without further ado, one man's Top 25 predictions:

25. Creighton
24. Xavier

Two of only three mid-majors on this list, and I'm not even sure you could classify Xavier as a mid-major. Last year was the year of the mid-major, but it's not going to continue this year. There was a significant talent gap in the power conferences last year after seeing more early entries in the 2005 draft than ever before, and with so many great newcomers coming in, that won't exist anymore. Mid-major teams will still be talented, but the power conferences will go back to normal this year.

That being said, both Creighton and Xavier are scary dangerous. Creighton nearly made the NCAA Tournament last season without all-league forward Nate Funk and point guard Josh Dotzler for huge chunks of the season. Both are back, and they join improving center Anthony Tolliver and a host of others. They should be the class of the Missouri Valley.

Xavier returns pretty much everyone from last year, but the addition of Oklahoma transfer Drew Lavendar is huge. Lavendar was an impact player at Oklahoma and he'll give Xavier an actual point guard, as opposed to the crap that was Johnny Wolf last season. They should pull a GW on the Atlantic 10 this year.

23. Michigan State

Three NBA draft picks are gone, and football star Matt Trannon's status is up in the air after football season, but Michigan State will be just as good as last year. Why? Last year, Michigan State was essentially the anti-Michigan State. They were soft on the boards, lax on defense, and short on depth. No matter how much the Big 3 guys did, it wasn't going to make Michigan State an elite team. Now, with less talent on the roster, Tom Izzo has no choice but to go back to the blue collar basketball that was the trademark of the program. With gritty point guard Drew Neitzel, a host of big bodies up front, and some fantastic wing freshman, the Spartans will be just fine.

22. Boston College

Personally, I think they're overrated coming into the year. Jared Dudley is a nice player, but he benefited so much from having Craig Smith occupy defenders on the block. They're also going to miss Louis Hinnant more than they think, because other than Sean Marshall and Tyrece Rice, they're very thin in the backcourt. I still think they'll be a tournament team with an outside chance at the Sweet 16 because Al Skinner is a fantastic coach, but they're no closer to taking the next step than before.

21. Nevada

This team was really good last year, and the only exposure most people got was when they laid an egg against Montana in the tournament. Nick Fazekas can really play, and Marcellus Kemp came into his own last year, adding a new dimension to the offense. The rest of their guys return, and the WAC will be down once again. Expect similar results from Nevada this season.

20. Memphis

They lose a lot of talent, but they'll still be right there. Andre Allen and freshman Willie Kemp are true point guards, unlike the departed Darius Washington. Chris Douglas-Roberts and Antonio Anderson are solid on the wings, and methinks Robert Dozier is poised for a breakout season. Still, you can't lose that much talent and not take a step back.

19. Tennessee

Chris Lofton returns, which is all you need to know. They'll miss C.J. Watson, but Duke Crews makes them stronger inside and Dane Bradshaw is a consumate role player. More importantly, Bruce Pearl will get the most out of them.

18. Georgetown

Another team I think is a little overrated. Don't get me wrong; Roy Hibbert and Jeff Green allow the Hoyas to have the league's best frontcourt. But at guard, they have Jonathan Wallace and...um...who else? They'll miss Ashanti Cook and Darrell Owens more than they're ever going to admit, and thus they should have a similar year to last year.

17. Georgia Tech

2007 will forever be known as the Season of the Freshman, and Georgia Tech got two of the best in small forward Thaddeus Young and point guard Javaris Critteon. Both those guys are going to be dynamite, especially Critteon, who will make everyone around him better. Combine those players with a host of returnees like Anthony Morrow and Ra'Sean Dickey, and Tech should be the third-best team in the ACC.

16. Pittsburgh

You may be asking, why so low Mike? What's going on here? Is this team not ranked in the top 5 in the country? My response is this. Yes, they lost only one player, but that one guy was so incredibly important to their team. Carl Krauser shot a lot of ill-idvised shots, but if you needed a bucket, he was there to get one. All their backcourt guys, especially Ronald Ramon and Antonio Graves, have become so accustomed to playing with Krauser that they can't be a #1 option on the perimeter. I'm skeptical that LeVance Fields can fill the void, meaning Pitt will simply be what they always are; a tough defensive team that ultimately can't score enough to be a real Final Four contender.

15. Texas A&M

Here's a team I really like. Other than Ronald Steele, there isn't a point guard in the country I'd rather have on my team than Acie Law. He manages the game so well and can break you down off the dribble when you have to. Beside him, Joseph Jones is the game's most underrated big man, and they have a host of players that play their roles effectively. They were one shot away from the Sweet 16 last year, and I expect them to be right there again.

14. Connecticut

This year's North Carolina. They have so many awesome newcomers that everyone will know about by the end of the year, and combined with rock-solid Jeff Adrien and promising A.J. Price, they'll be fine. Don't worry.

13. Wisconsin

I like everything about this team except Kammron Taylor, who kills the Badgers if he plays too much point guard. Other than him, I like Alandro Tucker, and added depth should help after a season of injuries. They're not going to be a title contender, however, unless Taylor learns to make better decisions with the ball. Ideally, they would find a true point to slide Taylor to the wing, but Bo Ryan has nobody to do that.

12. Marquette

While the adage that guards win games in March is based on an obselete that the best bigs jump straight to the NBA (which obviously can't happen now), Marquette still can win playing a Villanova style of basketball. Dominic James will emerge as a Big East player of the year threat, and combined with guys like Wesley Matthews and Jerel McNeil, nobody will want to deal with the Golden Eagles.

11. Syracuse

Shocking revelation! Gerry McNamara actually hurt the Orangemen in the past two years! That's right, the shoot-first point guard launched too many crazy shots for the young Orange players to fully develop. In the Big East tournament, we can focus on McNamara's heroics, but the real reason they won was because guys like Terrence Roberts and Demetrius Nichols finally figured it out. Now, replace McNamara with a guy like Paul Harris, a Julius Hodge clone with uncanny basketball IQ, and everyone is going to be even better this season. With Roberts, Eric Devendorf, Nichols, Josh Wright, and Darryl Watkins joining Harris, this will be the season for Syracuse to win the Big East crown.

10. Texas

In 2003, Syracuse was a young team coming off an inconsistent season with tons of young unestablished talent. Then, Carmelo Anthony came to town and took the team all the way to a national title, making household names out of previous unknowns.

Why is this relevant? Here, in 2006, Texas is a team with tons of young, unestablished talent after losing Daniel Gibson, P.J. Tucker, LaMarcus Aldridge, and Brad Buckman. Joining the fold is Kevin Durant, the consensus #2 recruit in the country. Not only that, but he is basically the same type of athletic wing forward that Carmelo was.

Syracuse was slept on in the 02/03 preseason, and they won a title. Texas is being slept on this preseason. Don't make the same mistake again and underestimate the effect a special freshman can have.

Don't say I didn't warn you.

9. LSU

This SEC West race is going to be special, and as long as LSU has Glen Davis, they'll be right there in the mix. Davis' return, combined with the return of super sophomores Tasmin Mitchell and Garrett Temple and the addition of Marquette transfer Dameon Mason, ensures LSU will be right there. The problem is at the point. Tack Minor is a turnover machine, and I don't think it's a coincidence that LSU was at its best last year when he wasn't in the lineup.

8. UCLA

I like Arron Afflalo, and Darren Collison and Lorenzo Matta will fill in for Jordan Farmar and Ryan Hollins alright. Getting Josh Shipp back should be huge as well. Despite this, I still think losing Farmar will hurt. He was tough and gritty despite being hurt all of last year, and they're never going to be able to re-create that. They'll still be good, but they aren't the class of the Pac-10 in my eyes.

7. Alabama

I had my doubts about this team coming into last year, but Ronald Steele proved me wrong. There is no question in my mind that he's the best point guard in the nation right now, and combined with bigs Jermario Davidson and Richard Hendrix, all Mark Gottfried has to do is fill in the blanks.

6. Duke

I hate Duke with a passion, and I hate them more than probably anyone on campus. But reports of their demise are significantly overstated. Josh McRoberts is back, and now that he's out of the shadow of Shelden Williams, I expect a 20-10 year out of him. Greg Paulus' injury hurts, but I never thought he was that great anyway, and it wouldn't shock me to see freshman Jon Scheyer fill in more effectively. Add in returnee DeMarcus Nelson and newcomers Lance Thomas and Gerald Henderson, and Duke will be Duke. It pains me to say it, but I can't deny it.

5. Arizona

This happens every year, but I believe in this team. Every year, we put them high, and they tend to disappoint. I think this year will be different. Their problem last year, in my mind, was that Hassan Adams was thinking about the NBA and trying to prove to everyone that he could hit a jumper. Combine that with a problem child like Chris Rodgers, and it's no wonder they underachieved.

Now, both are gone. Mustafa Shakur has finally realized that Arizona is not merely a stop on his NBA career, and he morphed into a solid leader last year. Marcus Williams spurned the NBA, and replacing Adams with super freshman Chase Budinger is a trade I'd make any day. All that's left is finding a defensive stopper, as Virginia put up 93 on Arizona yesterday. If they can figure that out, this is a Final Four team.

4. Kansas

Kansas won last year because they played incredible defense, masking a mostly inefficient offense. With everyone back, you have to expect the scoring to increase, and the defensive effort will still be there. I'm worried about the lack of a true go-to-guy, but Kansas is right there with the top teams in the country.

3. North Carolina

No team has more talent, but I'm worried we may get a re-enactment of the UNC in 94 syndrome. That year, three major recruits in Rasheed Wallace, Jeff McInnis, and Jerry Stackhouse joined a reigning championship team returning all their key players. They were talented and won a ton of games, but the newcomers clashed with the veterans and Boston College upset them in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. I feel like this could happen again, but no matter what, UNC has a crapload of talent and the nation's best returning player in Tyler Hansbrough.

2. Florida

The last team to win a title and return all their starters was the 1997/98 Arizona Wildcats. Here's what happened to them that year.

With Mike Bibby, Miles Simon, Michael Dickerson, and Jason Terry leading the Wildcats, they dominate the regular season, earning the top overall seed in the tournament. In the Elite 8, they squared off against third-seeded Utah, led by Andre Miller and Michael Doleac. In that game, Rick Majerus decided not to contest the offensive boards, instead dropping as many as three defenders back to prevent the Arizona fast break from working. Utah ended up winning an ugly one and storming to the title game.

Florida isn't Arizona, and in fact, they're probably the opposite. But something about that run was too perfect. Teams are gunning for them, and someone will figure out a way to beat them in one tournament game. So, while I expect them to be the best team in the regular season, they will fall somewhere in the tournament, leaving this team...

1. Ohio State

...as your national champion.

I couldn't have said it any better than the Big Ten Wonk. Here's what he had to say.

Right now--mid-November--is the moment in the college hoops calendar when the overrating of individual talent at the expense of team performance is at its most egregious. And yet we do it every year, over and over: the preseason favorites look invincible. Their McDonald's All-American players are profiled ad nauseum. The favorites are unbeatable, on another level.

March is the opposite, of course. Win-or-go-home games played on neutral courts have a way of reminding us that this putative "different level" is much more a labor-saving device for our own individual attention spans than a true reflection of external reality.

And so in that spirit I want to say that I just don't believe Greg Oden's going to be as good as everyone's saying he's going to be.

I think he's going to be better. Much better.

But wait, there's more.

And now for the really scary part, as least as far as ten other Big Ten teams are concerned. Thad Matta's Ohio State teams already, pre-Oden, play outstanding perimeter defense--and that was with no shot-blocking in the post backing them up. (Matta says on his team "all five guys are going to guard the ball." All coaches talk like that. Matta's teams--with recruits he inherited--have for the most part played like it.) If the overlap between new arrivals buying into the Matta system and Oden's post-injury but pre-draft time is at all considerable, we may just see the best defense we've seen in the Big Ten since Michigan State in 2000.

Basically, the college game has never seen a force as dominant as Greg Oden, and considering the way Ohio State already defends well, that defense will be scary. Offensively, the Buckeyes relied on Big Ten player of the year Terrence Dials for the majority of their low post scoring, and Oden is astronomically better than him. The other members of the Thad Five should replace guys like Je'Kel Foster and J.J. Sullinger fine, leaving Ohio State with a significantly better version of the same framework than won the Big 10 for them last year. In the end, they'll be the best team in the country.

Thoughts? Fire back at me!

Real Time Sports Show: NFL Sunday Studs, Duds, Upset Specials and Flex Games

SUNDAY STUDS
Ravi: LaDanian Tomlinson, SD RB (22 att./104 yds, 4 TD in 49-41 win over Bengals)
Mickey: Chad Johnson, CIN WR (11 Rec/260 yds, 2 TD in 49-41 loss to Chargers)
Zack: Phillip Rivers, SD QB (24 completions/36 att., 337 Yds, 3 TD in 49-41 win over Bengals)
Alex: Willie Parker, PIT RB (22 att./213 yds, 2 TD, long run of 76 yds in 38-31 win over Saints)

SUNDAY DUDS
Ravi: Josh McDaniels, New England OC (New England lost 17-14 to Jets)
Mickey: David Garrard, JAX QB (15 compl/34 att., 214 yds, 0 TD, 4 INT in 13-10 loss to Texans)
Zack: Mark Brunell, WAS QB (16 compl/31 att., 132 yds, 1 INT in 27-3 loss to Eagles)
Alex: Michael Vick, ATL QB (16 compl/40 att., 197 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT, 1 Fumble Lost in 17-13 loss to Browns)

UPSET SPECIALS
Ravi: Cowboys over Colts
Mickey: Jets over Bears
Zack: Raiders over Chiefs
Alex: Packers over Patriots

FLEX GAMES- WEEK 11
NFL: Chargers at Broncos
Ravi: Chargers at Broncos
Mickey: Bears at Jets
Zack: Chargers at Broncos
Alex: Chargers at Broncos

And here are the picks...

Game	Young Daniel	Mini Me	Intern Nate	Mikey C.	Random Boy
Kansas City (-1.5) @Miami	KC	KC	KC	KC	KC
Houston @Jacksonville (-10.5)	Jax	Hou	Jax	Jax	Jax
San Diego (-1.5)@ Cincinnati	SD	Cin	Cin	SD	SD
Cleveland @Atlanta (-3)	Atl	Atl	Atl	Atl	Atl
Baltimore (-7.5) @Tennessee	Bal	Bal	Bal	Bal	Bal
Buffalo @Indianapolis (-12.5)	Ind	Ind	Ind	Ind	Buf
New Orleans @Pittsburgh (-4)	Pit	Pit	NO	NO	Pit
Washington @Philadelphia (-7)	Phi	Phi	Phi	Phi	Phi
Chicago @ New York (-2)	Chi	Chi	NY	Chi	NY
Green Bay @Minnesota (-5.5)	GB	GB	Min	GB	Min
San Francisco @Detroit (-6)	SF	SF	SF	Det	Det
Denver (-9.5) @Oakland	Den	Den	Den	Den	Oak
St. Louis @Seattle (-3.5)	Stl	Stl	Sea	Sea	Stl
Dallas (-7)@ Arizona	Dal	Dal	Dal	Dal	Dal
Tampa Bay @Carolina (-9.5)	Car	Car	TB	TB	TB

When Paul Tagliabue called out Mario Williams' name while the Houston Texans were on the clock with the first pick in the 2006 NFL draft, I didn't believe it. When the Wolfpack defensive end shook the Commish's hand and held up a Texans jersey, I was still stunned. But now, midway through the NFL season I am a little bit less bewildered, but more intrigued by the Texans' first overall selection.

On an overachieiving 6-2 New Orleans Saints team, Reggie Bush has played far below expectations. In a league in which running backs are the most likely to achieve immediate success on the field, Bush is still waiting for his first 100 yard game and first rushing touchdown. Bush has shown off his versatility, averaging just under 6 receptions per game to go along with his 17 punt returns this year, including one for his only career TD. But at just 2.6 yard per carry I expected more from Bush and I think others did too.

Meanwhile, Mario Williams is quietly having a promising rookie campaign down in Houston, Texas. Although he struggled at first, Williams now has 4.5 sacks on the season and one in each of his last three games.

So, we are at the midseason point in the National Football League and you are the Texans GM...you have a mulligan in your pocket. You can go back in time and re-draft, this time taking Reggie Bush. Do you tee it up again and this time take the Trojan RB, or do you stick with Mario?

Is it possible? Could it be true? Is there any chance in hell that the jocks are smarter than the non-athlete students? NCAA President Myles Brand says YES! In the NCAA's most recent study, "incoming athletes from the freshman class of 1999-2000 held a 2-point advantage, 63 percent to 61 percent, over those students who did not play sports."

So who is to blame for this supposed misconception that athletes don't perform well in the classroom? Myles Brand has an answer...the media. "Their claim that student-athletes don't perform well in the classroom is way off, and I think those wrong stories need to get their facts right."

I almost buy into this little study conducted by the NCAA...except that it doesn't take into account the fact that most NCAA athletes are in joke classes and some aren't even required to attend class but receive an A anyways. Why don't we have athletes and non-athletes take a general IQ test to see who really is more intelligent. That will easily settle this dispute, and put athletes in their place.

When the Cowboys-Giants week 7 MNF game scored a 12.8 Neilsen rating earlier this season, making it the most watched cable television show ever, ESPN seemed as prodigal as Stephen Jackson at a gun show. For those that don't remember, ESPN awarded its employees with a coupon good for any food or drink at participating ESPN cafeterias...talk about Christmas coming early.

Anyways, if anyone had to witness the Seahawks-Raiders MNF game this past week, well I'm sorry. But from the numbers it doesn't seem like too many of you did sit on the couch with ESPN on the tube. In fact the game was viewed by only 7,587,000 viewers, making it the least watched and lowest rated MNF game ever!

Why do I have a feeling ESPN won't be plugging this stat every hour on Sportscenter like they did the week following the Cowboys-Giants game. ESPN is trying to spin this though, proclaiming it the 10th most watched cable television program this season...so maybe this might make Sportscenter a few times. I wonder if ESPN employees should be expecting another free soda. Or perhaps this time just some spit in a cup.

No one will ever forget Zinedine Zidane's infamous headbutt in the 110th minute of the World Cup finals versus Italy. Recently many have speculated that Zidane will return to soccer as a coach, however currently Zidane has no intentions to do so.

Zidane spent yesterday and today vacationing in Bangladesh, and spent Tuesday playing soccer with Bangladesh children, and later played in an exhibition game including young Bangladesh players at a soldout Dhaka stadium.

The trip has given Zidane a clearer mindset in regard to his future, which doesn't involve coaching..."It does not interest me now. I believe I can use my talents in other ways," Zidane said, adding he would be happy to do something for children.

Also, "on Wednesday, Zidane was to open a nonprofit plant producing cheap, nutritious yogurt for low-income people, particularly children. The factory will be operated by the Grameen Bank and French food company Groupe Danone in northern Bangladesh."

Zidane certainly has turned a 180...from headbutter to philanthropist.

Welcome to reality Notre Dame football fans. A streak perhaps as impressive as Ripken Jr.'s 2,632 consecutive games, will come to an end this weekend when the fighting Irish's game against Air Force won't be shown on NBC, ABC, CBS, or ESPN. When was the last time that happened? 169 games ago...aka 1992. The game will still be available on CSTV, however viewership will be much less on the obscure channel that not everyone has.

Why is the game not nationally televised? "The home team controls where the games are broadcast. CSTV has the rights to the game through its contract with the Mountain West Conference. Air Force is a conference member."

Looks like most Notre Dame fans will have to resort to listening to the radio broadcast online or following the game on websites like CBS Sportsline or ESPN.com. Poor Notre Dame fans...they never can catch a break.

Paul Tracy, professional race car driver in the Champ Car World Series, may be on to something. Tracy, currently 5th in the series standings, will be forced to miss the season finale race, after suffering a right broken shoulder. How exactly did this happen? Yes it was a driving related injury....but not the kind you would expect.

Tracy explains what transpired, "I was at a party and had a little too much to drink, and we thought it was a good idea to go out on a golf cart and try and jump some sand dunes with it."

Tracy later reiterated his thought process that evening, "Like I say, it sounded like a good idea at the time, but it didn't pan out that way."

Although Tracy will miss the final race of the Champ Car World Series, he just might have started a whole new sport...Extreme Golf Cart Driving.

And here are the picks...

Game	Young Daniel	Mini Me	Intern Nate	Mikey C.	Random Boy
Kansas City @St. Louis (-3)	KC	Stl	Stl	KC	KC
Cincinnati @Baltimore (-3)	Cin	Bal	Bal	Bal	Bal
Houston @New York (-13)	NY	NY	NY	NY	NY
Tennessee @Jacksonville (-9.5)	Ten	Jax	Jax	Ten	Ten
Dallas (-3)@ Washington	Was	Dal	Was	Dal	Was
Green Bay@ Buffalo (-3)	GB	Buf	Buf	GB	GB
New Orleans (-1.5) @Tampa Bay	NO	NO	TB	NO	TB
Atlanta (-5.5)@ Detroit	Atl	Atl	Atl	Atl	Atl
Miami @Chicago (-14)	Chi	Chi	Chi	Chi	Chi
Minnesota (-5.5)@San Francisco	SF	SF	Min	Min	SF
Cleveland @San Diego (-13)	SD	SD	Cle	Cle	Cle
Denver @Pittsburgh (-2.5)	Pit	Den	Den	Den	Den
Indianapolis @New England (-3)	Ind	Ind	Ind	NE	NE
Oakland @Seattle (-8)	Sea	Sea	Sea	Sea	Oak

Bill Belichick certainly must have felt content after New England's 31-7 thrashing over the Vikings on Monday Night, however it seems as though one member of the Belichick family did some celebrating of his own...before the MNF game.

Stephen Belichick, the 19 year old son of Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, was placed on probation this Monday after he was arrested on possession of marijuana charges.

Don't worry though, according to Weston police, Stephen only had a "very, very small amount" of marijuana on him and as a result received probation.