Bowl Match-Ups: The Good & Bad

The BCS is solely designed to match the top two teams in the championship game. After that, the BSC bowls draft teams, with consideration for conference commitments and (more importantly) ticket sales. Matching two highly ranked teams is of secondary importance.

The best match-ups, based on lowest BSC rank and total number of wins, is somewhat surprising:

24…BCS (3) LSU vs Alabama

22…Fiesta (7) Oklahoma State vs Stanford

22…Rose (15) Oregon vs Wisconsin

20…Cotton (18) Arkansas vs Kansas State

20…Outback (20) Georgia vs Michigan State

21…Sugar (30) Michigan vs Virginia Tech

19…Capital One (31) South Carolina vs Nebraska

19…Orange (37) Clemson vs West Virginia

21…Ticket City (44) Houston vs Penn State

20…GoDaddy.com: Northern Illinois vs Arkansas State

The only other post-New Year’s game is the Gator Bowl, which managed an attractive matchup based on Urban Meyer: the former Gator coach freshly hired by the Buckeyes. This overshadows the mundane 6-6 record of each team. Three other bowls match six-win teams: Meineke, Fight Hunger, and Music City. In addition to these eight six-win teams, another five bowl teams managed only six wins: Vandy, Iowa State, Purdue, Arizona State, and Marshall.

12…Gator: Florida vs Ohio State

12…Music City: Wake Forest vs Mississippi State

The Chickfila Bowl’s magical run of highly ranked matchups ended this year. Often thought of as the best non-BCS and/or non-New Years Bowl, the CFA lost out on highly ranked teams from both its conference affiliates. UGA headed to sunny Florida. SC was last year’s SEC representative. Arkansas opted for the Cotton Bowl, who secured higher-ranked teams than two BCS teams. With its move to Jerry-World, the Cotton Bowl has positioned itself as the front-runner as the next BCS bowl in-waiting.

No New Years Eve Bowl is fielding a ranked team, though six earlier bowls landed one. Ten pre-New Years Eve bowls have win totals higher than the five December 31 bowl games. UCLA managed a New Years Eve bowl bid, despite having a losing record.

15…Chickfila: Virginia vs Auburn

15…Sun: Georgia Tech vs Utah

14…Liberty: Vandy vs Cincinnati

12…Meineke: Northwestern vs Texas A&M

12…Fight Hunger: UCLA vs Illinois

Trivia Night # 3

Will and I arrived at Land of a Thousand Hills close to the starting time this past Thursday to find the place packed: there were a record ten teams competing. Soon thereafter the front door opened, and in walked Joel…followed by Becky, Charles, and Willis. Surely this week we would have a competitive team. We at least had to beat “The Foxy Four”…a team of young Pope High coeds.

1. Which star of Grease had a career revival with the movie Pulp Fiction? This one I knew right off the bat: John Travolta. Five points.

2. Narcolepsy is a sudden attack of? Joel immediately knew this answer…SLEEP. He remembered the YouTube videos of goats. Three points.

3. In British slang, what does “knackered” mean? During our discussion, Willis thought it meant “tired.” He was OK with my answer: Drunk. Willis was right. Zero points.

4. What instrument of torture had a hinged instrument of spikes? We really didn’t know the names of many torture devises, except “cat’o nine tails.” I remembered the joke from the movie “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure” and suggested Iron Maiden…and was right! Alas, we’d only wagered one point.

5. On Sunscreen, what does SPF stand for? I thought Becky’s incorrect answer was submitted, but somehow we were credited with five points. Sun Protection Factor (not Skin).

6. In what city did Jim Morrison die? I knew it was in Europe, so we guessed London. It was PARIS.

7. In what country are the most divers attacked by sharks? We used Willis’ answer: Australia. During our discussion I wondered if the obvious answer was correct. I was…the USA was the correct answer.

8. Coffee is the second most traded commodity. What is the first? Joel thought it was Rice. Wrong! it was OIL. Afterwards Becky said that was her answer.

9. What Georgia college has the world’s largest campus? Willis’ face brightened. “Bryan!” he exclaimed. Joel and I knew what he meant: BERRY. Five points. After getting 4 of the first 5 correct, we missed three of the next four. Amazingly, we finished the first half in second place.

Halftime Question: Name the capitals…

...Spain…Madrid (right)

...Turkey…Ankara (we said Istanbul)

...Peru…Lima (right)

...India…New Delhi (we said Bombay)

...Kenya…Nairobi (right)

10. Which month’s birthstone is Opal? We tried to eliminate as many months as we could, but we didn’t guess OCTOBER.

11. The Fresh Prince of Bellaire: what was his butler’s name? Will and Joel both knew: JEFFREY. Six points.

12. What year was the Nintendo Wii introduced? 2006. Our guess was one year off.

13. What was the first US city to operate a subway? We narrowed it down to New York and Washington. During the discussion, I wondered if it could be Boston. We answered NYC. It was Boston.

14. What singer from the 70’s changed his name to Yusef Islam? We had no idea. It was Cat Stevens.

15. Cashmere comes from what animal? We guessed Sheep. It was Goat.

16. Dinger, a purple triceratops, is the mascot for which MLB team? Will was pretty sure it was the Colorado Rockies, and it was. Six points.

17. Which country has more active volcanoes than any other? Willis knew: Indonesia. Two points.

18. What person has won the most Academy Awards? Streep? Newman? Hepburn? No, no, no. WALT DISNEY. Despite missing 6 of the 9 second round questions, we were still tied for third. Emcee Erin must like Joel or Will.

Final Question: According to the FDA, what were the five most consumed raw fruits in 2011? Avocado is one of the five. We guessed Apple and Banana (both right). We missed on Cantaloupe and Grapefruit.

Dr Spacetime won, with 68 points. The Grindelows also aced the final question, taking second with 65 points. Our 50 placed us fourth. We beat six teams, including the Foxy Four, who managed 19 points.

Matthew's Season Opener

Saturday afternoon Matthew’s Red team lost their first game of the season. M did well, gabbing six rebounds.

The opposing Blue team took the first shot of the game, and Matthew got the first rebound of the season. The Blues had their two best players on the court, two boys that Will had scrimmaged Monday night, while M’s Red team was practicing. The Blue boys kept stealing the ball, and quickly ran up a 12-0 score after the first five minutes.

The game’s momentum turned after the subs came in when the Honey Badger, the Reds point guard, took control. He and Big Chris quickly staged a 14-0 run, giving the Reds the lead at the end of the first quarter.

Matthew started and played the entire second quarter. He grabbed two rebounds and barely missed a shot. Mixing up their lineup, the Blues only scored a single basket before subbing out halfway through the quarter. The Honey Badger again rallied the Reds, who outscored the Blues 4-2, leaving the score tied at the half. Doing his part, M grabbed another rebound.

The Reds weren’t able to keep pace, as the Blues went on runs of 8-0 and 4-2 in the third quarter. In the fourth quarter the Reds outscored the Blues 10-9, making the final score a respectable 39-30. Matthew grabbed a rebound in both the third and fourth quarter, giving him six for the game.

QTR…….1………..H………..3………...F

R…..0…14…14…18…18…20…27…30

B…12…12…16…18…26…30…38…39

Chris’s mom kept score, and was concerned that the referees had called the game one way. It appeared to me that neither team was called for many fouls. One Blues player camped out in the lane, but three seconds wasn’t called until the fourth quarter. Chris was one of few players whistled with a foul, but only one, as far as I can remember. I enjoyed chatting with Chris’ grandfather, who had grown up playing basketball in Indiana.

Matthew’s Marine sergeant coach broke out a red USMC cap to match the jerseys. Older than me, he wore the cap backwards. Due to the Christmas break, the next game isn’t until January 7th.

The Reds, in order of contribution:

Honey Badger…took too many outside shots in second half.

Big Chris…dominated inside, but often stayed outside.

Young Kobe…helped with the ballhanding

Smiling Jack…made one basket, and several steals

Blondie…took several shots

Matthew…played more than HB or Chris

Little Joe…moved well without the ball

Manchurian Candidate…several turnovers

Life With the Normans

Went to trivia Thursday night, and Land of a Thousand Hills Coffee was packed. Ten teams. Somehow we came in fourth. Our team was large, with Will and four Normans: Joel, Charles, Willis, and Becky. Willis graduates from Toccoa Falls College this spring.

Ceil drove to Rock Hill Friday, for her mom’s gallstone surgery. Used the new GPS. Hope she can return Sunday, or I may miss part of Monday. M is spending the day at the Normans, being tutored by Becky.

Will is leaving to spend the weekend at Rock Eagle, at a 4H retreat. This morning he practiced with Charles’ home-school basketball team.

We rented a movie...the last Harry Potter. M’s first basketball game is Saturday. He also has schoolwork to complete.

My Heisman Vote

How I would vote for the Heisman Trophy:

1. Stanford QB: Andrew Luck: Should’ve won the award last year. Had a fine 2011 season. Besides highlights, I watched most of his game against Oregon. Last year he passed up being a top NFL pick to return for his senior year, which scores points in my book.

2. Baylor QB Robert Griffin III: Exciting. Excellent student. Set the NCAA record for passing efficiency. Also averaged over 70 yards per game rushing. Elevated his team, both on and off the field. Also a world class track athlete. I watched bits of a couple of Baylor games, including Texas. A very close second.

3. Alabama RB Trent Richardson: the most talented RB in the nation, but just another cog in the Crimson Tide machine. Another junior. I saw him in action against LSU and Auburn.

4. Boise State QB Kellen Moore: A senior, Moore has compiled one great season after another, despite being slight of stature.

5. LSU DB/KR Tyrann “Honey Badger” Mathieu: Only a sophomore, his nickname has undoubtedly helped elevate his status as an elite defensive player. I watched LSU’s games against Alabama, Arkansas, and Georgia.

6. Wisconsin RB Montee Ball: great stats, first as a sophomore sharing the load, then this year as the featured back. Along with transfer QB Russell Wilson, he led the Badgers to the Rose Bowl. Racked up the Midwest vote to become a finalist as a junior. Should be a leading candidate again next year.

7. Houston QB Case Keenum: great body of work, though he mostly played against lesser competition. Offensive system helped pad his stats. I watched some of Houston’s loss to Southern Miss.

8. OK State QB Brandon Weeden: as the record-breaking QB of a high profile program, the redshirt senior couldn’t quite lead the Cowboys to the big roundup. I watched the fateful loss to Iowa State.

9. Michigan QB Denard “Shoelace” Robinson: The junior was so good that his new head coach eventually tailored the system for him. I watched several Michigan games, including Notre Dame and Ohio State.

10. USC QB Matt Barkley: Junior. Good student. Devout Christian. Played at Andrew Luck’s level this year. Its gotten harder and harder to succeed in the position he’s in. I saw some of the Stanford game.

I didn’t do tons of research, actually I did no research at all. I’d be the first one to say that the player’s year should not matter: while their “body of work” still matters, the Heisman should go to the player having the best season. Should two players have great years, the player with the better college career should win out. Thus Luck trumps RGIII.

Kruck

Not long ago co-worker Steve celebrated his 20th work anniversary. His boss made a decent speech, telling how years ago he’d hired him down in Jacksonville. When his corporate quality job went away, his boss thought enough of him to bring him back on his purchasing staff, even though he didn’t have an open position. Over the years we’d played fantasy football together, and occasionally lunched together. At the celebration an anticlimactic air hung over the room, for some unknown reason. At one recent lunch Steve shared his dismay that the good old days were gone, when the office was filled with employees with decades of service. This week he gave notice: he’s going to work for a vendor. Hope it works out well for him.

Ceil’s dad is still in the hospital. Wednesday night Ceil’s mother fell ill, and they had to admit her. Gallstones. Ceil may need to go back.

Johnny Pierce, my Braves batting practice friend from Macon who writes for a Baptist publication, is having a recent article admitted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. Though its doubtful the article will ever be displayed, its still a huge honor for a big fan like him. His basement is pretty much a smaller version of the HOF.

Bought a Philadelphia 76ers Dr. J jersey Wednesday night. Will loved it. This past weekend I saw several throwbacks for sale over near the Big Chicken, but they were priced too high. There was a Chicago White Sox Frank Thomas jersey, and a lime green Pete Maravich Hawks jersey. I have long coveted that Maravich jersey, but I just couldn’t fork over the money for it.

A and M like the HP movies. I’ve watched bits and pieces, just enough to tolerate it. Not my genre. Neither was Avatar. Recently they rented Transformers…robots fighting each other. I couldn’t tell the good guy robots from the bad guy robots. Most of the comedies are so crude, and not really funny. I’m hearing good things about Super 8, which recently came out on video. Kids battle aliens. By Spielberg.

My iPhone is fully operational, except it transferred over the contacts from my work computer, which I rarely use. Had to go through and clean those up, and transfer any of the 200 contacts from my old phone. I’ll do a letter a day…today was C. When I tried to update my contacts I wound up duplicating them.

On the way home from work Tuesday I bought a protective case for the phone. Also swung by the library and WalMart. When I walked in the door Will exclaimed “The iPhone is home!” The kids all fight over playing with it, even though they have phones/iPods/iPads. Will downloaded a few apps, and Anna tried to fix the cover that Will had messed up. I’m still looking forward to downloading books on it.

Tuesday night we had spaghetti, spinach, and grilled squash. Everyone had schoolwork, so I cleaned up and edited Anna’s paper.

Quote of the Day

“Trying to get everyone to like you is a sign of mediocrity” – Colin Powell.

This was Monday’s “Don’t Quote Me” puzzle in USA Today. Made me stop and think. This may have been me at one point, but I don’t think it’s me now.

Clarks Romme Boot

These are more what I'm looking for, thought they're out of my price range. Not crazy about the toe cap, though.

Me? In Boots?

I've been shopping around, with my eye on a pair of plain dark boots to wear with jeans like those cool musicians at Passion City Church. Not sure this cheapo pair from Payless would pull off that look. Haven't found any at a thrift store. A broken-in pair would have much more character.

Dabo to Bama? Eventually

We watched the SEC game, then the ACC game. Wild how Clemson woke up and played like they had earlier in the year. To me, that’s all coaching. When Nick Saban steps down, I wouldn’t be surprised if Alabama doesn’t call on Dabo. You heard it here first.

Friday Will had to drive from our house to Stone Mountain and back, then later to northern Cartersville, down to Kennesaw for a salsa dancing class, back to Cartersville, then home. Saturday he ground up leaves and but them in the flowerbeds. I cleaned the upstairs, did all the laundry, and bought Will a nice pair of golf shorts.

Walking into NP Sunday, along with a bulletin, I was handed a kazoo. To start the service, three musicians came out and played “The Nutcracker Suite” on tiny toy pianos, like Schroeder on A Charlie Brown Christmas. Later several more musicians came out, all with various toy musical instruments…including a tiny drum set. They played a Beach Boys Christmas song, then we all joined in on Joy to the World.

NP is having services Dec 23 at 6 pm, and Saturday Dec 24 at 9, 11, and 12:30 pm…nothing on the Christmas Day. Andy said he was prepared to get blasted by the media. In 2012 they’re adding a 6 pm service in Alpharetta. Buckhead Church already has a 6 pm service.

After church we used a BOGO coupon at CiCi’s. Much better than Thursday, but it was still CiCi’s. I let him off to walk the last mile home. Then I passed two kids with a sign: they were selling toys. Will had to walk past them, so he bought a little teddy bear for a dollar.

Watched Costas interview Neikro on the MLB Network. Later he interviewed the Lions’ Stafford and Johnson: the first UGA QB to throw a NFL TD pass to a GT receiver. We went down to Passion, and sat with Becky and Joel Norman. Ceil didn’t arrive home from Charlotte until 8 pm…about the same time we got home.

We watched the bowl selection shows as well. Doesn’t seem like anyone is happy with the process (or results). The BCS thinks that if people are talking about the system, then they’ve done their job.

My nephew’s team lost their state championship game, 10-0. Anna went to the game in Columbia, with her three cousins. C and M spent most of Friday and Saturday at the hospital. Her dad’s surgery went well, but was most extensive than they thought going in. He lost lots of blood and had lots of painkillers, so he wasn’t eating much. Still, he could go home Tuesday.

How Georgia Could've Won

Georgia could have beaten LSU, had they played a just a little more error-free football. Had just a few of the following few plays gone the other way, the outcome could’ve been quite different.

The Dawgs dropped at least six passes. Had they caught the two first-quarter touchdown passes, UGA would’ve led 21-0. Instead they were only up ten.

Heisman Trophy candidate Tyrann “Honey Badger” Mathieu scored on a spectacular 67 yard punt return, and another set up a second TD with another long return. The replay official admitted the TD should’ve been overturned, but he didn’t request to replay angle showing Mathieu flip the ball to the official BEFORE he crossed the goal line. Should’ve been a touchback, and Georgia’s ball. Had Georgia done a better job on special teams, they could’ve prevented two LSU touchdowns. So instead of 21-0 Georgia, LSU led 14-10.

In the third quarter Aaron Murray lost a fumble and threw an interception, setting up two short LSU touchdown drives. Take away these two turnovers, and UGA leads 21-0. Instead the Bayou Bengals lead 28-10.

Deflated, things got worse in the fourth quarter. Bulldog back Brandon Boykin missed several tackles, and fell down returning a kickoff (he did, however, make several nice plays). A horse-collar tackle negated a sack. Dawg defenders tried to strip the ball instead of tackle the ballcarrier. After a Drew Butler punt backed LSU up inside the ten, LSU continuously ran the ball up the middle, methodically breaking off runs for huge chunks of yardage. When Alfred Blue ran the final 48 yards practically untouched, Georgia free safety Bacarri Rambo hardly moved. Yet another preventable touchdown.

Many think Murray is Georgia’s savior, but I continue to have doubts: too many of his passes are floaters. His last pass of the day was overthrown, and Tiger DB Morris Claiborne easily covered the 45 yards for LSU’s final score. Another costly Bulldog mistake.

Announcers Vern Lundquist and Gary Danielson went out of their way to commend Georgia for their first half play. Even as LSU continued to build their second-half lead, they continued their praise of the SEC East Champions. As I rooted for the Dawgs, I felt these CBS announcers went out of their way to praise the Georgia. I saw where other UGA fans felt the announcers (and officials) were biased AGAINST Georgia. I don’t know what they were talking about.

Isaiah Crowell disappointed yet again, leading Bulldog coaches and fans to search all the more for high school backs to take his place. Despite hobbling on his injured ankle, Crowell was held in check by LSU’s vaunted defense. Crowell couldn’t bring down a wayward pass from Murray. But he negated a LSU pass interference penalty with an unsportsmanlike penalty, and another promising drive ended with a punt. As the broadcast showed Richt gently admonishing the freshman, Lundquist and Danielson spun the scene in Georgia’s favor: not all freshmen achieve maturity at the same time. They contrasted Crowell with fellow Dream Team recruit Malcolm Mitchell, who says “I’m a freshman. I don’t know anything.” Sunday night Richt was in the North Carolina home of Keith Marshall, the top running back recruit in the country.

The SEC Championship Game could’ve been billed as the battle of the NCAA’s two best punters. Both put on an eight punt show, with UGA’s Drew Butler narrowly besting LSU’s Brad Wing: 51.5 to 50.4. Guess Wing held the edge in net yards.

To their credit, ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit and David Pollock predicted that UGA would start strong and show well. But both felt LSU was too powerful for Georgia to hang with for sixty minutes. Lee Corso didn’t curse, though a sign remembering his slip of the tongue was quickly removed from view.

On a side note, the LSU band has joined the “Sweet Caroline” bandwagon. Not that there’s anything wrong with that (on a side-side note, last week Neil Diamond sang on NBC’s Lighting of the Rockefeller Center Tree. He’s moving slower than ever, and Anna quickly changed the channel).

Eight key plays led to the 42-10 final score: five by the offense and two on special teams. Under the conditions, Georgia’s defense played a whale of a game, not allowing a first half first down (a feat no other SEC team had achieved in over a decade). The Dawgs didn’t need all eight to go their way to win. Had the two passes been caught, the turnovers limited, and turn a few touchdowns into field goals, and Georgia could’ve actually won.

Bob Barker

I had an interesting evening Thursday. Worked a little late, then stopped by and shopped on the way home.

A hilarious “How I Met Your Mother” had Neil Patrick Harris going on “The Price is Right” because his mother told him that Bob Barker was his father. Harris aced the show, guessing every price to the dollar, winning both showcases. He’d run over to the camera and make faces, like a football player.

Met Will at “Land of a Thousand Hills” Coffee for Trivia Night. After his classes from 7 am to noon, he and George Ewing mowed seven yards in five hours. Then he fell asleep in the parking lot.

When trivia finally ended after 9 pm, we drove to CiCi’s Pizza for their special $2.00 buffet. Even at that late hour, the place was packed. Will must’ve been hungry from his long day, because he ate a lot. When we got home we watched National Treasure: Book of Secrets.

J Edgar looks good, especially since I’ve read a book or two about him.

Trivia Night 2

Thursday evening I joined Will at the Land of a Thousand Hills Coffee House for Trivia Night. This time the host was Erin, a 26 year-old St. Louis native. Before she began, Erin recruited a helper and performed a short rap ditty. There were six teams of mostly regular trivia buffs, pretty stiff competition.

In the first half Will and I got the first four questions right, then missed the next four, before answering the last question of the half. Fortunately, we got all three five-point questions right.

1. The song “I Feel Pretty” comes from what hit musical? Will knew it was from West Side Story.

2. Which acid in the body is associated with the lack of oxygen in the blood? Will knew it was Lactic Acid. I knew runners suffered from it, but couldn’t come up with the name.

3. Which war was the setting for the hit TV show MASH? An easy one for me…Korea.

4. All coffee is grown within 500 miles of what? Will guessed the Equator, and it sounded right to me. All six teams got this question correct.

5. What is the second smallest US state? I guessed Connecticut, but Delaware was right.

6. In France, which letter is on the hot water faucet? Neither of us knew. Will wanted to say C, but I talked him into answering F. He was right.

7. In what year did the space shuttle Columbia explode on liftoff? I knew Reagan was president. I was working for Mr. Suggs, and that evening I met a friend at the Lenox Bennigans before heading to the Hawks game. I was pretty sure it was before I got married, but I incorrectly was thinking about the year I started at Tull (1987). Nobody got the right answer: 1986.

8. What friend rode with Huckleberry Finn on his raft on the Mississippi? My only guess was Tom Sawyer, but it was actually Jim the Slave.

9. In the US, what hospital delivers more babies than any other? Since the category was Atlanta, I knew it was Northside.

HALFTIME: We got 2/5 of the name-the capitals question right:

Venezuela: Caracas (right)

Egypt: Cairo (right)

Pakistan: Islamabad (I didn’t know)

Sweden: Stockholm (I said Brussels)

Belgium: Brussels (I said Antwerp, a state capital)

Two teams had tallied 34 of the possible 37 first-half points. Will and I were in last place, eleven points back. In the second half we answered five of the nine questions correctly.

10. When the Hawks moved to Atlanta in 1968, what city did they move from? I knew, and Will said he knew as well: St. Louis.

11. What was the name of the original pink Power Ranger? Will jotted down Kimberly, which I thought absurd. I would’ve guessed Pinky Tuscadero. When the oldest team answered last, Erin laughed when she read their answer…Pinky. Interestingly, when Will and I finally got home, I flipped past Happy Days on the TV. Amazingly, Will was right.

12. From which continent did the Guinea Pig originate? We said Australia, but it was South America.

13. What southern state waited until 1995 to ratify the13th amendment, abolishing slavery? I correctly guessed Mississippi.

14. What geometric shape forms the hole filled by an Allen Wrench? Will knew it was either a Hexagon or an Octagon. I encouraged him to answer Octogon, which was wrong. When I asked handymen Brad and Darryl at work, they immediately knew the answer.

15. Hillary Clinton once tried to enlist in which branch of the military? Having recently read a Republican-sided book on the Secretary of State, I knew Hillary tried to enlist in the Marines. With her terrible vision, she knew she’d be turned down. She also applied to be an astronaut: doing both to have on her resume in case she were to later run for president. I mentioned the astronaut thing to Erin, and she was impressed (with Hillary). Out of the 24 trivia experts, I was the only one to get this question right.

16. On what vegetable did ancient Egyptians place their hands while taking an oath? Will thought squash, I thought potato. It was the onion.

17. Not counting numbered streets, what is the most popular street name in the US? Erin hinted that the most obvious answer may not be correct, so we stayed away from Main. I guessed Church, but the answer was Park. No one got this question right.

18. Technology question: What does SSD stand for? After mulling it over, Will came up with the correct response: Solid State Drive (or Disc).

Going into the final round, we were tied for last place (58-48-47-43-43-43). Thankfully, we had gotten all six of the 5 and 6 point questions right.

For the final question, five points were given for each of the four highest-grossing movies released since 1991. Erin hinted that two of the movies were released this year. We were one of several teams who guessed three of four: Titanic, Avatar, and the most recent Harry Potter. We also guessed Twilight, but the correct answer was Transformers 3.

We finished tied for next-to-last, besting only the old guys. Had we gotten questions right that we were close on, we would’ve finished tied for third. I’m sure Joel would’ve gotten us over that hump.

At least my beverage choice was better this time: instead of an orange Italian soda, I opted for cherry vanilla. A little mediciney, but much better.

Catching Up

Looks like I’ll be joining the masses: I’m pretty sure I’m getting an iPhone. My company wants to switch everyone to AT&T, and my Sprint contract had expired. Last time they didn’t give me work email on my phone, which was good (one less way for them to give me work during off-hours) and bad (made checking email inconvenient). So my low-tech phone wasn’t cool.

The monthly iPhone bill is twice that of the cheaper phone, so I doubted I’d be approved. But the Ogre was ok with it, and I didn’t hurt that the CFO used to be in my fantasy league. Could have it next week. Merry Christmas to me. Hopefully I’ll be able to download books, both to read and listen to.

This year I’ve really started to appreciate the TV specials and ads that include Christmas songs about Jesus’ birth. There were several last night on the Rock Center Tree Lighting Special. Singers included Carole King, Neil Diamond, Katherine McPhee, and Justin Bieber. Guess who Anna wanted to see?

Still not much going on. C, A, and M left for SC. Ceil’s dad is having back surgery Friday.

Tonight I’ll probably go to trivia night with Will. Last night we watched Modern Family and Psych. This weekend I’ll stick close to home and clean and watch football. If I’m really good I’ll put up the Christmas tree and start my eBay career.

The Heaven Is For Real book is really good…I’m about 75% done with it. Looking for books to send to Chase has got me wanting to read/re-read several of them first.

I often count the number of people at gatherings. Thursday we had 11 for dinner in Macon…two short (my brother’s college kids).

Wednesday night we had grilled boneless chicken, leafy salad, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, and a vegetable medley. None were my favorites, except for the chicken. I had a little sweet potato and salad. Then I brought the chicken, sweet potatoes, and medley for lunch today, and it was all pretty good. Might grab a Chickfila on the way home.

BCS: Rematch?

The Great Debate: Who gets in the BCS National Championship game? Looks like the voters want a rematch. Others point out that just a few years ago these same voters did not want a rematch, and UGA missed out on the big game. Me? I’m in favor of a rematch. I like Bama and LSU better than OK State. Stanford and Virginia Tech are OK, though they lost to lesser teams.

Guy here at work was arguing about the BCS this morning. He doesn’t like Alabama, so he was taking the opposite position. I’m sure if GT was in Bama’s position, he’d take the opposite position.

1. LSU: Seven top 25 wins. Twelve straight wins. With that body of work, should they still go to the BCS championship game even if they lose? Or rematch LSU & Bama in another bowl game. But since the BCS only matches the top two teams from their poll, the only was they get that rematch is if it’s in the title game. After that the bowls slot teams by conference (ACC to Orange, etc). Then leftover BCS teams are “drafted” to fill the holes.

2. Bama: Barely lost to #1 LSU. Three top 25 wins, including #8 Arkansas.

3. OK State: Lost their last game to unranked Iowa St. Their defense gave up in overtime. Three top 25 wins. Even beating #10 Oklahoma wouldn’t leapfrog Alabama, it seems.

4. Stanford: Lost to # 6 Oregon, missed their own conference championship game. Three top 25 wins. So the Cardinal goes to the Rose Bowl INSTEAD of the Pac 12 champion?

5. Va Tech: Have won 7 straight after losing to #12 Clemson (can avenge that loss Saturday). Only two top 25 wins. No chance at the title game, even if LSU and OK State lose.

M had basketball practice Monday night. Now there are ten on their team, with a couple of guys who can handle the ball and score. M did ok.

Went to a focus group Tuesday night, for Carnival Cruise Line. Usually there are about ten people in a group, but last night there were over 50 in the room. Watched several commercials, as well as bits of the show Modern Family. Funny commercials, about how the cruise was better than the last vacation people took.

The commercial they showed for Norwegian made them look like a party boat. Carnival appeared to be trying to hook the non-partier families, who hadn’t been thrilled with their earlier, non-cruise vacations.

Turkey Day

Wednesday I drove the van to get tires. Slow day at work...I was able to research GPS units in the afternoon. Filled up with gas just before arriving home.

Thursday I got my crowd out the door just after 10 am, and we drove down to Macon. Dinner with my family, which went well. Only ate one plate, and one dessert. Left at 6 pm and gassed up there in Macon...$3.059. That night I finally watched some football: Texas vs A&M. Found an online deal on a GPS, so I didn't have to go out in the crowd to get one.

Friday night my nephew's team won their playoff game...a 21-20 thriller.

Saturday Will worked in the yard. I helped a little. A & M went with a crowd to ride horses and ATVs, eat hot dogs, and pan for gold. Others showed up to chat...right when the GA/GT game came on. Later we watched some of the VA/VT, NCST/MD, AL/Auburn, SC/Clemson games. There were few football outcomes this weekend that surprised me.

Later we went "geocaching"...using a GPS to track down a marker someone had placed in an interesting spot. We drove down an unused road to an old river bridge, than climbed down to the river to find the marker. When we climbed back I was leaning against the concrete railing, then discovered the rail was loose.

Finished "The Brethren" and started "Heaven is for Real"...Ceil read it on the drive to Macon.

Saw gas for $2.999. C, W, and M went to Passion, then to see MC and her brother sing at the Atlanta History Center. They ate at Chipotle. Anna stayed home to study. I raked leaves, cleaned the kitchen, and filled up the van.

Top Four MLB Games

Sunday night the MLB Network was counting down the Top 20 Most Exciting Games of the past 50 years.

Number Four was Sid Bream's slide. Costas and Verducci watched and discussed the game with Bream, Lemke, and Van Slyke. Bream didn't say too much until then end, but was thankful the slide has opened doors to speak about God. Lemke and Van Slyke talked a lot. Andy said he motioned for Bonds to move in, but Bonds gave him the finger. As it turned out it wouldn’t have helped, since Cabrera hit the ball to Bond’s left.

Number Three was Bill Buckner's error. He's kept a low profile over the years, so I was surprised he was on the two-hour show. He made several comments as they reviewed the entire game, but seemed to grow quiet as the fateful moment approached. Seated next to him, Mookie discussed his at-bat, fouling off five pitches. Costas shared his viewpoint, waiting in the Boston locker room to interview the victors. When the Mets tied the game on a wild pitch, everyone cleared out of the Boston locker room. Buckner shared what happened, and what went through his mind. Walking off the field, he looked forward to playing in the upcoming Game Seven. Mookie shared how the play had brought him together with Buckner, and how both were strong in the Lord and family.

Number Two was the Morris/Smoltz scoreless Game Seven duel in 1991. Both pitchers had a lot to say. Costas and Morris kept talking about the great Series Lemke had.

Number One was Fisk's HR off the Pesky Pole. Bench and Fred Lynn were the guests, but I changed the channel.

December Reading List

“Heaven is for Real: a Little Boy’s Astounding Story of his Trip to Heaven and Back”, by Todd Burpo. New York Times bestseller. Ceil read it on the trip to Macon, and perhaps Anna can read it as well.

“The Last Juror”, by John Grisham

“Peaks and Valleys: Making Good and Bad Times Work for You – at Work and in Life”, by Spencer Johnson, author of “Who Moved my Cheese”.

“The Last Patriot” by Brad Thor. Compared by some to The da Vinci Code, the thriller involves radical Islam, Mohammad, Thomas Jefferson, and present-day character Scott Harvath, a counter-terrorism expert. I read at least one of his earlier books: “State of the Union.”

"American Steel: Hot Metal Men and the Resurrection of the Rust Belt”, by Richard Preston. The story of the startup of Nucor Crawfordsville, where Dic Dac and his buddy Mark Millett played major roles. Millett was recently CEO of Steel Dynamics, where he and Dic work.

I’m thinking about adding a “BOOKS” tab at the top of my blog, to show the books I’ve read AND want to read. That way I’ll have a handy reference point, where I can quickly looks up books on my list.

Dic Dac’s son Chase has changed his major to Philosophy and Religion, and these days is eagerly devouring books. I need to come up with a reading list for him, and perhaps take him some books at Christmas. This week I’ll mail him a copy of Andy’s little book (Since Nobody’s Perfect) How GOOD is Good Enough?”

Malcolm Mackey

One of the better Georgia Tech SI covers. Malcolm Mackey looks quite nimble, considering he was actually more of immobile widebody.

He's rockin some classic kicks, Nike Hauraches.

Someone is trying to sell this issue on eBay for twelve bucks. Perhaps I should do the same.

SC 2A Northern Championship Game

Driving to the game through the dark countryside, the only glow in the distance are the light stancions of the field. Soon we join a line of headlights queing into the parking lot. It’s a scene reminiscent of the final scene of Field of Dreams.

7:24 pm: After warmups, the Central of Pageland Eagles retreat to the fieldhouse. After an opening prayer, the twenty-one member marching band plays the national anthem. Students meander out onto the field to form a tunnel for the team to run through. Anna and Matthew join Jordan, Catherine, and Victoria out on the field.

The loudspeaker promises "the most exciting entrance in high school football." Single-file, the players methodically touch the eagle statue, then slowly WALK down the hill, then stop to assemble behind the goalpost. Once together, they finally charge out onto the field.

Ben, suffering from back spasms, will get the most playing time all year. Perhaps this is why I see no practice punts in warmups. He’s on his grandfather’s painkillers.

Sponsors signs attached to the chain-link fence surrounding the field include Kellys Custom Embroidery, Rusty's Tucker Lumber, and Acts 2:38. Five or six signs commemorate desceased players and coaches.

7:38 pm: Central takes the opening kickoff and drives down the field for a touchdown.

7:43 pm: Columbia threatens with a long drive of thier own, but finally turn it over on downs.

7:44 pm: Central goes 3 and out. Ben’s first punt, his first boot in at least 30 minutes. The snap is high, throwing off Ben’s timing, and the punt only goes 25 yards. But Central quickly gets the ball back, on an interception.

7:50 pm: Ben enters the game on offense and on his first play catches a 12-15 yard pass on the right hashmark, right at the first down marker.

7:53 pm: Another high snap, but Ben’s second punt is better: 35 yards.

8:03 pm: Colo drives down to the 9 yard line, but the Eagles hold on fourth down.

8:08 pm: Colo holds, and Ben punts. It gets a Central bounce, and goes for 40 yards.

8:13 pm: Colo punts 45 yards into the end zone, for a touchback. Central runs right and fumbles. The Capitals scoop it up and run it in to tie the game at seven.

8:20 pm: After an incompletion, Central runs the same pass play again. This time it goes for a 20 yard TD. Players celebrate as they come off the field. Ben spots two teammates and signals them to join him in the air for a triple bump high five. The TD caps a 91 yard drive near the end of the first half. Eagles lead 14-7.

8:24 pm: I’m used to the more violent collisions of college and pro football games. There’s substantially less in Class 2 high school ball. On kickoffs opponents dance and push: few are sacrificing their bodies. Lots of arm tackling. Central's number 55 has a motor that runs hard. He goes both ways, and several times ALMOST chases down the Capitals athletic QB.

8:47 pm: Colo scores on a four play TD drive to tie the game at 14 all.

8:51 pm: Ben punts 39 yards, to the 31 yard line. This will be Ben’s best game punting, but right now Columbia has the momentum.

8:55 pm: Colombia cashes in with a 69 yard TD drive, scoring on a pass in the far right corner of the end zone. But the short kicker misses the PAT. Colo leads 20-14.

9:05 pm: Central answers with a 58 yard drive of thier own, finding paydirt on a 21-yard TD pass to a wide open receiver who had run a flag pattern. Ben had lined up on the same side of the field, and drew the coverage on a shorter route. With the score tied 20-20, Colo is called offsides on the critical PAT. The Eagles’ kicker had made the kick after the whistle, then makes it again after Central declines the penalty. Good guys lead: 21-20.

9:10 pm: Colo punts 44 yards. The third quarter ends with Central leading 21-20.

9:16 pm. Ben trots in with the play. Just as he arrives at the huddle he glances down. After relaying the play call, he steps back, bends down, and picks up his mouthpiece, that he had dropped. Later Central is flagged for delay of game penalty. Big?

9:20: Yes. Central turns it over on downs, with 8:50 remaining. Ben is outfitted with just about every accoutrement: helmet visor, Under Armor undershirt, sweatbands, gloves, a rarely used Under Armor hand warmer (worn backwards), and white tights.

9:27 pm: Central had the QB sacked, but gets called for a facemask penalty. A wide open Colombia receiver drops a bomb, thrown right into his hands. Colo punts 34 yards, to the 24 yard line.

Central reels off a big screen pass on first down. Another delay of game penalty stalls the drive. Ben punts 32 yards, down to the ten yard line.

As the clock runs down, Colombia drives down the field. Central is offsides, but sacks the QB on third and five. Time out with 40 seconds left. Fourth down: another sack, to clinch the game.

After the game, parents join the players on the field.

The 21-20 finish is a kicker's dream, or nightmare. The State newspaper features the game in its Saturday edition, playing off the PAT angle. The article quotes both head coaches on the subject, but Central's coach doesn't even mention his own kicker by name...at least as far as the article goes. This may have been the reporter's error: the scoring recap incorrectly named Ben as the PAT kicker.

This wasn't the first time something like this ever happened: The Macon Telegraph often credited my holder Randy Griffin as the PAT kicker, instead of me.