They are everywhere!

Study the picture and tell me what you see.
This picture was taken in a Chinese restaurant in dountown Cleveland over Christmas. There should be NO ORANGE HATS in that area. Gosh. I can't get away from them!

Vanderbilt 2006

VUCommodores.com has a great list of Vanderbilt's top-10 moments in 2006. It's a little sad that the bowling team landed at number five, but there are some great achievements, too. It's amazing to see basketball player Mike Meyer saving fellow hoopster Davis Nwankoo's life making the list, although I imagine it is number one rather than number nine to Nwankoo. Nonetheless, that is an accomplishment to be thankful for as we approach 2007. Go Dores!!

Colt = TD

Hey Chris,

Don't you wish you had taken Hawaii instead of ASU this year? The hat would be Brandon's if you did.

I told my bro-in-law the Warriors would score close to 50 points. When they only had 3 at half, I told him not to worry and that they would turn it on.

HONOLULU - The largest crowd in Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl history (43,435) saw Hawai'i score 38 second-half points to defeat Arizona State, 41-24, Christmas Eve at Aloha Stadium. The win gave the Warriors their 11th victory of the season, tying a school record set in 1992. http://uhathletics.hawaii.edu/recap.html?rid=14753&p=3

Dudley Field

Here's a great history page with details about Dudley Field. The photo above looks a lot different than the current view from West End Avenue. Wow. Go Dores!!

All Vandy wants for Christmas is...

Here's one Commodore's take on Vandy's Christmas wish list. I wholeheartedly agree with number one (below), a renovated and improved Dudley Field, because it is sorely needed and will help with number two:

We don't need a huge stadium. We need a stadium that is state of the art and comfortable for both fans and players. Let's renovate Vanderbilt stadium and make it second to none in quality and appearance, like the rest of the university.

I'd love to see Dudley downsized to about 35,000 and those awful metal benches replaced with plastic seatbacks. I'd also love to see the pressbox and stadium exterior covered in brick. Here's hoping 2007 is a banner year for Vanderbilt, especially football.

Gators Whip Buckeyes

Sorry, Coach Bando! It's all over but the shouting after Coach Rob's Florida Gators pounded your Ohio State Buckeyes yesterday. Oh wait, that was on the basketball court. Could it be an omen for January 8th??

Pre Game Activity

It was obvious that the boys from Eugene took in the sights and sounds of Vegas for their pre-game activity while the Mormons took in Bible study and bed check. BYU embarrased Oregon in Vegas last night. What was more humiliating? The ugly loss or Oregon's new ugly helmets?

We'll take it

Yesterday's Titans win was a lot of fun, but Woody and I still can't figure out how they won. Oh yeah, turnovers. In a game where Jacksonville outgained Tennessee by nearly 300 yards (roughly 390 to 99), all that mattered were the three turnovers returned by the Titans for touchdowns.

The Freak

Woody and I spotted a serious rat-tail, straight out of 1985, at yesterday's Titans game. You've been warned. ;)

Rob's Favorite Coach (can you guess who it is?)

Tomahawk chopped

Dismayed at his university's role in earning Coach Woody the dreaded hat this season, Florida State President T.K. Wetherell is boycotting the Seminoles' next game, the Emerald Bowl against UCLA:

"I'll watch it on TV like everyone else. It's kind of making a statement," Wetherell said. Asked if he'll be criticized for not standing by the team, he said, "If you go, you're damned if you do. If you don't, you're damned too."

OK, he's not really boycotting, but it's still interesting to see how many FSU representatives will not be making the trip to Seattle.

Bama coaching job on Craigslist

They must be really desperate. There's a posting for Alabama's coaching job on Craigslist.

http://photos1.blogger.com/x/blogger/4408/1694/1600/587702/alabama_craigslist.jpg

Airport strikes Heisman pose with Smith's trophy

No word on whether the Buckeye QB was allowed to bring a Coca-Cola or a pair of tweezers on board:

Troy Smith's Heisman Trophy was shipped home because airport security would not allow the Ohio State quarterback to take it on the plane Tuesday.

Take a wild guess

This media report isn't talking about the Iron Bowl or the BCS Championship Game. Care to take a guess, coaches, before you take a look?

We have a game that's scheduled and we're going to play it. We have good people and I think everyone understands what happened can't happen again. The game will be played.

Re-ti-re...

...please.

Joe Paterno arrived at Beaver Stadium in a wheelchair Thursday to talk about Penn State's trip to the Outback Bowl and was greeted by photographers snapping pictures...

And he's got no plans to step away from coaching. He turns 80 on Dec. 21.

"I'm not looking for it to being a problem. If it turns out being a problem, then obviously I'll back away and re-evaluate my situation," he said. "Right now, I'm planning to do exactly what I planned to do before I got injured."

Sigh.

Mike Stoops to Miami?

This would be a good move for the 'Canes, if you ask me:

In his third year at Zona, Stoops brought the team to 6-6 with signature wins over Cal and Oregon. He has signed back-to-back top 25 classes for the Wildcats, who have played second fiddle to Arizona State for a while.

Arizona has shown improvement each year under Stoops. The Wildcats won three games in 2004 and improved on total defense by more than 100 yards a game and cut 10 yards off its scoring rate. They won three games again in 2005 including an upset victory over UCLA before jumping up to six victories this season as Stoops' recruiting began to make an impact.

Off the field, he has helped raise attendance at Arizona games by more than 8,000 fans a game to over the 50,000 level.

Albom on the non-rematch

Here's a couple segments from the Mitch Album column this morning. Mitch always does a good job about keeping things unbiased, and I agree with a lot of his points in the entire article, not because I selfishly want to see Michigan in the title game. If voters think Michigan is #2, then you HAVE to put them in the BCS title game. If they honestly think Florida is #2, then fine, I don't have a problem with that and they should be in the title game. However, I do have a problem if people ONLY voted UF #2 because they didn't want to see a rematch, that's wrong. The BCS (as much as people don't like it) is to put the #1 and 2 teams together.
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061204/SPORTS06/612040363/1048/SPORTS

"You can spin this thing any way you want. It was strictly about fresh versus familiar. In the end, Ohio State will play Florida on Jan. 8 in Glendale, Ariz., because people with votes want to see that game more than they want to see a rematch of Michigan-Ohio State. This was all about the line of thinking that says: "Give someone else a chance."
But if the system were about giving everyone a chance, they wouldn't call it a poll, they'd call it a donkey ride."

"Michigan, having not touched a football in two weeks, has to wonder why it was dropped -- while Florida was vaulted. Michigan has to wonder how losing on the road to the only team ranked ahead of it -- and losing by three points -- is somehow less worthy than Florida losing by 10 points to Auburn, a team not even in the final Top 10."

Speaking of donkey's, that's what I think of Gary Danielson and his announcing of the SEC game. I thought announcers were supposed to be biased during a game. I was about to scream if I heard Gary say one more time why voters had to vote Florida ahead of Michigan.

So now, who do I pull for in the title game? Dare I say it, but Ohio State IN A BLOW OUT. Come on Buckeyes! I don't care if it costs me an extra $10.

FP Finale

According to several sources, Coach Bando's Ohio State Buckeyes will face Coach Rob's Florida Gators, not Coach GQ's Michigan Wolverines, in the BCS Championship game on January 8. Let the hype begin.

Woody lands the hat

In a gut-wrenching emotional roller coaster of a finish, Coach Bando's West Virginia Mountaineers have eked past Coach Woody's adopted Rutgers Scarlet Knights 41-39 in triple OT. Your 2007 hat bearer is Coach Woody.

GQ, let us know who wins the Coltfest. Good night, coaches!!

West Virginia answers

We're headed to double OT, a first for the FP. Oh, the humanity!!

Rutgers holds

The Scarlet Knights have held the Mountaineers to a field goal. West Virginia and Bando now lead 26-23, but Rutgers and Woody have the momentum and the ball.

O, wow!

That's "O" as in OT. For the second time in FP history, the deciding game for the hat bearer hasn't been settled in regulation. Rutgers missed a go-ahead field goal with seconds left, and both teams (and coaches) are still alive in their quests to escape the hated headgear. Rutgers has won the toss, but who will win the game??

Rutgers edges ahead

With 3:55 left in the game, Coach Woody's new favorite team, Rutgers, has pulled ahead of West Virginia 23-20. The hat doesn't know what to think with plenty of time left for Coach Bando and West Virginia to rally, but it does know this: Rutgers left a sure touchdown on the field after a dropped pass in the end zone and settled for three points. Will it cost them the game and cost Woody the headgear? We shall see shortly.

Taco time?

Not yet. It may not matter much right now, but Coach GQ's other wife, Hawaii QB Colt Brennan (above), is warming up way out West as the taco title tilt continues. With Arkansas' loss today, Coach GQ's Warriors could possibly sneak past Coach Rob's Hogs with a big win tonight (tomorrow morning, really) and the right results for both teams (a win and a loss, respectively) in their upcoming bowl games. It matters little with so much on the line right now, but GQ is already sitting on the couch with his Hawaii teddy bear in his arms. Q, the game doesn't start until midnight!

These two coaches...

... aren't sweating half as much as Coach Bando and Coach Woody. Midway through the fourth quarter, West Virginia and Rutgers are tied 20-20. The hat is split right down the middle, and there won't be a Solomon solution this time: One coach will wear the dreaded hat, but we don't know any more about which one it will be than we did three hours ago.

Now what?

Chris Leak (right) and Coach Rob's Florida Gators survived a rocky third quarter to take out the Arkansas Razorbacks 38-28 tonight in Atlanta. Was it enough, after squandering a 17-0 lead, for the Gators to eke out a championship game berth over Coach GQ's Michigan Wolverines? We'll know tomorrow night.

This is what happens...

...when you lose the LSU-fan version of the FP.

Down to the wire

The most important fourth quarter of the season has arrived. Coach Bando and West Virginia lead Coach Woody's adopted Rutgers Scarlet Knights 20-17 heading into the final regulation frame. The Mountaineers have the lead, and they got the better end of a controversial non-fumble call that may have prevented a Rutgers touchdown. We'll see if it matters as the game nears its conclusion.

Halfway to the hat

At halftime, Coach Woody's adopted Rutgers Scarlet Knights lead Coach Bando's West Virginia Mountaineers 10-6. As Bando would say, though, "There's time!" Plenty of it.

U C no way...

... that Coach Rob will receive money from his USC Trojans after the Bruins pulled a shocking 13-9 upset today, throwing the FP and the BCS into chaos. Ouch, but will it be GQ's Michigan Wolverines or Rob's Florida Gators who get the shot at Ohio State come January?

One-game season

It all comes down to one last FP battle tonight. With Louisville crushing UConn today and TCU doing the same to Air Force in the fourth quarter, the dreaded hat has indeed come down to the Rutgers-West Virginia game tonight.

Don't be fooled by the photo above: Friendships are officially on hold until tomorrow, and anything can happen. ABC's Craig James and Doug Flutie are picking the Scarlet Knights (and Woody) to take down the Mountaineers, but the point spread suggests West Virginia (and Bando) will win out. We'll know the final score--and the hat bearer--shortly. Stay tuned!

Cap clash: Rutgers at West Virginia

Most likely, three months worth of matchups are all going to come down to a single 60-minute game on Saturday. Coach Woody is expected to win his final two games during the day, leaving Coach Bando with one last game to escape the dreaded hat. West Virginia (9-2) hosts Rutgers (10-1) in a game that is tough to call, especially in a pretty WAC-ky Big East.

West Virginia has seen a season of high expectations fade in the wake of losses to a stout Louisville squad and an upstart South Florida team this month. Saturday's game isn't likely to alter the Mountaineers' bowl destination unless Louisville stumbles against UConn, and the 'Neers will know that result well before kickoff. Will they mail it in if they have no hope of landing in the BCS?

Rutgers, the Vandy of the Big East before there ever was a Big East, has had a miracle season and has its hopes on a BCS berth with a win against West Virginia. An upset loss to Cincinnati has diminished the enthusiasm in New Jersey of late, but no one's doubting that the Knights are a talented team. Ray Rice is a force at tailback, and he will have to carry the load on offense for a team with a big question mark at QB. On the offensive and defensive lines, Rutgers is a smash mouth physical team, one that should give the Mountaineers plenty to worry about.

This battle will likely come down to whether West Virginia's powerful run defense can stop Rice and company. It won't help Woody's cause that Morgantown is a tough place to play.

West Virginia is an eight-point favorite heading into the game. On paper, the 'Neers should win this one, but it's hard to bet against the Knights after the year they've had. Here's hoping for six OTs and plenty of thrills as the FP basement brouhaha goes down to and past the wire.

Good luck coaches! May the best man (or Bando) win! :-)