The top 10 erroneous sports column predictions of 2008 (from Real Clear Sports via Deadspin).
Oh, delicious.
Someone else (I forget who…someone on the Tony Kornheiser Show, I think) said it best: “These people don’t know any more than you. They just have better seats.”
SuperBrit fanboy Paul Stewart opined recently on Bucpower.com that Tampa Bay couldn’t dump Jon Gruden because you wouldn’t be able to find a qualified coach to replace him.
It was bollocks then, and it’s even moreso now with the news that Denver has fired Mike Shanahan.
Shanahan has a better resume than Gruden, is still only 56 years old and, despite the late-season collapse that led to his firing, is 57-39 over the last six years (Gruden is 45-51). He also has coaching experience in Florida, at a certain university in Gainesville.
I wouldn’t expect the Glazers to dump Gruden and GM Bruce Allen (the latter would almost certainly have to happen if they hired Shanahan) with three years left on their contracts, but a guy can dream, can’t he?
Somebody’s going to hire Shanahan. It may as well be the Bucs.
A front-page story in today’s Arizona Republic caught my eye. “Conservatives look to Flake to rescue the Republican party” is the headline (actually, that’s just the headline online – the printed edition has “Conservatives look to Flake to guide GOP.”)
“Jeff Flake is positioning himself as Arizona’s Republican maverick for the future,” writes Dan Nowicki.
Way ahead of ya, Dan. Congressman Flake (who’s a solid cat, I like him) was on the cover of IMPACT Magazine in November 2007, several months after John McCain declared his candidacy for President, but before his use of the term “maverick” really got ratcheted up.
The article notes that Flake could run for McCain’s Senate seat in 2010 (if McCain decides to retire – though he’s already announced he intends to run for re-election) or John Kyl’s in 2012 – when Kyl will be 70. It’s possible Flake could also make a run for governor in 2010 (Jan Brewer is set to finish out Janet Napolitano’s term if the latter is confirmed as the new head of the Department of Homeland Security).
Feeling old again while waiting for the Florida-Oklahoma game…
Do you know how many bowl games there were 30 years ago? 15! Do you know how many we’re in the middle of today? 34!
Yes, Nomah and Mia are still around!
Phoenix’s long-awaited light rail system is up and running, and while I wasn’t one of the 150,000 folks who hopped aboard this weekend when it debuted, some co-workers and I did take it north a few miles to go to lunch today.
Quite frankly, it’s a pain in the neck. (more…)
It’s time for Jon Gruden to go, it says here.
Eric Mangini, Romeo Crennel and Rod Marinelli have all been fired this morning, and it would be appropriate now for the Glazers to step up and pay Gruden the final three years of his contract and send him on his way. While they’re at it, Bruce Allen should go, too, but we’ll start with Gruden.
There’s a great website called Bucpower.com that is the absolute best repository of information about the Tampa Bay Buccaneers that I have ever seen. But the guy who runs it, Paul Stewart, while obviously fanatical, is a bit of a house man and (also obviously) a Brit who’s very polite, so his take that not only shouldn’t Gruden be fired, but we’re all idiots for thinking so misses the mark considerably. (more…)
Drew Sharp, Detroit Free Press, November 17, 2008: “Let me reiterate — it … is … impossible … to … lose … all … 16…games … in an NFL season.”
Drew Sharp, Detroit Free Press, December 28, 2008: “They’re going 0-16. They’ve finally sold me on their destiny. I was once a stubborn advocate of the blind squirrel theory, especially in a league that blatantly legislates competitive balance. But the Lions finally convinced me that even dumb luck when seeking that elusive acorn doesn’t fully absolve dumb decision making.”
So you’re saying it’s possible, then?
Of course it’s possible, you dolt. I’ve long said it would be harder to go 0-16 than to go 16-0 and here we have seen both in the last two seasons. But it’s never been impossible to do either.
Because I wanna be a cowboy, baby…
That’s from Christmas, 1968.
