[Posted late Sunday p.m.]
Chicago Bears Quiz: 1) Who are the only two quarterbacks to throw for 14,000 yards in their Chicago career? 2) Outside of Walter Payton, who rushed for 16,726 yards, who are the only two other Bears to rush for 6,000? 3) Who is the Bears’ single-season leader with 118 receptions? Answers below.
College Football Review:
Boy, I think we can agree on one thing. This wasn’t the best week for the FBS. No upsets in the top four, though we were close, while No. 5 was obliterated in one of the truly disgraceful late-season performances of all time.
To wit:
No. 1 Alabama (11-0) wasn’t that impressive in a 31-3 win over Chattanooga (8-3) but the Tide can be excused for looking ahead, not just to Auburn and then an SEC title game, but also the playoffs. ‘Bama held the Mocs to 184 yards.
No. 2 Ohio State (10-1) held on, barely, to beat a lousy Michigan State (3-8) team, 17-16 in East Lansing, as Spartans coach Mark Dantonio opted to go for two with the score 17-16 and 4:40 to play. I know most folks are criticizing him, especially given how well his defense was playing, but I’m like, what the hell. You’ve had a godawful season, give your fan base something to take into the holidays.
Meanwhile, the Buckeyes were outgained 331-310 and hardly looked like the No. 2 team in the nation, with J.T. Barrett, a supposed Heisman candidate, passing for a whopping 86 yards, though he did run for 105. For the Spartans, LJ Scott had a fine afternoon, 19 carries for 160 and a touchdown. MSU’s problem all year, as I’ve written before, is awful quarterback play. Tyler O’Connor was just 6 of 16 with two picks.
So with OSU hosting No. 3 Michigan next week, the Wolverines (10-1) were very ordinary in defeating Indiana (5-6) in Ann Arbor, 20-10, outgaining the Hoosiers 284-255, as in this was one dull contest. At least for Michigan, De’Veon Smith had his best game of the season with 158 yards rushing and two scores.
I must say in defense of Indiana that they were highly competitive in five of their six losses thus far.
No. 4 Clemson traveled to Wake Forest and after their shocking loss to Pitt in Death Valley the week before, the Tigers came out with fire in the belly, taking a 28-0 lead on the Deacs in the first 17 minutes. But Wake Forest held their own after, losing 35-13 despite having to play the whole way with third string quarterback Kyle Kearns, the two ahead of him out with injuries. It was Kearns’ first start and it showed (though the outcome was hardly his fault).
Clemson outgained Wake 456-197, 21-9 in first downs, but the Deacs didn’t turn it over and, get this, boys and girls, the last spread I saw was 22 ½ points! As in…We Beat the Spread! And at the end of the day….
However, as I noted a few weeks ago when Wake became bowl eligible, that doesn’t mean we automatically get a bowl bid! We are now 6-5. Boston College is 5-6 (after defeating UConn 30-0 ) and we play each other in Winston-Salem next week. If B.C. wins, they are bowl eligible as well and let’s just say that if both of us get invited to a bowl game at 6-6, there aren’t going to be a lot of tickets sold for either.
[Back to Clemson, they will face Virginia Tech in the ACC title game, unless the Hokies lose to Virginia in their season-finale.]
But the big game of the week was on Thursday night…a game that early this season was being marked on the calendar as a play-in game for a CFP berth…No. 5 Louisville at Houston.
Houston had that big opening win against Oklahoma, 33-23, and the Cougars won their first five and were ranked 6th in the AP, but they stumbled badly with losses to Navy (not embarrassing in hindsight, I’ll grant you) and SMU (beyond embarrassing) and the pollsters threw Houston into Purgatory.
For their part, Louisville just had the one close loss to Clemson and was looking good for a final four slot. But then a funny thing happened on the way to glory, Houston demolished Louisville 36-10, Heisman Trophy winner (he’s still going to get it) Lamar Jackson playing like he was enjoying Christmas break, going 20/43, 211, 1-0 through the air, with just 33 yards on the ground on 25 carries. The dude sucked.
Houston wasn’t awesome, but they took advantage of Louisville’s three turnovers and had two sweet trick plays. So the Cougars are positioned for a decent bowl contest, while who knows what’s going to happen with Louisville. Jackson can still sell some tickets so they just may work their way into a New Year’s Six berth. Or they could slide down into the “Give it to Mikey, He’ll Eat Anything, Bowl.”
Continuing….
No. 6 Washington (10-1) will move up into Louisville’s 5-spot after a 44-18 win over Arizona State (5-6), but to get into the playoffs it will need to beat Washington State on Friday and then probably Colorado in the Pac-12 title game, Colorado hosting Utah next week.
No. 7 Wisconsin (9-2) kept their slim playoff hopes alive with a 49-20 win over Purdue (3-8), the Boilermakers with four turnovers.
No. 8 Penn State (9-2) won its seventh straight, 39-0 at Rutgers (2-9), outgaining the Scarlet Knights 549-87! [25-5 in first downs] Just another truly pathetic performance for New Jersey’s state school.
But the Nittany Lions, assuming they beat Michigan State at Happy Valley next Saturday, now must hope for Ohio State to beat Michigan, which would put Penn State into the Big Ten title game against Wisconsin and the winner of that could at least whine about not making the playoffs, though if Washington stumbled….
Another that might be able to whine in two weeks is No. 9 Oklahoma (9-2), which thrashed 14 West Virginia (8-2) in Morgantown, 56-28, in a game that wasn’t as close as the final score. For the Sooners, Samaje Perine rushed for 160 yards and two touchdowns, while Joe Mixon added 147 and a score. West Virginia’s Justin Crawford, though, did have 331 yards on the ground himself (3rd-highest in school history) but didn’t get into the end zone.
So while the Mountaineers laid an egg, the Sooners can say they are playing as well as anyone these days and they have just 11 Oklahoma State on the calendar in two weeks.
Speaking of the Cowboys (9-2), they beat TCU (5-5) 31-6 as their running back duo, Justice Hill and Chris Carson, rushed for 154 and 146 yards, respectively. The game Dec. 3 in Norman could be a great one.
Back to the Pac-12, No. 10 Colorado (9-2) is the surprise in the nation as they rode the play of quarterback Sefo Liufau to a 38-24 win over 22 Washington State (8-3) in Boulder. Liufau had 345 yards passing and rushed for three touchdowns. Running back Phillip Lindsay added 144 yards on the ground and two scores in what was the first November game in Boulder between two Top 25 teams since 2001.
What kind of turnaround has this been for Colorado?
2011…3-10
2012…1-11
2013…4-8
2014…2-10
2015…4-9
2016…9-2
The Pac-12 is all muddled with No. 12 Utah’s 30-28 loss to Oregon (4-7) at home, the Utes dropping to 8-3, while No. 13 USC (8-3), like Oklahoma (and I guess you could say Penn State) as hot as anyone, won their seventh straight, 36-14, over UCLA (4-7) at the Rose Bowl Saturday night in a game that featured a battle of the cheerleaders. USC also outgained UCLA 527-266.
So it’s Washington vs. Colorado in the Pac-12 title game, baring stumbles by either, with USC hoping Colorado does.
In the SEC, it’s now going to be Alabama vs. No. 23 Florida (8-2), which clinched the SEC East with a 16-10 win over No. 16 LSU (6-4) in Baton Rouge, the game that was originally postponed due to Hurricane Matthew. The Gators’ ‘D’ came up huge, stopping LSU on the 1-yard line the final two plays of the game to seal the victory and the shot at ‘Bama.
[The game’s rescheduling was a fiasco, and Florida was forced to go to LSU because the Tigers refused to give up a home game, which is what would have been involved after the two schools had to buyout the non-league opponents already scheduled to open up the date.]
Meanwhile…in the battle for a New Year’s Six / Group of Five bowl bid…..
No. 20 Boise State (10-1) beat UNLV (4-7) 42-25 on Friday night, while No. 21 Western Michigan (11-0) whipped Buffalo (2-9) 38-0 behind Zach Terrell’s 445 yards passing and four touchdowns.
But…Wyoming (8-3, 6-1) beat San Diego State (9-2, 6-1) at home, 34-33, and so unless Wyoming stumbles at New Mexico next week, which is possible, and Boise State then wins at Air Force, also tough, Boise will not be playing SDSU for the Mountain West title, because Wyoming beat Boise earlier…and…for a Group of Five school to get a New Year’s Six bid, they must be conference champ.
Ergo, Western Michigan is in the driver’s seat to play in the Cotton Bowl. At least that is my reading of things Sunday.
[SDSU had a shot to get into the picture if they had beaten Wyoming, and then Boise in the title game, but Noooo…]
In other games meaningful mostly to alumni….
Navy (8-2) walloped East Carolina (3-8) 66-31 as quarterback Will Worth rushed for 159 yards and four touchdowns, while Shawn White tacked on another 150 yards and three scores on just 11 carries.
The Midshipmen face SMU before the big Army game, but Army is now off until then, moving their mark to 6-5 with a 60-3 win over Div. I-AA Morgan State, which means that Army has two FCS wins (the other over Lafayette), and there will be no bowl game for Army (there shouldn’t be) unless they beat Navy on Dec. 10.
North Carolina (8-3) beat The Citadel (10-1) 41-7.
Notre Dame (4-7) clinched its first losing season since 2007, losing to Virginia Tech (8-3) 34-31 in South Bend. What an embarrassing season for coach Brian Kelly and the Irish.
Pitt is now 7-4 after a 55-14 home win against Duke (4-7), with James Conner rushing for 101 yards and two touchdowns, while the exciting Quadree Henderson added two TDs of his own, one on a punt return. Pitt was wearing 1976 throwback uniforms, one of the great jerseys of all time, especially if you were a Tony Dorsett, Hugh Green and overall Pitt fan back in those days.
Finally, Kansas (2-9) stunned Texas (5-6) at home 24-21, the first win for the Jayhawks over the Longhorns since 1938! Texas running back D’Onta Foreman rushed a school-record 51 times for 250 yards and two touchdowns, but he had two costly fumbles that likely sealed the fate of coach Charlie Strong, 16-20 in his three years. The Longhorns are expected to target Houston coach Tom Herman, though Texas would love to lure Nick Saban or Florida State’s Jimbo Fisher to Austin.
Fisher and Herman are also said to be in line for the LSU job. [If I’m Fisher, I don’t leave FSU.]
By the way, how bad has Kansas been?
2010…3-9
2011…2-10
2012…1-11
2013…3-9
2014…3-9
2015…0-12
2016…2-9
—FCS (Div. I-AA) scores…totally random….
North Dakota State (10-1…and winner of the last five FCS championships) 28…South Dakota (4-7) 21; New Hampshire (7-4) 24…Maine (6-5) 21…the winner getting to unleash its state’s moose on the other state; Colgate (5-5) 38…Georgetown (3-8) 10; Yale (3-7) 21…Harvard (7-3) 14…the Yale campus peopled with extreme whiners post-election; William & Mary (5-6) 34…Richmond (8-3) 13…huge upset in this rivalry game; and in the 152nd matchup of these two, Lehigh (9-2) 45…Lafayette (2-9) 21.
—South Carolina State’s Joe Thomas Sr., 55, became the oldest man to play in an NCAA Division I football game when he ran for three yards against Savannah State. His son, Joe Thomas Jr., is a linebacker for the Green Bay Packers.
—Back to Rutgers, it was shut out for a fourth time this season, the first time that has happened in a campaign since 1936. One sign of just how lousy the season has been, punter Michael Cintron has already eclipsed the Big Ten record for punts in a season with a game against Maryland remaining.
–Oregon wide receiver and Olympic hurdler Devon Allen said he would forgo his final year of eligibility with the Ducks to focus on a professional track career, once he recovers from a torn ACL in his left knee. Allen wants to win Gold at the 2020 Games and then maybe he’ll pursue a professional football career. I admire this guy.
–And now, your new AP Poll…..
1. Alabama 11-0 (61)
2. Ohio State 10-1
3. Michigan 10-1
4. Clemson 10-1
5. Wisconsin 9-1
6. Washington 10-1
7. Oklahoma 9-2
8. Penn State 9-2
9. Colorado 9-2
10. Oklahoma State 9-2
11. Louisville 9-2…down 8 in this one
12. USC 8-3
13. Florida 8-2…up 8
14. Western Michigan 11-0
The CFP ranking comes out Tuesday p.m. The reason why I keep posting the AP is because there could easily be a controversy exacerbated by the AP ranking vs. that of a bunch of guys and gals sitting in a lounge near DFW Airport. But the guys and gals have the ultimate say. Washington vs. Wisconsin/Penn State is the looming controversy as of today.
NFL
–Thank god I didn’t have to watch my Jets this weekend as they are in their bye week. So I watched an entertaining Giants-Bears contest from the Meadowlands, New York moving to 7-3 with a 22-16 win over Chicago (2-8). The Bears had a 16-10 halftime lead but, as has been the case this season more often than not, the Giants’ defense stood strong in crunch time…in this case shutting the Bears out the entire second half as Jason Pierre-Paul had 2 ½ sacks and safety Landon Collins snuffed out a last-ditch Bears threat with a pick of quarterback Jay Cutler, the fourth consecutive game that Collins got an INT.
It was a windy affair today, with three missed extra points, but the Giants did enough to win and they can make some noise in the postseason, no doubt.
Pittsburgh is back to .500, 5-5, after a 24-9 win in Cleveland (0-11). Remember that tidbit from about two weeks ago, that Ben Roethlisberger is a totally different quarterback on the road than he is at home? He sucked today, but Le’Veon Bell picked up the load, 146 yards rushing and a touchdown, plus 55 yards on 8 receptions. That said, Big Ben is now 20-2 in his career when starting against the Brownies, who had the chance to draft him.
The crappy AFC North is now knotted at 5-5, Steelers and Ravens, with Baltimore’s 27-17 loss down in Dallas (9-1). Dak Prescott did it again, performing quite ably with a 27/36, 301, 3-0, 127.2 performance; Dez Bryant catching six passes for 80 yards and two of the touchdowns.
Thanksgiving…Dallas-Washington…an important contest.
Also on Thanksgiving, what is suddenly a huge NFC North contest between 6-4 Minnesota and 6-4 Detroit.
Minnesota snapped its 4-game losing streak, holding off Arizona (4-5-1) 30-24, despite the Vikings generating zero offense and getting outgained 290-217. Arizona quarterback Carson Palmer had two big interceptions, one of which was returned 100 yards for a score by Xavier Rhodes, while the Vikes also had a 104-yard TD on a kickoff return by Cordarrelle Patterson. For Arizona, a season-killing loss.
Meanwhile, in Detroit, the Lions did it again, beating the Jaguars (2-8) 26-19 after trailing 19-16 after three. All six wins for Detroit this season have been fourth-quarter comebacks, one shy of the record for most Q4 comebacks in a season, held by the 2009 Colts. [The 1963 Steelers had 6 in a 14-game schedule.] So much-maligned coach Jim Caldwell is getting it done when it matters.
Kansas City (7-3) suffered a bad loss at home, 19-17 to Tampa Bay (5-5). This one in terms of the division, and wild-card, could come back to haunt them. Jameis Winston was solid for the Bucs, 24/39, 331, 1-0.
Cincinnati’s season is officially over, the Bengals falling to 3-6-1 as “Bad Andy” Dalton showed up at home against the Bills (5-5); Dalton 24/43, 207, 1-2, 57.0 in a 16-12 loss. Buffalo stays relevant for at least another week or two as the ‘lake effect’ snows begin to hit.
Indianapolis is also still relevant at 5-5, following a 24-17 win at home vs. Tennessee (5-6), Andrew Luck throwing for 262 yards, while the Titans’ Marcus Mariota was once again very solid, 25/38, 290, 2-0, 106.2. It’s just that the Colts got off to an early 21-0 lead and Tennessee couldn’t surmount it.
Miami (6-4) won its fifth in a row, 14-10, over the Rams (4-6) in L.A. in what must have been a godawful game to attend, the Dolphins outgaining the Rams 240-227. But for Los Angeles, the overall first pick in last spring’s draft, Jared Goff, finally made his debut at quarterback and he sucked…17/31, 134, 0-0, 65.8, but you have to start somewhere, and he didn’t turn it over. And without having watched a second of this one, I’m sure the announcers were saying “Goff was given a limited package to play with.”
Tom Brady, on the other hand, didn’t suck, 24/40, 280, 4-0, 114.6, in leading the Patriots (8-2) to a 30-17 win at 1-9 San Francisco. LeGarrette Blount chipped in 124 yards rushing for the Pats, while for the 49ers, I couldn’t give a flying [leap] how Colin Kaepernick did, he being a most loathsome individual at this point.
Seattle is now 7-2-1 and looking like a Super Bowl favorite again (though with lots of injury issues) after a 26-15 win today against Philadelphia (5-5).
—Carolina linebacker Luke Kuechly is not just the leading tackler in the NFL this season, he’s also a perennial first-team All-Pro* and one of the more popular players in the sport. So it’s no surprise that as Panthers coach Ron Rivera said this week, Kuechly suffering another concussion in Thursday night’s 23-20 win over the Saints was “concerning.”
Kuechly was placed in the concussion protocol after he was carted off the field late in the fourth quarter following a helmet-to-helmet hit on a tackle of Saints running back Tim Hightower.
Kuechly was in tears has he rode off toward the locker room while the home town fans screamed “Luuuuke!”
It was a touching moment and a real example of the state of the game. We all have a far better understanding of the risks the players are taking with their health, that’s for sure, and there is no doubt Kuechly is scared to death. The Boston College grad is a good guy and one of the few you can honestly say is a ‘role model.’
So good luck, Luke. We’re praying for you.
*Since entering the league out of B.C. in 2012, he has more tackles (693) than any NFL player. He already had a season-high 14 on Thursday.
–Then you have jerks like Odell Beckham Jr., who lost a diamond ring the other night, dancing at a Bronx strip club – the diamond-studded pinkie ring flying off and then not being found as everyone searched in vain (though one unidentified guy is seen on a security camera picking something up). The ring had an estimated value of $25,000. Beckham refused to talk to reporters about it.
Beckham is a regular at the club, Sin City Cabaret, where last July, nine bouncers and dancers were charged with selling $22,000 worth of cocaine to undercover cops. Giants officials have tried to dissuade Odell from hanging out there but to no avail.
–We note the passing of eight-time All-Pro defensive lineman Bob Gain, 87. Drafted fifth overall out of Kentucky by Green Bay in 1951, Gain went on to star with Cleveland, becoming a key part of championship teams in 1954, ‘55, and ‘64.
–As you heard, DraftKings and FanDuel are merging, though this isn’t likely to be formalized until middle of next year. The company will have headquarters in both New York (FanDuel) and Boston (DraftKings) but there will be major job cuts, you can be sure, as the companies take advantage of efficiencies.
As for antitrust concerns, the two controlling 80% of the fantasy sports market, I don’t see this being an issue.
I do have to note I had a solid ‘win’ in DraftKings’ Monday-Thursday NFL bet this week. My best one yet. I then got shelled this weekend.
MLB
–The Yankees traded catcher Brian McCann to the Astros for two minor leaguers, with the Astros agreeing to pick up $23 million of the $34 million remaining on McCann’s contract for 2017-18. Another good move by GM Brian Cashman, with McCann having lost his starting job anyway to Gary Sanchez.
The Astros have been busy, signing outfielder Josh Reddick to a four-year, $52 million contract.
But then you had this…
Johnny Mac and I have long stopped getting upset at some of the money in the game, but I agree with him that the Astros were nuts to give journeyman hurler Charlie Morton (46-71, 4.54 ERA) a two-year, $14 million contract, after Morton threw just four games for the Phillies last year before he suffered a season-ending torn hamstring.
But this is what happens when you have the worst starting pitcher free-agency class in like ten years. Or as J. Mac points out, what is so nonsensical about this particular move is, “You mean to tell me you don’t have a guy in your farm system who can do what Morton is likely to give you” at a fraction of the cost?
—Baseball’s current Collective Bargaining Agreement (C.B.A.) expires Dec. 1, but there is zero talk of problems between the owners and the players. That said, as the New York Times’ Tyler Kepner notes, it would appear there will be some tweaks to the existing agreement, with the 162-game schedule probably being played in a 187-day window instead of the current 183. Active rosters “are likely to increase to 26 players, from 25, and September rosters will most likely be capped at 28 or 29,” which would be a big relative change.
There will likely be other tweaks to free agency. Over the life of the current C.B.A., just five free agents have accepted a qualifying offer – the one-year, guaranteed deal for the average salary of the 125 highest-paid players, which amounted to $17.2 million this year (the Mets’ Neil Walker being one of the five), but those who have rejected the offer, such as Ian Desmond last year, have sometimes found a depressed market for their service, “because teams outside the top 10 in the draft have had to surrender their first-round picks to sign them.” So this is likely to be changed some.
Awards
N.L. Cy Young…Max Scherzer
A.L. Cy Young…Rick Porcello
N.L. MVP…Kris Bryant
A.L. MVP…Mike Trout
Scherzer became just the sixth pitcher to win a Cy Young Award in both leagues – the others being Roger Clemens, Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez, Gaylord Perry and Rory Halladay – winning in a landslide with 25 of the 30 first-place votes.
Give Scherzer credit. He signed that seemingly outrageous seven-year, $210 million contract with the Nationals after the 2014 season and he’s gone 14-12, 2.79, and 20-7, 2.96, pitching far better than his final record in ’15. He’s also thrown 228 innings both years and led the N.L. in SO/W ratio (strikeouts to walks) at 8.12 and 5.07.
Meanwhile, Rick Porcello, 22-4, 3.15, became only the fourth pitcher to claim a Cy Young Award with the Red Sox, joining Jim Lonborg (1967), Roger Clemens (1986, 1987 and 1990) and Pedro Martinez (1999, 2000). Porcello, while not compiling spectacular stats (189 strikeouts to Scherzer’s 284, for example), was a model of consistency, yielding three runs or less in 27 of 33 starts, while racking up a career-high 223 innings.
But the voting was controversial because he received only eight first-place votes compared to Justin Verlander’s 14. Now Verlander had a terrific comeback season, going 16-9, 3.02, 254 strikeouts in 227 innings, but the uproar over his not getting the nod is way over the top.
Hey, plug his name into my search function. I was praising Verlander all season. But he was hardly an odds-on pick for the Cy Young. [Corey Kluber was third in the voting and at 18-9, 3.14, just as deserving as the other two.]
The controversy is legit, though, when you consider that Porcello won by a 137-132 margin, with 18 second-place votes, and two Tampa-based writers leaving Verlander totally off their ballot. Now that is what’s outrageous.
So Verlander’s supermodel fiancée, Kate Upton, went off against the voters on Twitter, saying Porcello “didn’t win” because he didn’t receive as many first-place votes as Justin. Kate has a point and we welcome her analysis and any photo shoots she chooses to pass along.
As for Kris Bryant, he now has a Rookie of the Year and MVP Award in his first two seasons. Actually, Bryant is the first ever to win College Player of the Year, Minor League Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year and MVP in 4 straight seasons.
Then there is Mike Trout…the 25-year-old having finished first or second in the MVP race for five consecutive seasons.
–It seems as if Jeurys Familia’s wife is going to drop domestic violence charges against the Mets’ closer, and if the judge accepts this I’m assuming Major League Baseball will take no action against him.
College Basketball
Nothing earth-shattering since last chat. Wake Forest was blown out by defending champion and No. 3 Villanova 96-77 on Friday in the Charleston Classic semifinals, though Wake shot 50 percent from the field and had just four turnovers. So what happened? Obviously, the Deacs’ defense sucked, you’re thinking.
Well I watched a fair amount and the defense indeed wasn’t great, but what I saw was Villanova is just very good, once again. Preseason All-American Josh Hart had a career-high 30 points off six 3-pointers and the hero of last year’s championship game, Kris Jenkins, added 16 (Mikal Bridges with 19). Plus point guard Jalen Brunson looked very solid (especially in posterizing 6-10 budding Wake star, John Collins).
But just now, Wake beat the College of Charleston for third place in the tournament, 78-61, to move to 4-1 on the young campaign. I really like what I see thus far from the Deacs.
I should also note No. 1 Duke beat 21 Rhode Island 75-65 today, but we’re going to get a reshuffling of the deck, a minor one, with the next AP Poll.
NASCAR
The season ended on Sunday in Homestead, Florida, the Race for the Sprint Cup Championship between Jimmie Johnson, defending champ Kyle Busch, Joey Logano and Carl Edwards.
And in a race that will be much talked about for a while, Johnson captured his seventh championship, tying him with Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt, when it appeared he had no shot at it with just ten laps to go.
But out of nowhere on a restart following a caution (perhaps a dubious one at that), Carl Edwards, leading among the four (whoever finished first among them won the Cup), suddenly veered low, into Joey Logano, who was making a move to pass, but after watching it a bunch of times, my brother and I (we kept calling each other) couldn’t figure out just what Edwards was thinking.
Edwards then immediately ran into Logano’s crew’s area, said he was sorry, that it “was racing,” and the rest of us are like, “What the hell just happened?”
Then on what should have been the final, final restart at five laps to go, there was another caution, and so on the final, final, final restart, Johnson, who had been inching up the pack with each caution, stole the race and the championship.
More next chat as appropriate. But congratulations to Jimmie Johnson, a good guy, for an awesome achievement.
The sport, though, has major issues. For starters, Sprint is making its final appearance as title sponsor and despite more than two years’ notice of Sprint’s departure, NASCAR has yet to announce a replacement. Originally, NASCAR was said to be looking for a 10-year commitment, for $1 billion, but CEO and chairman Brian France has been mum since September when he said at the time the sport would have an announcement “in weeks.”
NASCAR does have an $8.2 billion, 10-year multi-network TV contract signed last year, but many of the races have had double-digit ratings drops from the previous two years. And a lot of the races have been on channels such as Fox Sports 1 or NBCSN, rather than major networks.
Plus then you have the situation with high-profile driver Dale Earnhardt Jr., whose latest concussion has sidelined him for months, though he has vowed to return to Daytona in February. As reported by the New York Times’ Jerry Garrett, Earnhardt “is undergoing extensive therapy, and now wears thick glasses typically prescribed to cope with double vision.”
And you have the retirement of popular driver Tony Stewart.
Actually, with Sunday’s result, one of the few things NASCAR has going for it next year is Johnson’s quest to break Petty’s and Earnhardt’s record.
Golf Balls
Premier League
In action on Saturday, Arsenal’s Olivier Giraud scored the equalizer in the 89th minute at Old Trafford, the Gunners pulling out a 1-1 draw against Manchester United when it appeared that Man U was finally going to pick up a big win.
Manchester City beat Crystal Palace 2-1, while Liverpool and Southampton played to a 0-0 draw.
In the late game, though, Tottenham was hosting West Ham and I picked up the action after the first half, the Spurs trailing the Hammers 1-0. Ughh, I thought. This could be the season (being a bit melodramatic).
But Tottenham tied it at 1-1 as they sprang to life, only to see West Ham answer with a sudden goal to retake the lead at 2-1.
Then the improbable happened; Tottenham striker Harry Kane scoring two in the final minutes, including on a penalty kick, in what the BBC described as a “breathless victory,” 3-2, that keeps the Spurs undefeated at 6 wins, 6 draws, and very much in the conversation. [The “conversation” being about finishing in the top four to ensure a spot in the Champions League, let alone winning the overall PL title.]
Sunday, Chelsea defeated Middlesbrough 1-0 on Diego Costa’s 10th goal of the season to move Chelsea to the top of the PL.
So after 12 of 38 games….W-D-L [ties settled by goal differential]
1. Chelsea 9-1-2…28 points
2. Liverpool 8-3-1…27
3. Man City 8-3-1…27
4. Arsenal 7-4-1…25
5. Tottenham 6-6-0…24
6. Man U 5-4-3…19
7. Everton 5-4-3…19…this was my preseason sleeper pick to make some noise
8. Watford 5-3-4…18
14. Leicester 3-3-6…12
All the big names the casual fan knows are at the top, and this is good, while defending champ Leicester City struggles mightily after a 2-1 loss to Watford. I can’t help but keep repeating this but last year Leicester finished 23-12-3…just three losses. This year they already have six and are out of the race with 26 matches to play. At least that’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it.
As Joshua Robinson of the Wall Street Journal pointed out over the weekend, Leicester’s Cinderella story last year served to refocus the Premier League’s elite. New managers were brought in. Star players signed to huge contracts.
“The result is a league where the big boys are pounding the rest with renewed violence. The current top four are on pace to rack up more combined points than any top four since the league went to 20 teams in 1995.”
Consider that Tottenham is undefeated and in fifth!
Meanwhile, Leicester has yet to beat a single team in the top six.
Stuff
–Sunday saw the Round of 32 in the NCAA Men’s Soccer Championship and 2-seed Wake Forest advanced with a 2-0 win over Coastal Carolina.
But before I went to post I was checking some late scores, the games being played all over the country, and I kept doing a double-take…unseeded Providence upset 1-seed Maryland 5-4! I mean I looked at the play-by-play of the game, which I don’t recall ever doing for a college soccer game, just to be sure and Providence, down 2-1 at half, scored four in 12 minutes in the second half for the win. Remarkable!
This was Maryland’s first loss of the season, and it was the first time they gave up five goals at home since 1993!
Yes, it really happened. Is this a big break for the Deacs?
–Talk about a great idea. I see where the Arizona Coyotes are going to build a new arena on the campus of Arizona State after issues with the city of Glendale and their current lease. For starters, the majority of the Coyotes’ fan base is much closer to ASU.
But can you imagine being a student there and having an NHL team right on campus?! That is so cool…and the Coyotes are definitely sincere in saying they will go after the students heavily, and at discounted prices. Why wouldn’t you, anytime you don’t have a sellout, which is normally most of the time down there. The Coyotes have said they will have “student rush” tickets.
Anthony LeBlanc, one of the team’s owners, said the response to the eventual move has been “phenomenal.” “Phones are blowing up.”
I mean to tell you, think about it. You’re a high school student in the New York area, you like warm weather, but you’re also a huge hockey fan. There’s only one school you’re thinking about now. A-S-U!!!
[ASU’s own hockey team would play in the new arena as well, of course, and talk about a recruiting tool. You know there will be a lot of interaction between the pro and college players…a great experience for the lads.]
–From the San Diego Union Tribune: “Conway Bowman recently hooked a 1,000 pound mako off Catalina Island.
“Over the summer, giant mako sharks appeared off the coast around the same time sport fisherman noticed a big increase in large blue-fin tuna.
“ ‘So, that bigger food item brought in those big makos and made it a tremendous fishing summer,’ said Bowman, owner/operator of a local fishing charter.”
Bowman releases all the makos he catches back into the ocean. None are killed, including that 1,000 pounder, because as he puts it, not only are shark populations down, but many of the big makos are pregnant females and they can “carry their offspring for up to 19 months.” Good lord. I’m guessing Father Mako knows when to stay clear of Mom.
Barry Mako to his friend, George. “Olivia is a little grumpy today. I need to get out of this bay for a while. Let’s go find some surfers up the coast.”
—LeBron James is donating $2.5 million for a new exhibit about Muhammad Ali at the recently opened Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington.
James told USA Today: “Muhammad Ali is such a cornerstone of me as an athlete because of what he represented not only in the ring as a champion but more outside the ring – what he stood for, what he spoke for, his demeanor….
“Obviously we knew how great of a boxer he was, but I think that was only 20 percent of what made him as great as he was.”
I commend LeBron for this move. This doesn’t mean, though, that I agree with his recent take on Phil Jackson’s use of the word “posse” to describe LeBron’s entourage.
–Brad K. passed along this story from WUSA 9 in Frederick, Maryland: “A mother bear that was shot to death by Maryland wildlife officials Thursday after attacking and injuring a 63-year-old woman was well known to residents and Maryland’s Dept. of Natural Resources.
“Wildlife officials placed a radio collar on the sow on September 1 after complaints that the bear and her three cubs had been marauding trash cans and bird feeders for much of the summer….according to Harry Spiker, bear biologist for the Maryland Dept. of Natural Resources….
“The victim of the attack, Karen E. Osborne, was seriously injured with broken bones and more than 80 stitches, her son-in-law said. She was mauled repeatedly when she walked down the driveway of her daughter’s Frederick home at 9:30 p.m. Wednesday.
“She went to investigate after the family dog began barking, according to the son-in-law….
“The attack was the first ever recorded in Modern Maryland history….
“There is no evidence the victim was attempting to harass or feed the bear…
“ ‘She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time,’ said the son-in-law.”
Wildlife officials tracked the sow’s radio collar and killed it Thursday with a rifle. The three cubs were OK.
Maryland has approximately 2,000 bears in the state’s westernmost counties.
Heck, New Jersey has over 5,000! In fact there have been all kinds of recent bear sightings about two miles from me.
–Brad K. also relayed the story of college cross-country runner Justin DeLuzio, who is one lucky dude. As reported by Dave Burke for Mailonline:
“The athlete was competing for Gwynedd Mercy University in Pennsylvania on Saturday when he was bizarrely sent flying by a deer that ran into his path.
“He was in a group at the NCAA Division III Mideast Regional Cross Country Championships in Center Valley when four deer dashed in front of him.
“Video taken from someone in the crowd shows the moment one knocked him down.
“His teammate, Matt French, stopped to help him up and ran with him for the rest of the race.
“The collision left DeLuzio with a bruised hip, but he said it could have been much worse.
“ ‘I turn my head a little bit to the left and he comes right there. He knocked me down pretty good,’ DeLuzio told NBC10.”
I’ll tell you…while I haven’t had an encounter with a bear, I’ve had deer run right out in front of me and talk about scaring the [crap] out of you. Some of these giant rats are massive.
–Here is a gruesome tale from BBC News:
“The remains of a man who died in a hot spring accident in Yellowstone National Park were dissolved before they could be recovered, it has emerged.
“Colin Scott, 23, died in June in an illegal attempt to soak, or ‘hot pot,’ in the U.S. park’s thermal pools.
“The accident was recorded by the victim’s sister on her mobile phone, the incident report says.
“The grisly details came to light following a freedom-of-information request by local television news.”
Park officials said there is an enclosure in place to protect people from doing what this guy did, but the pair had gone off the trail, looking for a spot to soak, despite all the potential danger and warning signs.
“Rescue teams later found his body in the pool but abandoned attempts to retrieve it due to the decreasing light available, the danger to themselves and an approaching lightning storm.
“The following day, workers were unable to find any significant remains in the boiling water….
“The area of the park where the accident took place is on the edge of the famous Yellowstone caldera, a ‘supervolcano’ or ‘hotspot.’”
This is the very place that many experts believe will one day blow in a “cataclysmic” eruption that could change global climate for decades, seriously, though “experts at the U.S. Geological Survey say “the chances of this sort of eruption at Yellowstone are exceedingly small in the next few thousands of years.”
–From the New York Daily News:
“Kanye West ditched a concert packed with more than 13,000 fans in Sacramento, Calif., late Saturday after unleashing a lengthy tirade bashing Beyonce and Jay Z.
“ ‘Get ready to have a field day, press, because the show’s over,’ the Yeezy star said, dropping the hot microphone at the Golden I Center.
“Irked fans who dropped as much as $250 on the ‘Saint Pablo Tour’ filed out of the venue chanting and cursing the rapper’s name, according to the Sacramento Bee.
“Among their grievances, fans waited more than an hour for the ‘Famous’ hip-hop artist to go on stage. And when he did, he performed three songs – repeating one – and bolted after firing up an explicit rant suggesting queen Bey’s ‘Formation’ win at the MTV Video Music Awards was rigged.”
And then he asked Jay Z. not to send his “killers…at my head.”
Kanye was also booed when he reiterated his support for Donald Trump.
–Great “60 Minutes” segment on Bruno Mars tonight. I’ve always said I can’t understand those who don’t like the guy…or at least respect the hell out of him. He’s an entertainer, and a damn good one.
Top 3 songs for the week 11/25/78: #1 “MacArthur Park” (Donna Summer…dreadful, but not nearly as bad as the Richard Harris version…) #2 “Double Vision” (Foreigner…another truly awful song…) #3 “How Much I Feel” (Ambrosia…whatever…) …and…#4 “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers” (Barbra & Neil…whiners at Yale…) #5 “You Needed Me” (Anne Murray…my mom’s least favorite singer…) #6 “Le Freak” (Chic…this week is beyond repair…) #7 “I Just Wanna Stop” (Gino Vannelli…eh…) #8 “I Love The Nightlife (Disco ‘Round)” (Alicia Bridges) #9 “Time Passages” (Al Stewart…interminable …do do do doooo….) #10 “You Never Done It Like That” (Captain & Tennille …sucks…I was wrapping up the fall semester of my junior year…barely hanging on…but beer intake was up to speed and at the end of the day, boys and girls….)
Chicago Bears Quiz Answers: 1) Only two with 14,000 yards passing: Jay Cutler, 23,191 entering Sunday (2009-16); Sid Luckman, 14,686 (1939-50). [Pretty pathetic. Jim Harbaugh is third with 11,567.] 2) Only two to rush for 6,000 yards aside from Walter Payton: Matt Forte, 8,602 (2008-15); Neal Anderson, 6,166 (1986-93). 3) Single-season leader in receptions: Brandon Marshall, 118 (2012).
Next Bar Chat, Thursday.
