[Posted late Sunday p.m.]
Kansas City Chiefs Quiz: 1) Name the three to rush for 6,000 yards in their Chiefs’ careers. 2) Name the three to throw for 15,000 yards in a K.C. uniform. Answers below.
College Football Review…comments written prior to release of latest AP poll.
What a fascinating Saturday. The top five in the College Football Playoff rankings all won, but some rather unimpressively and the selection committee has some major decisions to make before they release their new rankings on Tuesday.
So these are the results….
No. 1 Clemson (10-0) defeated a highly mediocre Syracuse (3-7) squad at the Carrier Dome, 37-27. Clemson QB Deshaun Watson did enhance his Heisman chances with 360 yards passing and another 105 on the ground (plus three touchdowns combined), but otherwise not a No. 1-worthy performance.
No. 2 Alabama (9-1) beat 17 Mississippi State (7-3) 31-6 behind Heisman candidate Derrick Henry’s 204 yards rushing with two touchdowns, but MSU was overrated to begin with.
No. 3 Ohio State (10-0) was hardly scintillating in its 28-3 win over Illinois (5-5). Running back Ezekiel Elliott did have 181 yards and two scores
No. 4 Notre Dame (9-1) was a four-touchdown favorite against lowly Wake Forest (3-7), but won only 28-7 and was outgained by the Deacs 340-282! Wake had 23 first downs to N.D.’s 15. Wake had countless opportunities deep in Notre Dame territory and it is in no way a stretch to say the Deacons could have pulled off an historic upset in South Bend. Consider that Wake gave up a 98-yard TD run to Josh Adams, and a deflected pass was returned for another score for the Fighting Irish. Ergo, how does Notre Dame stay in the top four?
But I have to note as an alum of Wake Forest, this is the proudest I have been of the Deacons in years. I feel like I have been a good fan in these first two seasons of the Dave Clawson era, who is now just 6-16, as I have said I would be patient, recognizing it is a huge rebuilding task.
What I didn’t realize until Saturday, though, is that we are the youngest team in the FBS, with just six seniors, which made Saturday’s almost staggering effort, especially on defense, all the more remarkable.
Next week, though, we play at Clemson and the Tigers need a strong effort at our expense.
[I also can’t help but mention that Notre Dame alum Mark R. gave me 27 points and I won a six-pack of premium, which of course I’m requesting it be Shiner Bock, the “domestic premium,” but I will allow Mark to substitute Yuengling.]
Continuing with the scores….
No. 5 Iowa remained undefeated at 10-0 in holding off Minnesota (4-6) 40-35. All the Hawkeyes do is win as they head to the Big Ten title game against it is assumed Ohio State.
No. 6 Baylor lost their first to fall to 8-1, 44-34, at the hands of No. 12 Oklahoma (9-1), keeping the Sooners’ CFP hopes alive. Oklahoma quarterback Baker Mayfield was 24/34, 270, 3-1, with receiver Sterling Shepard catching 14 for 177 yards and two scores.
Meanwhile, No. 8 Oklahoma State (10-0) had to rally from a 24-14 halftime deficit against Iowa State (3-7) to win 35-31; hardly the kind of effort that warms the cockles of the committee.
But we’re heading to an Oklahoma-Oklahoma State showdown Nov. 28; the Sooners having TCU beforehand, while the Cowboys face Baylor.
I said last time that Oregon at Stanford was a classic “trap game” and sure enough, in one of the more exciting contests of the year, the Ducks (7-3) held off No. 7 Stanford (8-2) 38-36, thus shattering any hopes the Cardinal had of playing in the CFP.
This game was back and forth the entire way, Stanford leading 23-21 at half, with Oregon taking a 38-30 lead with 5:12 to go, only to have Stanford score with ten seconds remaining, but Oregon stopped the Cardinal on the two-point conversion attempt.
A great win for Oregon, but a huge blow for the Pac-12 as the two leaders, Stanford and Utah, both have two losses.
Speaking of which, No. 10 Utah (8-2) lost at Arizona (6-5) 37-30 in double overtime.
Continuing….
Kiss No. 9 LSU’s fleeting CFP hopes goodbye as they fall to 7-2 following a 31-14 loss at the hands of improving Arkansas (6-4). LSU running back and one-time Heisman shoo-in, Leonard Fournette, had his second straight poor performance, 19 carries for a pedestrian 91 yards and a score.
No. 11 Florida (9-1) was hardly impressive in defeating South Carolina (3-7) 24-14.
No. 13 Michigan State (9-1) beat Maryland (2-8) just 24-7, as quarterback Connor Cook suffered a shoulder injury, after starting out 6 for 20, but as I go to post, Cook said he’ll be available for next week’s game at Columbus against the Buckeyes.
No. 14 Michigan stayed in the big bowl game hunt, improving to 8-2 with a thrilling 48-41 double overtime win over hard-luck Indiana (4-6). My main man this college season, Hoosier running back Jordan Howard, had 238 yards on 35 carries, but with Indiana facing fourth and two at the two, in the second OT, down a score, inexplicably the Hoosiers passed after running the ball 18 consecutive times. Jim Harbaugh’s boys stopped the play and Michigan survives. Just a super college football game, though.
No. 15 TCU (9-1) barely survived against an awful Kansas (0-1) team, 23-17, as the Horned Frogs’ Heisman candidate, quarterback Trevone Boykin suffered an ankle injury and didn’t play after the first quarter…which showed.
Perhaps the team playing as well as anyone in the country these days, No. 23 North Carolina (9-1), blasted Miami (6-4) 59-21 in a game that wasn’t even that close. Tar Heel quarterback Marquise Williams had four touchdowns…3 rushing and 1 passing.
So Carolina and Clemson are headed to a very big ACC title clash.
Then you have the American Athletic Conference, still hoping for a Big Six New Year’s Day bowl game.
But No. 22 Temple (8-2) inexplicably lost to South Florida (6-4) 44-23. Bye-bye Owls.
No. 24 Houston (10-0) stayed in the hunt with a stirring 35-34 comeback win over No. 21 Memphis (8-2), but I’m not convinced the Cougars are that good.
Then you have No. 20 Navy (8-1), which whipped SMU (1-9) like a rented mule, err, mustang, 55-14, as quarterback Keenan Reynolds finally broke the all-time Division I-A mark for rushing touchdowns formerly held by Wisconsin’s Montee Ball. Reynolds ran for 137 yards and four scores to move the record to 81, while also throwing a 72-yard touchdown pass.
Nov. 27, Navy plays Houston, with the winner advancing to the AAC title game against Temple (at least it looks that way now).
Ergo, Navy, out of nowhere, has a legitimate shot at a New Year’s Six game. That would be great for the sport.
I also realize I’m perhaps not being fair to Houston. Let’s see what the CFP committee thinks on Tuesday.
What a tumultuous stretch it has been for the Univ. of Missouri football program. It got swept up in the racial tension on campus, garnering national attention for a threatened boycott by the black players, and then coach Gary Pinkel, who supported them, announced he was resigning at the end of the season to deal with lymphoma first diagnosed in May.
Pinkel made his announcement a day before Mizzou played BYU in Kansas City, which the Tigers (5-5) won, 20-16, BYU falling to 7-3.
Missouri has five 10-win seasons under Pinkel, when until his arrival, the last such season was in 1960.
Finally, Pitt moved to 7-3 with a 31-13 win over struggling Duke (6-4), the Blue Devils never having recovered from their devastating loss to Miami on the sport’s worst call of the century.
Rutgers (3-7) will be firing coach Kyle Flood shortly after a 31-14 home loss to a lousy Nebraska (5-6) team.
And in Division I-AA (FCS), No. 1 Jacksonville State (9-1) continued to roll with a 56-28 win over S.E. Missouri State (4-6).
And now…the new AP poll…
1. Clemson 10-0 (34 first-place votes)
2. Ohio State 10-0 (23)
3. Alabama 9-1 (4)
4. Oklahoma State 10-0…no way
5. Notre Dame 9-1
6. Iowa 10-0
7. Oklahoma 9-1
8. Florida 9-1…absurd
9. Michigan State 9-1…blows
10. Baylor 8-1
11. TCU 9-1
12. North Carolina 9-1…good for them…s/b 8*
13. Houston 10-0!
14. Michigan 8-2
15. Stanford 8-2
19. Navy 8-1!…Go Bobby C.!
23. Oregon 7-3…Duckwear moved back to main sports drawer
[Temple and Memphis were dropped from the rankings, by the way.]
*Reminder…as a Wake alum I can never root for North Carolina, though when it comes to March Madness I turn into a conference man. In this case, though, I’m just calling it as I see it.
NFL
Just a few game notes….
New England moved to 9-0 in a terrific 27-26 last second win over the 5-5 Giants at MetLife Stadium. The Giants had taken a 26-24 lead with 1:50 remaining, which gave Tom Brady enough time to move the ball 44 yards for a 54-yard Stephen Gostkowski field goal and the win.
Eli Manning was 24/44, 361, 2-0, while Brady was 26/42, 331, 2-1.
New York remains a half-game ahead of Philadelphia and Washington.
Early on in the Chiefs-Broncos contest, Peyton Manning broke the all-time yardage mark held by Brett Favre, but that was the only positive for him as he proceeded to get benched in the third quarter after the worst performance of his career. 5 of 20 for just 35 yards with four interceptions. It worked out to a 0.0 passer rating. Kansas City (4-5) proceeded to win 29-13 in Denver.
Carolina remained undefeated at 9-0 with a workmanlike 27-10 win over the Titans (2-7). Cam Newton was 21/26, 217, 1-0, 114.3.
Pittsburgh (6-4) defeated Cleveland (2-8) 30-9, with the story being Ben Roethlisberger, who was supposed to be out a few weeks with a bum foot, but dressed as the backup today and after starter Landry Jones went out early with an injury, Big Ben came in to throw for 379 yards and three scores.
Martavis Bryant had six receptions for 178 yards and one touchdown, while Antonio Brown added 10 catches for 139 and two TDs.
In defeat, Johnny Manziel threw for a career-high 372 yards but he was sacked six times.
Kirk Cousins had a sterling game for the Redskins, 20/25, 324, 4-0, 158.3 rating (perfect) in leading Washington (4-5) to a 47-14 thrashing of the Saints (4-6).
The Cowboys officially died, losing 10-6 to Tampa Bay (4-5), which dropped Dallas to 2-7…all seven losses while Tony Romo is out with his injury. While no 2-6 team had ever reached the playoffs, I gave Dallas one more week, thinking if they could eke out this one, because of the weak NFC East they still had a shot. Not anymore.
The Eagles fell to 4-5 with a heartbreaking loss to the 4-5 Dolphins, as Mark Sanchez, subbing for the injured Sam Bradford, threw a late interception in the end zone, though for the life of me, after many replays, I’m shocked the announcers didn’t mention the receiver made zero effort on the ball and could have easily tipped it away.
The Packers (6-3) have shockingly lost three in a row, falling embarrassingly at home to the Lions (2-7) 18-16. Aaron Rodgers had to throw it 61 times to get 333 yards, hardly a great performance, reflected in an 83.6 rating.
So now the Vikings (7-2) have the lead in the NFC Central after defeating Oakland (4-5) 30-14 behind Adrian Peterson’s 203 yards rushing.
Jay Cutler had three touchdown passes for Chicago (4-5) who defeated the Rams (4-5) 37-13. The Bears’ Jeremy Langford had 73 yards rushing and another seven receptions for 109 yards, with two touchdowns. Bad loss for St. Louis.
–Thursday night at MetLife Stadium, the Jets suffered a brutal 22-17 loss to former coach Rex Ryan and the Bills (5-4). The Jets played an awful first half and were trailing 22-3, but rallied back to 22-17 late, when the Bills gave them a gift turnover in the red zone but the Jets couldn’t get it done. The Jets also had four turnovers, including a Devin Smith fumble on a second-quarter kickoff that the Bills ran in for a score.
Time and time again, the Jets blew opportunities deep in Bills territory, allowing Rex Ryan to revel in it all in his return to New York, after a stormy ending to his tenure here.
But with the Jets’ third loss in four games to fall to 5-4 after a 4-1 start that had the area buzzing, the questions over new coach Todd Bowles are coming fast and furious. His in-game management has been atrocious at times and while at first us Jets fans embraced the fact he was the “anti-Rex” in his soft-spoken, overly simplistic demeanor, now we wonder if the guy is truly competent.
As in fans are wondering why with the Jets at the Buffalo 7-yard line, fourth-and-4, the game on the line, quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick was throwing to tight end Kellen Davis, who had one catch for 1 yard this season, when he had Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker, who have combined for 99 catches and 11 TDs, available. The play blew up. The season is on the verge of doing the same.
–Actor Will Smith is getting all kinds of Oscar buzz for his portrayal of Dr. Bennet Omalu, who discovered CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy), in the film “Concussion” that is slated for release on Christmas Day. Needless to say the NFL is not real fired up.
Smith recently told the New York Post’s Page Six that he was initially looking for ways to avoid starring in the film.
“When I met with Dr. Bennet Omalu, I was hoping to God he would say something so that I didn’t have to make this movie. I was like, ‘Please just give me something…so I don’t have to make it.”
Smith said of the topic of CTE: “The truth is that repetitive head trauma causes brain damage. I watch the game and…if it’s not a concussive blow, you just dismiss it, but…the problem is the repeated subconcussive blows. When a boxer get hit with a concussive blow, he’s not going to get hit like that for another three months…If you don’t get up in 10 seconds, this thing is over. A football player gets three minutes on the side…then he gets another 60 subconcussive blows, then goes to practice two days later. It’s like this hidden trauma.”
Many of you saw tonight’s “60 Minutes” piece on the topic, though I was shocked they didn’t mention the upcoming movie.
College Basketball
–The regular season opened on Friday and you had a few early upsets, such as Sacramento State defeating Arizona State, 66-63, and Monmouth stunning UCLA in overtime, 84-81, as the Bruins blew a 13-point second-half lead, and then a five-point lead in OT. UCLA had 23 turnovers, Monmouth just seven!
Western Illinois beat No. 17 Wisconsin, 69-67, a biggie, while William and Mary whipped N.C. State in Raleigh 85-68. Goodness gracious.
Wake Forest, which is severely undermanned between injuries and suspensions, barely held on to win its opener against UMBC (Maryland-Baltimore County) 78-73. Our two big men, Devin Thomas, and Dinos Mitoglou, did combine for 40 points and 33 rebounds.
But I caught our game against Bucknell on Sunday in Lewisburg and I was impressed by our three freshmen…the Deacs with a solid road win, 90-82. They have some players after all.
San Diego State had a solid win, 71-60, over Illinois State and while it is very early, they unveiled a freshman point guard, this being their weakest position, and Jeremy Hemsley had 20 points, receiving rave reviews from his teammates.
Wichita State had no problem with Charleston Southern, 88-63, but there is some concern early on the condition of Fred VanVleet, who has a hamstring issue and then rolled his ankle after just three minutes on Friday.
LSU freshman sensation Ben Simmons had 11 points, 13 rebounds and five assists in the Tigers’ 81-70 win over McNeese State. Many fans of the sport are still scratching their heads over why this 6’10” future superstar selected LSU, but it’s good for the sport.
St. John’s new head coach, Chris Mullin, won his debut, 66-57 over Wagner, but the Red Storm were dealt a blow when they learned talented freshman point guard Marcus LoVett had been declared academically ineligible by the NCAA to play this season.
One other score…Butler opened their season on Saturday against The Citadel and won 144-71! Yikes. Citadel’s Bulldogs were outrebounded by Butler’s 63-28.
–Talk about an embarrassment, the Pitt-Gonzaga game in Okinawa, Japan, had to be cancelled at halftime due to unsafe floor conditions. Pitt was leading the No. 9 ‘Zags 37-35. It will not be continued at a later date. The stats won’t be counted, either. ESPN Events was the organizer.
The temperature was 79 degrees, with 89 percent humidity, and there was no air conditioning inside the field house, just some large fans, so it was incredibly slippery.
–USA TODAY Sports forecasts that the ACC will receive nine bids for the NCAA tournament; the big three – UNC, Duke and Virginia – plus Notre Dame, Louisville, Florida State, Syracuse, Miami and N.C. State.
–Tuesday, its Kentucky vs. Duke at 7:30 eastern; Georgetown at Maryland and Kansas vs. Michigan State after.
MLB
–Kind of shocking trade, with the Atlanta Braves shipping Gold Glove shortstop Andrelton Simmons to the Los Angeles Angels for Erick Aybar and two top pitching prospects, plus $2.5 million.
Simmons is arguably the best shortstop in the game and he is under contract through 2020, whereas Aybar, a better than average shortstop himself, can become a free agent next winter.
But the Braves love stockpiling pitchers and everything Atlanta has been doing the past few years is geared towards the opening of their new stadium in 2017.
Still, why give up on Simmons? The feeling is the Braves weren’t sold he was improving at the plate, the 26-year-old batting just .265 with four homers and 44 RBIs. In his first full season, 2013, he had 17 homers and 59 RBIs.
Plus while it’s nice to have a great defensive shortstop under contract through 2020, he will be making $11 million in 2018, $13 million in 2019 and $15 million in 2020.
It turns out the Braves were shopping Simmons to the Mets, but Atlanta wanted one of the core-four: Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard or Steven Matz. The Mets smartly said no.
Meanwhile, the Boston Red Sox’ Dave Dombrowski, who took over as president of baseball operations Aug. 18, has a reputation for liking to trade with anyone who will listen. So he talked to the Padres and, presto, the Red Sox picked up four-time National League All-Star closer Craig Kimbrel in exchange for four prospects.
Kimbrel reached 30 saves for a fifth consecutive season for San Diego, converting 39 of 43 chances. Since the start of his first full season in 2011, he leads all major league relievers in saves (224) and is second in ERA (1.70), strikeouts (523), strikeouts per nine innings (14.37) and save percentage (90.7).
–Back to the Mets, Daniel Murphy rejected the team’s qualifying offer, worth $15.8 million for 2016, so as expected he becomes a free agent. Most of the talk seems to center around the Angels.
But what was interesting is that this is the fourth season under the collective bargaining agreement that allows for one-year qualifying offers and, until today, no player had ever accepted it, opting for free agency instead.
But Baltimore catcher Matt Wieters, Houston outfielder Colby Rasmus and Dodgers left-hander Brett Anderson accepted their one-year deals, figuring they can better their bargaining positions next off-season with a solid 2016. In the case of Wieters, he’s trying to resurrect a career that had seen him appear in three All-Star games before requiring Tommy John surgery.
–While I normally couldn’t give a damn about the Yankees, I do like the trade they made, acquiring outfielder Aaron Hicks from the Twins for catcher John Ryan Murphy. Hicks, 26, becomes the fourth outfielder, replacing Chris Young, now a free agent, but if the Yanks trade Brett Gardner, as rumored, Hicks will start. He’s a switch-hitter who hit .256 with 11 home runs and 33 RBIs in 97 games, 88 of them in center field, but you just get the feeling he is ready to bust out.
–USA TODAY Sports’ panel of 10 writers and editors voted on their choices for MLB’s awards, which will be announced this week.
A.L. MVP: Josh Donaldson, Toronto
N.L. MVP: Bryce Harper, Washington
A.L. Cy Young: Dallas Keuchel, Houston
N.L. Cy Young: Zack Greinke, L.A.
A.L. Rookie of the Year: Carlos Correa, Houston
N.L. Rookie of the Year: Kris Bryant, Chicago
A.L. Manager of the Year: Jeff Banister, Texas
N.L. Manager of the Year: Joe Maddon, Chicago (close vote over the Mets’ Terry Collins)
–Finally, our thoughts are with Hall of Fame outfielder Lou Brock, the great base-stealer, who had his left leg amputated below the knee due to an infection related to diabetes. It’s hard to believe for us older folk that Brock is already 76.
Lou Brock stole a National League-record 938 bases, including 118 in 1974. He also had 3,023 hits, becoming a star after one of the worst trades in baseball history, with the Cubs sending him to St. Louis for pitcher Ernie Broglio in 1964. Brock batted .391 with four home runs and 10 steals in 21 World Series games.
NBA
–Defending champion Golden State is off to an 11-0 start and there is serious talk of them surpassing the mark of the 1995-96 Chicago Bulls, who went 72-10. I mean, why not? Last year the Warriors were 67-15.
–What an awful end to Kobe Bryant’s career, assuming the 37-year-old hangs it up at the end of the season.
His last full season was 2012-13, when he averaged 27.3 ppg.
But in 2013-14, he played in just six games, and last season just 35. This year he has already been held out of a few as the Lakers get off to another hideous start.
The thing is, Kobe has been killing the Lakers because of how much money he makes.
2012-13…$27.8 million
2013-14…$30.4m…Lakers 27-55
2014-15…$23.5m…21-61
2015-16…$25.0m
–Speaking of awful teams, you have the Philadelphia 76ers, who keep stockpiling draft picks, which their fans are told will lead to future success, but in the meantime here is the record.
2013-14…19-63
2014-15…18-64
2015-16…0-10
Saturday the Spurs played the Sixers, a 92-83 loss, and the Wall Street Journal pointed out that Tim Duncan “alone has played in far more games than everyone who has played for the 76ers this season combined.”
–Detroit’s Andre Drummond is off to a spectacular season on the boards, averaging 19.2 rebounds in his first nine games, which would be the highest since Wilt Chamberlain averaged 21.1 in 1968-69.
Against Indiana on Nov. 3, Drummond had 29 rebounds, the third-highest total of the century (Kevin Love had 31 in 2010, and Andrew Bynum totaled 30 in 2012). [Victor Mather / New York Times]
Drummond is in his fourth season out of UConn, but one thing he hasn’t improved upon is his free-throw shooting, .400 this year with a career mark of .397; truly hideous.
NCAA Men’s Soccer
The final Division I-A poll had…
1. Wake Forest
2. Clemson
3. Georgetown
4. North Carolina
5. Creighton
But then Wake and Clemson lost in the ACC tournament semis; Wake 1-0 to Notre Dame, Clemson 2-0 to Syracuse (ironically with the teams matching up in football this weekend).
And this just in…Syracuse, the #7 seed, defeated #4 Notre Dame 1-0 for the championship.
So some of us with a rooting interest now wait to see how the NCAA tournament bracket plays out. Not sure when it’s revealed but first round play is Nov. 19.
Go Deacs!
Stuff
–Update: As expected, the IAAF took action against Russia’s athletics federation and suspended it from international competition – including the 2016 Olympic Games – for its alleged involvement in widespread doping.
The vote among council members was 22-1 in favor of Russia being banned.
IAAF president Sebastian Coe (Lord Coe), told BBC Sports: “Our sport finds itself in a shameful situation….I have openly conceded that we need to learn some very tough lessons.”
Russia’s Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko said the suspension was “temporary” [Ed. kind of, sort of] and the “problem is solvable.”
Bottom line, it’s my understanding Russia can still prove it has cleaned up its act in time for Rio. I’m guessing it will…but this will be for reasons of politics, not actual compliance, which would make it even worse.
That said, I’d love to see the crowd reaction if a Russian woman, for example, defeated a Brazilian woman. Sure, there would be an ugly riot but it’s not like I’m going to be in the stands, mused the editor, selfishly.
–So the other day I tried to beat everyone to the punch in arguing for American Pharoah for Sports Illustrated’s Sportsman of the Year award and indeed, SI released its list of candidates days later and Pharoah is right there, the favorite in early fan polling.
Mark Beech of SI writes in the current issue:
“There was no other display of sportsmanship in 2015 that came close to what (owner Ahmed) Zayat and (trainer (Bob) Baffert did with American Pharoah. Horse racing is a dangerous sport, and al it would have taken was one bad step to turn his story into a tragedy – an uunimaginably expensive tragedy. Zayat, who had sold Pharoah’s breeding rights last winter for a reported $9.8 million, plus an extra $4 million for winning the Triple Crown, to Ireland-based Coolmore Stud, but who shrewdly retained control of the colt’s racing career through the end of the year, insisted that he keep running because ‘our sport needs stars.’
“It fell to Baffert to not only keep American Pharoah racing, but also to keep him winning…. Just as there is no precedent for what Pharoah accomplished in 2015 [Ed. i.e., including the Grand Slam], there is also no price that can be put on what Zayat and Baffert gave to sports fans.
“American Pharoah wasn’t perfect in 2015. But he won seven of his eight starts, including the most important races, and he won them with grit and joy and elan. And was still running at the end.”
Among the dozen nominees for Sportsman of the Year honors are Usain Bolt, Steph Curry, Novak Djokovic, Serena Williams, Jordan Spieth, Lionel Messi, Ronda Rousey (doh!), and the Kansas City Royals.
So I’ll stick with Pharoah, but we could easily see either Spieth or a joint Djokovic/Williams cover.
What’s kind of funny to think about, Spieth could go on to win 13-15 majors in his career, but this might be his best shot to win Sportsman of the Year, at 22!
It’s like you never know when you’ll get back to the World Series, Mets fans.
—This week’s PGA Tour event, the OHL Classic at Mayakoba, is wrapping up Monday due to darkness and inclement weather. Graeme McDowell is tied with Russell Knox, Knox having picked up his first win just last week at the WGC-HSBC Champions tournament.
–The next to last NASCAR race of the year in Phoenix is just getting started as I go to post due to a lengthy weather delay. Next Sunday is the finale in the Chase for the Sprint Cup, details to follow next chat, but Jeff Gordon will be racing in the last event of his career with a chance to win it all so it should be dramatic.
–The United States men’s soccer team routed St. Vincent and the Grenadines, 6-1, in the Americans’ opening qualifier for the 2018 World Cup.
The Americans are ranked No. 33 in the world these days.
–I admit to never watching any UFC action, but I suppose I better note for the archives that Holly Holm stunned Ronda Rousey with a second-round knockout, rocking the world of mixed martial arts in defeating the undefeated UFC champion.
In three previous title defenses, Rousey’s fights lasted a total of 64 seconds. Holm was a 20-1 underdog.
The fight is a huge blow for Rousey and the UFC, which is heavily invested in her success.
–No Premier League action this weekend. As you saw from the Germany-France matchup in Paris on Friday night, this was a week for international play.
–An old friend from my fund days, Paul P., told me he was running the Yankee Stadium 5K today. This sounds like a real pisser. “You start in the stadium, do a few laps on the 2 levels, take ramps down, go through the away team’s dugout – onto the field, a few laps, back up stadium stairs, ramps, etc.”
Paul said it is usually in the summer but with the new soccer team playing in the Bronx, they had to reschedule it for the fall.
–I was reading a piece in the Star-Ledger (NJ.com these days) on the issue of deer in New Jersey and according to the deer hunting prediction chart, Nov. 13 was the peak of white-tail deer mating season in the country, meaning the worst day for them going nuts and carelessly leaping in front of cars.
The total number of deer killed on New Jersey roads every year is estimated at around 25,000! The deer population in my state is said to be anywhere from 110,000 to 200,000, according to officials.
–I have to admit, until reading TIME magazine, I didn’t realize a guitar that belonged to John Lennon, used to record the song “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” sold at auction for $2.4 million. Gee, I hope the buyer received a certificate of authenticity.
–I was looking forward to catching a little of U2’s concert from Paris on HBO Saturday night, but of course it was canceled due to the terror attacks of Friday. Bono said on Saturday in a phone interview with an Irish radio host: “If you think about it, the majority of victims last night are music fans. This is the first direct hit on music that we’ve had in this so-called War on Terror. And it’s very upsetting. These are our people. …The cold-blooded effect of this slaughter is deeply disturbing and that’s what I can’t get out of my head.”
Friday night, U2 was in Paris rehearsing at the Bercy Arena, a few miles away from the Bataclan where 87 people died at the Eagles of Death Metal concert. “Our security locked it down quickly and we got our crew out of there safely. Then we watched TV like everyone else in disbelief at what was happening.”
In 2001, U2 was the first big band allowed back into New York after 9/11.
—Adele is on “SNL” next Saturday. That will get some ratings. Heck, I’ll tune in. [Plus Matthew McConaughey is the host.]
Top 3 songs for the week 11/22/75: #1 “That’s The Way (I Like It)” (KC & The Sunshine Band) #2 “Fly, Robin, Fly” (Silver Convention…uh oh…early signs of music turning crappy…) #3 “Who Loves You” (Four Seasons)…and…#4 “Island Girl” (Elton John) #5 “The Way I Want To Touch You” (Captain & Tennille…don’t touch me there, I’m ticklish…) #6 “This Will Be” (Natalie Cole…solid tune that has aged well…) #7 “Feelings” (Morris Albert) #8 “Low Rider” (War…incredibly underrated group…) #9 “Sky High” (Jigsaw) #10 “Let’s Do It Again” (The Staple Singers…not a fan….)
Kansas City Chiefs Quiz Answers: 1) 6,000 yards rushing: Jamaal Charles (2008-15) 7,220 (5.5 avg.); Priest Holmes (2001-07) 6,070 (4.6); Larry Johnson (2003-09) 6,015 (4.4). 2) 15,000 passing yards: Len Dawson (1962-75) 28,507; Trent Green (2001-06) 21.459; Bill Kenney (1980-88) 17,277.
If you got Kenney, you’re a good Chiefs fan.
Next Bar Chat, Thursday.
