Yay! Blog! v2.0
Category: Sports

Note: This is a recycled entry from July, 2005. I remembered another memorable moment.

I'm doing this sports meme completely from my spotty memory since it's about memorable sports moments. Found at Sheila's through Rob.

1. That time that Arizona State beat Nebraska 19-0. Na Na Na... 19-0!!!
2. Later that year when Texas beat Nebraska. Twice, I think. Once in regular season and once for the Big XII Championship. I could be wrong. That's my memory, though, and I'm sticking to it. [I'm told by Irish Bruce that they didn't beat Nebraska twice in one year. Meh.]
3. That time when the Titans almost won the Super Bowl because they had a weird sideways pass that got them just short of the goal line in the last few seconds, but then they didn't get it over the line. I think it was the Super Bowl. And maybe they were the Oilers back then. It wasn't a happy memory, and I don't remember who they were playing.
4. The pass (if you can call it that) Chris Simms threw against Oklahoma that looked more like he saw a booger on the ball and wanted to get it away from him as quickly as possible. Not a happy memory.
5. That time Arizona State was playing in the Rose Bowl and Jake Plummer did his magic to put them ahead in the last minute or so of the game. Then Joe Germaine and David Boston ruined it with their own magic. Not a happy memory.
6. When Ricky Williams broke the NCAA rushing record. I cried.
7. When the Houston Texans beat the Dallas Cowboys in their first game ever. YEAH!!!

That's all the memories I can summon this Thursday morning. I think I remember Phil Mikelson winning a big golf tournament once, but since I can't flesh it out, I'll let that one go. And now he's won two big ones!

My favorite golfer finally won his second major. Go Phil!

Senator Jeff Wentworth filed a bill in the Texas Legislature today that would prohibit Texas NCAA football teams from participating in bowl games unless a national playoff system is instituted. There's a failsafe in the bill, though, so Texas wouldn't be the only teams left out. Four other big football states must enact similar laws by December 1st or this law would expire. The big football states are: Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina and Washington.

The bill says the playoff system must have...

...at least 16 teams competing in successive elimination games resulting in a final game for the national championship of that entire division or level of intercollegiate competition.

How funny is that? Just think if four other states enact a law by December 1st. There wouldn't be time to institute a playoff system this year. Crazy.

This is just a bill... not law yet. There are a lot of hoops it has to jump through before it's law. Kinda like Schoolhouse Rock Bill.

I saw this at Austin American Statesman.

Here's the actual text of the bill.

I've got my life back (such that it is). No more watching baseball 'til late every night. Instead, I'll go back to cursing the fact that baseball is taking up sports conversations during football season.

If I were to continue watching, though, I wouldn't know who to root for. My momma's philosophy was always to root for the team that beat you. She would want the Cardinals to win the World Series so she could say the Astros got knocked out by the champions.

But I spent the last couple of weeks pulling for the Red Sox. Plus there's that curse thing where they haven't won a World Series in 3000 years or something. That would be something if they won. Then again, being a fair-weather Astros fan, the thought crosses my mind... "at least they got to the World Series."

Doesn't matter... baseball is so over. Bring on Chad Pennington, Eric Ainge, David Carr and the Manning boys!!

My momma loved the Astros. She used to watch all the games from her desk in the living room of our house. She'd sit and paint ceramics or stitch Christmas stockings or work on her direct mail order typing jobs and watch the Astros play. She was heart broken the year (or more?) that baseball went on strike. She'd be so happy to know the Astros are a series away from the World Series.

Being a fair-weathered Astros baseball fan, I decided to watch the Astros/Cardinals game tonight after I watched "Lost." After two innings, I remembered why I don't like baseball. It's mostly because of me... I can't keep up with the number of balls and strikes and outs. I know I can just look at the handy information graphic, but I still have a hard time. Does 0-1 mean 0 strikes and 1 ball or 0 balls and 1 strike. Don't bother answering... I won't remember. With football, I can keep up... there are 4 downs and there's a fake line "painted" on the field where the first down marker is. Whoever invented that fake line is a genius!

I also can't tell if it's a ball or strike half the time. I wish the announcers would say "strike" or "ball." It seems everyone knows but me. Even the people sitting in the stadium half a mile away!

Then sometimes the batter swings, and it doesn't look like he hit the ball because the ball goes to the catcher, but the batter takes off running anyway. What's that about? I don't remember that happening when I was a kid. And sometimes a foul is a strike and sometimes it's not.

And what is it about baseball that makes the players mouths water so much. *spit*

So I think I'll just keep baseball on in the background and look at the score every once in a while. It's too frustrating actually watching.

Go Astros!!

This weekend was a great football weekend for me. I won $80 in a college football pool. I tied with someone for first place out of 51 people. Last year I didn't win a dime.

All four of my favorite teams won. The UT Longhorns and ASU Sun Devils are undefeated. The Houston Texans won two in a row for the first time in franchise history (that's what the commentators say... like there's this long history there). And the Arizona Cardinals won. Emmitt Smith has a perfect passing rating... one attempt, one completion and one touchdown. I bet Irish Bruce $5 at work that Emmitt is the only NFL player with a record like that, but I lost. Jack Losch from the Green Bay Packers did it, too.

This week is the Red River Shootout. Hook 'em Horns!

In baseball news... I just found out this morning that the Astros are in the playoffs. I'm a fair-weathered baseball fan. I only like it when the Astros get past the first round of the playoffs. So Go Astros!

How ironic that Reliant Stadium had a power outage during the Texan/Charger game. "Reliant" is the power company there in Houston. Go Texans!!

Edit: Right after I posted this, Houston fumbled. Game over. *pffft*

A University of Texas student breaks a world record...

Chopsticks of Fury

My friend Mick's cousin Niall Griffin carried the Irish flag in the 2004 Olympic Summer Games opening ceremony. According to a commentator at the Olympics, he turned 27 the day before the opening ceremony. I saw him compete today in the Jumping part of the Equestrian event. That's my favorite part of Equestrian. Except for how all the instant replays show the horses knocking down things. How about some instant replays of *good* jumps.

Happy Birthday, Niall, and congratulations on being an Olympian!

I just finished watching United States win the Men's 4x200m Freestyle Relay by .13 seconds. Whooot!! That was exciting. Most of the events so far had been spoiled because I'd heard the results before I watched. But now I'm trying harder not to hear results during the day.

I'm watching the women's gymnastics team competition now. The rules are so strict this year... they take all the scores, so there's no room for mistakes. I don't like that so much. I'm a softy... I'd rather have less strict rules. The four events:

• Vault: I like vault okay, but it's so fast. I can barely see what they do until the slow replay. The only thing I can really judge is the stuck landing. I thought vault was fun when I was in school. I never flipped over it, though. I only jumped over with my legs to the side. Some girls could jump over it doing the splits, but I never could do splits.
• Floor Exercise: It's fun to watch. I've never successfully done a cartwheel in my life. Not even a roundoff.
• Balance Beam: The beam scares the pee out of me. Even just watching other people do it.
• Uneven Parallel Bars: I always thought this would be one of the funnest things in the world. And watching a real flexible gymnast fly around those bars with a lot of momentum is a beautiful thing. I tried playing around on the uneven bars one time, and it was much more difficult than I expected. I'm not sure I got around one bar one time even with a spotter.

Maybe I'll come back in my next life and go the gymnast track of extracurricular activities. Then again... if they make me get on that balance beam...

Back in 1996, I started watching college football with a passion. My favorite team that year was Arizona State University. Pat Tillman was one of my favorite players. He was a safety. I remember fondly his hair streaming out from under his helmet. He went on to play for the Arizona Cardinals.

He died in Afghanistan last night. He was 27 years old. He walked away from millions of dollars to go fight for our world to be free from terrorism. Now... I don't want to get into the politics of war. This is about a man who went to do what he believed was right. He volunteered. And he died.

Rest in Peace.

Arizona Cardinals