A New Second Favorite

I used to have it all listed out. My favorite college football teams, the first obvious, after that not so much.

Things have changed over the years though. Favorite coaches have retired, been fired, or moved to new schools. Offenses have evolved. Teams have changed conferences. So, I find myself in the market for a new second favorite college football team.

For a very long time Air Force was my second favorite. I like planes, I liked their uni’s, and I liked their Flex-bone option offense. After Fisher Deberry retired though, I found my interest waning. My tastes in offense changed and now, though I wish the Falcons well, I wouldn’t put them at number two on my list.

I’ve always admired Southern Miss. their willingness to play any major school and scare the bejesus out of said Goliath. Such was the case when Southern Miss. came to Lincoln and the Huskers only escaped an upset loss at home because of a few turnovers run back for touchdowns. The rest of the game the Husker O was stopped cold. Which was another reason I liked Southern Miss. Their defenses were always a treat to watch, but like Air Force, I became more and more interested in fast paced passing offense, lessening my interest in solid ‘D’.

I did have fun watching USM upset Houston in their conference championship. I’ve talked about it a lot over the last few blogs, but I tuned in to see Houston’s high flying pass offense and ended up rooting for the Golden Eagles, great game. Now that I think about it, I would still consider them for my very highly touted second fav spot. If they beat my favorite team the first game of the season,....yeah, better hold off on crowning them number two yet. Best case for them, they impress me with their tough play and still have the decency to lose.... Then again, they have quite a few matchups coming up over the next few years. I suppose I could dethrone them later if I had to...but I’m just typing out loud now.

I really like Central Florida, but for the wrong reason. A reason as a heterosexual male and self respecting college football fanatic I shouldn’t admit to......I really dig their uniforms. I also don’t like that their current coach lasted all of about three hours at Notre Dame before getting fired for lying on his resume. He strikes me as a sleazeball.

I’d put the Golden Knights in my top five for now, and wait to move them up until they fire their current coach or they finally check his references and realize most of them are fake people.

Our move to the Big Ten makes for some interesting prospects. In high school I liked Michigan State. A traditional big school, not a school that everyone else seemed to like though, and yes,....I liked their uni’s too. This last season my younger brother took me to see them in person and Sparty didn’t disappoint. They also had the kind decency to lose and keep my streak of never seeing Nebraska lose in person alive. So, what’s not to like? Well, their new uniforms (/sigh.....that just keeps coming up doesn’t it?). It’s also probably not a good idea to make your second favorite team a division rival of your favorite team. Plus them being in the Big Ten, I find I’ll be rooting for them anyway when they aren’t playing us and therefore have some de facto favoriteness.

Speaking of Sparty, they played arguably my favorite game of all last season to watch, against Wisky in the Big Ten championship. A game so good I’ve actually looked into purchasing it. *

I do like Wisconsin’s offense. They aren’t in our division and watching them play reminds me of my high school team, north/south ram straight ahead running game mixed in with the surgical play action pass. The kind of offense everyone thinks of when they hear “Big Ten Offense”. They churn out my kind of o-lineman into the NFL and yes,....I must admit, can’t help but like their uni’s. In my defense it seems genetically weaved into my dna to root for a red/white clad team. I can’t help it....(stupid uniform thing again huh?)**

So why not Wisky? Well kind of a long walk but when I was in high school I was really into Texas Tech. When it came time to purchase a coat for winter I didn’t want a team that everyone else had, but the store didn’t have Texas Tech, but they did have Texas.... I liked Texas, until they started beating us every time they played us, causing me to get heckled on the street. Not to mention they convinced everyone who rescued them from the last conference they destroyed, to vote for rules that directly hindered Nebraska, moved the conference headquarters to Texas, and then after they got their way started talking to every conference that would listen about leaving, THEN had the balls to call us cowards when we saw the writing on the wall and jumped what at the time seems like a sinking conference ship.....(Deep exhale....)

So....maybe not a good idea to love a team from the opposite division that has already spanked us once...

What about the less threatening folk in the Big Ten? Up until these last few years I liked Purdue and they were my solid second favorite. Another long story, but it’s my blog so you’ll just have to ride along Mwahahaha!

Playing Ncaa football on the original Xbox, I took it upon myself to start my lowly coaching career at Idaho (another team that would be in my top 10) whose lowly Kibbie Dome in some place called Moscow, Idaho holds fewer people than a typical party at my parents house... Also, it looks like a refurbished zeppelin hangar... Anyway, I started my career there and before long I had them going undefeated, forcing other schools to start to take note in the subsequent offseasons. No team seemed like the right fit, until Purdue came calling.

A Big Ten school, a pass heavy offense, a team named after guys who build locomotives, a train horn that goes off during the game, train tracks that lead from the locker room to the field. They were just bad enough that turning them would be a fun challenge, but not impossible, and to top it all off a huge-mong-gus ass drum . So one late summer day, back when ESPN started the day at 11 am with a Big Ten game, I tuned in and settled in to watch the real team in action. What followed was one of my all time favorite quotes from a head coach.

When Joe Tiller was asked how the late August heat would affect his offense he replied, “We’re going to pass until we get too hot, then we’re gonna pass some more.” @#$@# YAH! I thought, but alas, it was towards the end of his coaching stint. His replacement, who strikes me as grumpy old “kids get off my lawn“ type, took his place. He said early on it was still important that the Boilermakers still be able to run the ball occasionally. Not against that entirely, but their offense has seemed to evolve into a read option offense where too much dicking around happens five yards behind the line of scrimmage. Instead of spread passing offense, a spread running offense,...no thanks, still dig the train thing, but... /meh. I’d have them in the top five still I think. I wish them well, just not stoked to actually watch their offense though.

Minnesota has always held a special place in my heart, being one of the few Big Ten states I’ve personally visited recently (not including Iowa), but as with the other Big Ten teams, I’ll always root for them anyway...in the top ten I’d say.

2012 also brings in four new possible teams for my list, another coming in 2013. How can adding four new teams to a list of already 120 possibilities really be such a big deal? Because, they are something new and as much time as I spend watching football, yes, I have become VERY familiar with every existing 1A team, all 120 of them. So much so, that I’m stoked about this year’s fresh new cupcakes for the big boys to “Welcome” to 1A ball with one and done, away trips. I feel like it might be early to tell how I feel about them... Any team that is called “The Roadrunners” has my interest though.

I mentioned earlier my interest in Texas Tech. Guess why? I liked their uniforms? Nope! Not this time! I was very pro Big 12 during its inception (before the ugly truth would set in...) and even shortly before the league's first official year. It was something new. A conference championship game,....and Tech was my fave of the new teams, plus Spike Dykes was always entertaining. He retired shortly thereafter, and Mike Leach took his place. I was not a fan of Tech per se, especially after they beat us 70-10...but the more I’ve gotten to know Coach Leach, the more I’ve become fascinated. Read the wiki link I put for his name. It gives a good summary of his coaching career and should give you a good idea of why I like him. Also, it also summarizes his unfair firing at Tech. He’s laid low these last few years, but he’s about to start his first season at Washington State. A team which I’ve always kind of liked, sort of why I originally liked Michigan State. A big name school with some history in a major conference, overshadowed by a bigger team in their own state.....

I’m also assuming he’ll bring his spread passing offense to Wazzou and I can’t wait for that. The only downside is playing in the Pac 12 I won’t see them on tv much and if I do, their game will prolly start at about 10 pm Central time, but hey, that’s what DVRs and Sunday mornings are for right? Yup, I’d put the Cougars at number two going into this season,....and YES,....I do like their uniforms too.....oh the shame....


Follow me on twitter @TheSmittyBlog for teams that didn’t make the cut and to stay up to date on my blog, receive updates on how my blog is doing,...seriously, follow me...i beg you...

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* = /cough Christmas Gift /cough
**= I totally am gonna have to turn in my college football fan

Arena Football Style Strike

Life is messy, complicated, full of tough choices, ugly, and at times it’s just plain mean. But more than everything else, life is very very confusing, the world seems to move faster everyday.

To cope with the ever increasing craziness that is life everyone finds their own way to deal with the world around them.

For me, that thing this time of year is Arena Football. No matter how fast the world seems to be moving or how crazy things get, a touchdown is always worth 6 points, the sideboards are always there and my Orlando Predators always make the playoffs.*

So I  was shocked to receive a tweet that the upcoming weekly Friday night telecast of Arena football on the NFL network was in jeopardy because an AFL strike was looming.

I was even more shocked to learn that this wasn’t the first AFL strike of this season. How could a strike occur in the league I love so much and I not hear about it?

Hang on kids, from here on out it gets weirder. Don’t worry if you don’t follow along, because I don’t either.

The “Strike” took place the first week of the season and only two teams participated in the “strike” but they both played the game....

I know what you are thinking, how could it be a strike if teams played their games anyway? The answer? I have no frickin’ clue. Did they use replacement players? Again, no idea.....

Although I did read an article saying that the strike “resulted in a very sloppy game”. That’ll teach ‘em! Good thinking AFL players union! Just play like ass! They’ll be ready to negotiate in the no time.

Prior to last week's second so called “Strike” articles were posted that only confused the matter.

Apparently, the AFL players’ union only requests that Cleveland strike,...yep, now we’re down to just one team striking....and the rest of the games that night would be played, as well as the games the rest of the weekend just not the one on TV....

And Cleveland might use replacement players, or their strike might not start until after the game that night, or they’ll have to forfeit. All of this contradictory info in the same article that I’m not even going to bother linking because your brain might just ‘splode if you try to read it.

As it turned out, Cleveland did forfeit, yes forfeit.....for some reason the AFL players union was cool with just one team not playing and letting them forfeit a game, so that week's game wouldn’t be televised. Canceling the only televised broadcast on tv for the AFL.


Can you imagine if a more traditional union did this?

I think it would go something like this:

Union: We’re going to have to go on strike
Members: Well, it will be rough but we can do this together!
Union: No, not all of you, just Gary.
Members: Won’t they just fire Gary?
Union: Yes, but trust me, this will work...I know what I’m doing....
Members: That makes no sense, but as long as you know what you’re doing...
Gary: Um,...I have a ques-
Union and Members: SHUT UP GARY!  GO ON STRIKE! WE HAVE IMPORTANT UNION STUFF TO DO!
Gary: :-(   okay......


Union: This is working perfectly! Just to be safe though we should try this again in a few weeks.....

Last night came a more sensical message from the AFL itself. It laid out in plain english what they were offering the union. I’m not taking sides here, but at least they took the time to explain their position, and wrote it in english and stuff. Also, they seem to know what the hell they are doing.

The scary thing for me, is unlike a strike in any other pro sport, I get the idea that the money might not be there to pay the players what they should be paid. Teams and owners just don’t have the unlimited funds to give the players like in the NFL, MLB, and NBA. Not that long ago, the league shut its doors for what they said at the time was financial difficulties. They came back a year later, but watching the games, the stands looked pretty bare. I’d hate to see the sport I love disappear completely.

I’m starting to think the indoor league the Omaha Beef are in is actually more financially stable. Even though the IFL is a step down from the AFL, traveling to Grand Island, Sioux Falls, Wyoming etc, has to be a lot cheaper than flying teams to mostly major cities all over the country, as is the case with the AFL.

In the same release, the AFL also said that the game of the week would be tape delayed to the following Saturday, a disappointment to me, as it gets harder and harder to not hear the final scores ahead of time (faster world remember?).

And today came news that the two sides were close to a deal. The AFL is willing to compromise with the AFLPA if, you know, they could figure out what the hell AFLPA was trying to do. Perhaps they’ll have Cleveland forfeit again, that went well.

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* well, not this year, they’re like 1-12 or something, first time missing the playoffs in about 12ish years :-(

How I Memorized Baseballs Position Numbers

In the mid 2000s several of my coworkers and I were hanging out in the hallway with some people from HR. Apparently they had some extra tickets to the local independent baseballs upcoming game. Up until that point in my life I had no interest in baseball, at all, period. For some reason though I nabbed the tickets, went to the game, and fell in love with the team (Lincoln Saltdogs) and the park (Haymarket).

This was odd because I had been to a game only a few years previous and was bored beyond belief, but for some reason I loved the experience. Perhaps I had reached a threshold where i was finally old enough that my attention span enabled me to just enjoy the experience. Hearing the crack of the bat then watching the ball curve staying just fair. Then hearing the crowd roar as the batter rounds first and heads for second. Watch a Saltdog slide into home kicking up dust everywhere.

Something feels special about relaxing on a cool late spring evening or a warm summer night and watching the dogs in the beautiful park with Memorial Stadium and the Lincoln capitol in the background. A warm summer breeze across my face, even an occasional train will rumble by just outside the park, an extra plus for me.

Soon, the unthinkable began to happen, I began tuning in to listen to games on the radio. At first when I happened to be driving and knew the game was one, but then every time I could, I listened to the dogs on the radio.

Even stranger, I began to watch an occasional MLB on tv, some of my family members must have wondered if I had secretly been replaced by a baseball loving clone, or alien body snatcher who had crossed the galaxy to watch baseball.

A few years passed and I followed the dogs all the way to their 2009 championship. I still remember where I was when I heard the final out.

Listening on the radio I began to learn all kinds of things I didn’t know about prior, fielder’s choice, batter interference, balks, tagging up, the list goes on and on.

The announcer at the time would often say “...if you are scoring at home....” after explaining a complicated play. Then he would add “and good for you if you are scoring at home, I mean that sincerely, it’s a lost art....”

Starting last year I began to try my hand at scoring games with little to no success. I did finish a game but was only lukewarm with the results, still I kept at it and during my first home game of the saltdogs this season I finished my first complete scored game.

I even invested in an expensive app for my phone that generates a score sheet for a game after scoring it through the app’s simplified interface.

All of this brings us to the catalyst for this blog. I attended my second game of the year with my younger brother last night and had a blast. We even made plans to attend our first Saltdogs away game, all the way up in Fargo North Dakota. Just imagine the blog potential there....

Anyway,....during the game he mentioned his wife would like to learn how to score a baseball game. I’m still learning myself, but I look forward to sharing what I’ve learned with someone. I started putting together an email for her but then realized it would make a good blog, and therefore everyone gets to suffer :-)   (you can thank Brittany for that)

The first thing you have to learn when scoring a game (at least in my opinion) is the different defensive position numbers:



It seems to make little sense at first, why would the first basemen be three?

Well here is how I remember:

Start by following the ball, the pitcher (1) starts with the ball, he tries to throw to the catcher (2) then follow the runner,....the batter hits the ball and runs to first base (3) if it’s a double he continues onto 2nd base (4) and so on.

Then you tack on the shortstop (6) and then go through the outfield left to right, left field = 7, center is 8 and right is 9.

So to review:
1 = Pitcher
2 = Catcher
3 = 1st Base
4 = 2nd Base
5 = 3rd Base
6 = Shortstop
7 = Left Fielder
8 = Center Fielder
9 = Right Fielder

All of this is shortened because the score sheet itself is a little diamond meant to represent the baseball field and there isn’t much room to describe what happened for each batter in each inning. Therefore, these shortened numbers, letters and acronyms enable you to describe a lot by using only a few characters.

So, for example, if the batter hits a ground ball to the shortstop (6) who then throws out  the runner at first (3) all you have to right is “GO 6-3” again, translation: a ground out (G.O.) hit to the shortstop (6) who then threw to first base (3) putting the runner out.

Some people just use “G” for a ground ball, or G.B, which brings me to my next point. The system is flexible and enables every scorer to sort of have their own style,..which I think is cool.

With this handy dandy system, you can score a complicated play like a double play with only five characters.

For example, perhaps you’ve heard the term 6-4-3 double play.

In this scenario there is already a runner on first, the batter grounds the ball to the shortstop (6) who throws to 2nd (4) putting the existing runner out for the first out, then the 2nd baseman throws to first, putting the batter out (3), for the second out and all you have to write is “6-4-3 DP” (DP = double play)

I’m starting to realize that perhaps the written word isn’t the best way to explain and thus have my readers learn this stuff. I feel it was worth a shot though, I’d be happy to explain things in person, just stop by or come talk to me or shoot me an email. If you’re like me you learn by doing rather than reading, still there are plenty of resources out there to help you learn how to score a game, sample score sheets you can download, all kinds of cool stuff.

Whatever the case, I hope to see you at a dogs game some time, fresh scoresheet in your lap, pencil in hand enjoying the warm summer breeze and perhaps the lonely horn of a passing train just outside the stadium.