Archive for January 3rd, 2007
Continue Reading January 3rd, 2007
America’s baller, Gilbert Arenas, turns 25 Friday and celebrated early tonight by draining a buzzer-beating game-winner from waaay downtown against emerging rival Milwaukee that was just about the most gangster thing I’ve ever seen on a basketball court. His postgame quote? “I’m 8-for-8 now from 35 feet.” Hibachi!
He better save his energy for the big day, though, because turning 2-5 is no joke. Especially when you’re throwing a million dollar party that has its own website — ArenasExpress.com — and 750-word Washington Post blog post. For good reason, too: Diddy is hosting, T.I., The Game and personal fave Lil Wayne are performing and the dress code is “Super Duper Fly.”
I must get my name on an Arenas Express card, because this has the potential to be sexier than LeBron’s topless pool party. We could even line the urinals with Kobe’s new t-shirt and have a good laugh, Gil and I. So if anyone has an in, let me know. This is our chance to break out the super duper fly gear. And remember, NO throwbacks! NO Timbs!
Update: MJD posts video of and commentary on Gil’s dagger.
Continue Reading January 3rd, 2007
I don’t see where folks are coming from when they call Boise State’s win over Oklahoma “the best college football game I’ve ever seen,” primarily because the game didn’t mean a damn thing. Sure, it had a finish and marriage proposal that were pure storybook, and, sure, the blue field Broncos winning the Fiesta Bowl is the best underdog story since George Mason’s Final Four run, but they were playing for pride and money; not championships.
Last year’s BCS heavyweight bout, Texas over USC, now that’s a game worthy of “best ever” designation, which is why I’ll be watching Ohio State-Florida next Monday and probably not LSU-Notre Dame tonight. Every bowl game but one is a glorified exhibition, and, by and large, I don’t watch exhbitions.
That does not, however, mean they aren’t entertaining. Here’s just a sampling of bowl-related FanHouse posts from the past few days that aren’t to be missed …
• A USC Song Girl appeared to go commando in the Rose Bowl, spawning extensive coverage of whether or not she was wearing an undergarment and exactly what her true identity is.
• Reggie Bush couldn’t get a sideline pass for the Rose Bowl game which vaulted John David Booty into pole position for Heisman 2007.
• Brent Musberger and Bob Daviesconversed about bloggers and their impact on Lloyd Carr’s job security.
• West Virginia (and Redskins!) legend Sam Huff can die happy now that the Mountaineers have beaten Georgia Tech in a bowl game, which may or may not have been Calvin Johnson’s last run as a Yellow Jacket. And if C.J. does go pro, does Dwayne Jarrett go with him?
• Do not, under any circumstance, fail to watch the Jimi Hendrix video where he says, “Congratulations to the, what do you call that, Southern California Trojans. I’m so glad they beat the hell out of Michigan. I’m very glad.”
• Finally, looking ahead to the bowl game that matters, Ohio State is getting a little ahead of themselves.
Continue Reading January 3rd, 2007
Once again Philadelphia and New York’s respective media communities are doing their best spur the rivalry between the Philadelphia Eagles and the New York Giants before their Wild Card game on Sunday. You can find the usual round of jibber jabber: Brandon Short astutely stating that Philadelphia’s fans are “blue-collar” and “classless” and then , the New York media extracting a quote from Trent Cole about Eli Manning which stated “You get him rattled and his game starts going downhill,” which turned into a headline about the Eagles attacking Eli’s “Mannhood” or something. (Honestly, I hope Steve Serby gets face-raped by Tony Luke on Sunday in the parking lot before he even enters the press box. How’s that for class?)
Wee. This is all cute and everything, but what can you expect from a city that that right now has a horrible, disorganized NFC team whose one shot at a redeeming season relies upon whether or not they can beat 37-year-old Jeff Garcia on Sunday. If they do win, is it really that much of an accomplishment, that the defending NFC East champions can be proud of? I mean, regardless of what happens on Sunday, the 2006 Giants have to be one of the most wretched football teams ever to receive a paycheck from the NFL. If they hadn’t made the playoffs, well, it’s pretty obvious that this is a team that needs to be completely dismanteld both offensively and defensively and then put to sleep like a blind dog with hip dysplasia.
I hope you guys win. Seriously. If winning this game means that you’ll believe that this immature pack of cocksuckers you’ve assembled is the team you need for the next few seasons, I’m all for it. Enjoy last place for the next two seasons.
And, exhale.
Philly and New York Love to Hate Each Other [PhiladelphiaEaglesFanhouse]
Continue Reading January 3rd, 2007
Our fearless leader Will Leitch is on vacation for one more day, which means that we can speculate rampantly on the next Arizona Cardinals head coach without fear of nail gun puncture wounds. May we say right at the outset, Steve Mariucci? Ha, that felt good.
The actual frontrunner seems to be former Packers boss Mike Sherman, if only because of the six early candidates officially named by the team, he is the only one who has an interview scheduled. Of course, by “six early candidates” the Cardinals could mean “six guys who did not shriek in terror like a schoolgirl when we contacted them.” We can’t be sure.
Let’s face it, this is one tough gig. Owner Bill Bidwill tends to go into each season with no apparent exit strategy, picking head coaches similar to the way that Pedro Cerrano chooses bats. Jim Hanifan, Joe Bugel, Bud Wilkinson; it’s a distinguished and storied list. But isn’t it time that Bidwill comes to his senses and picks someone, um, good? New stadium, new attitude and all of that? Norm Chow would be a wise choice in our humble opinion.
And Los Angeles Times columnist Bill Plaschke on Tuesday was all over the Pete Carroll angle, positing scenarios such as a piece of team ownership as an incentive for him to leave USC. Wow. We can imagine a lot of things, but we just can’t picture Carroll seeing this on the tarmac and agreeing to get on board. — RC
Thanks to Boi From Troy for the swell graphic, by the way.
Early Candidates For Cardinals’ Job [Arizona Repubic]
Carroll Saves His Best Coaching Job For … His Last USC Game? [Los Angeles Times]
It’s The Arizona Cardinals Plane! Perfectly Safe! All Aboard, Everyone! [Deadspin]
Continue Reading January 3rd, 2007
Notes on Tuesday’s games in the National Basketball Association …
• A Few Nuggets From AI. If you’re like us, you have the feeling that Allen Iverson will be griping about the 76ers well into old age, even commissioning a parting shot or two be engraved on his tombstone. Something like, “On the whole, I’d rather not be in Philadelphia.” If it were us, we would have shut up about it along about 1998. But then, we can’t hit the 3 either. Iverson used up all his energy ripping his old team in pre-game, his Nuggets then going on to lose to the Sixers 108-97 in Denver. Iverson scored 30. But don’t worry; he saved some vitriol for the officials … it’s all documented here. Whatever happens in Denver over the next couple of years, it’s going to be fun.
• Remember Kids, Don’t Do Drugs. Or Be Careful When Leaping. Or Something. It’s always fun when the Dallas Mavericks are winning; Mark Cuban is in a good mood, and Dirk Nowitzki is making crazy-ass commercials in German. Nowitzki had 31 points and a season-high 15 rebounds, as the Mavericks won their 11th straight, 112-88 over the SuperSonics.
• Keep Getting Better, Big Boss Horse. Leandro Barbosa doesn’t get letters from 58-year-old women in cat sweatshirts — we think — but he can win a game or two on the basketball court for you. His 3-pointer with 1.5 seconds left won it for the Suns, 97-96 over the Bulls, on Tuesday. “They (showed) a lot of confidence in me; this was my biggest shot since playing for Brazil,'’ said Barbosa, a member of the Brazilian national team.
• No Overtime For You, Isiah. Ron Artest continues putting the pedal to the metal, or something like that, as his career-high 39 points led the Kings over the Knicks 112-100 in beautiful Arco Arena in the River City. Actually it’s not so lovely, unless cows are your thing. — RC
