Football 2014 - Week 16

My recap of the only football games that matter

It was a very slow week in the college ranks. Most teams finished their season last week. There were some quarterfinal playoff games in the FCS division. The FCS division has a real postseason playoff with 24 teams. Can you imagine that? The FBS bowl games start on Saturday, 12/20.

There was one game in the FBS division and it was a big one. It was the 115th meeting of the Army and Navy military academies. The first game was in 1890. The Army-Navy game is full of tradition. This year the Black Knights and the Midshipmen met in Baltimore. Navy went into the game with a 6-5 record and a 12 game winning streak over Army which had a 4-7 record. Navy was heavily favored. As is often the case in traditional rivalry games records and point spreads don't mean much. Army got off to a good start by returning a blocked punt for a touchdown on the Midshipmen first possession. They then played great defense until the very end of the second quarter. Navy put together a 70 yard drive and scored a TD with 0:18 remaining in the half. Tie score 7-7 at intermission. The Midshipmen scored a FG in the third quarter and another TD early in the fourth. The Black Knights managed a FG with a little less than two minutes remaining in the game. They failed to recover the onside kick. Navy ran out the clock for a 17-10 win, their 13th in a row. The stats were pretty close. Neither team is much of a passing threat. The difference was Navy put together a couple of sustained drives. It turned out to be a better game than most expected but the result was the same as it has been lately. This ends the season for Army with a 4-8 record. Navy will play San Diego State in the very long named SAN DIEGO COUNTY CREDIT UNION POINSETTIA BOWL. I must admit I'm a Midshipmen fan having a son who is a career Navy man and having grown up in a Navy town. Their 13 game winning streak is fine with me.

There were no new AP or College Playoff polls this week.

In the pro ranks I scored another trifecta. In what has become a trend, the Jaguars got out to a lead 12-10 at the half and then failed to score in the second half. Final score Baltimore 20 Jacksonville 10. Bortles was 21/37 for 210 yards and an interception. He was also sacked eight times. All the Jags points were from field goals and one of the Ravens TDs was on a blocked punt. Not exactly an offensive spectacular. The Jaguars are now 2-12 for the season and have yet to win an away game. Mercifully there are only two games left in the season. The next one is at home against Tennessee on Thursday night so I will get to see one of the few Jaguar games on the NFL network. 

In Atlanta the Falcons fell behind the Steelers by 13 early and never could catch up. It was a close game in every aspect except for turnovers. Atlanta only had one, but it resulted in a Pittsburgh TD, the difference in the 27-20 Steelers win. This lose takes the Falcons record to 5-9 but they are still in the hunt for the NFC South title. That brings with it a home field playoff game. Their next two games are against New Orleans and Carolina, the two division teams they are in the race with.

Finally we have Tampa Bay at Carolina. The Buccaneers scored a TD in the first quarter and one in the fourth. In between they only managed a FG. The Panthers didn't do much better, scoring only one TD all game but they did four FGs for a 19-17 win. Carolina did win the statistical battle with about 100 more total yards and an amazing 15 more minutes time of possession. Tampa Bay helped out by committing three turnovers. The Bucs fall to 2-12 and next host the Packers.

The Jags and Bucs are tied with the Raiders and Titans for the worst record and thereby first draft choice. With only two games remaining in the regular season, it seems certain one of these four teams will win the draft lottery. The Jags and Titans play each other this coming Thursday so one of them will move to three wins (barring a tie).

wjh

Scattershooting 12-14-14

Scattershooting while wondering whatever happened to the great

Eli Wallach

Sunday's Summary

My incomplete recap of the week

Miracles do happen. Today I put on a pair of pants that I don't think I've worn since last winter. When I put one leg in out popped a sock. So my lost sock is now safely back in the sock drawer with its mate, freed from the loneliness of the closet with only pants, shirts and shoes to mingle with. One of the very few lost socks ever found.

I had some split pea soup tonight. I must report that some of those peas were not split. Is that a felony or just false advertising? BTW, it was delicious even though maybe illegal.

A little ‪#‎TuneTuesday‬ - Al Green was on Letterman last night and sang two songs Let's Stay Together and I'm So Tired of Being Alone. He didn't sound terrible but certainly not as good as he used to. What struck me most was how different he looks. He's much heavier and the white suit didn't help. His face is amazingly different and I don't think I would have recognized him without the introduction and the songs. Let's Stay Together (1972) was #1 on Billboard Top 100 and R&B charts.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=COiIC3A0ROM

Tired of Being Alone (1971) reached #11 on Billboard and #7 on the Soul chart.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tdw7kxD8eUc

We'll call this ‪#‎WaybackWednesday‬. Seems that it is oldies week on Letterman. Monday night it was Al Green and on Tuesday it was Dee Dee Kenniebrew of The Crystals. She sang Then He Kissed Me and Da Doo Ron Ron. This was not our version of the Crystals. Dee Dee sang lead with six backup singers and strings. Then He Kissed Me rose to #6 in 1963 -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r17KaC7C5D4

Da Doo Ron Ron peaked at #3 also in 1963 -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-qqi7-Q19k

For ‪#‎TBT‬ it's time to start the Christmas season. Here are some shots of my first two Christmas mornings. The first one shows that I caused a train wreck while playing the piano. This may have been the pinnacle of my concert piano career. The other two are from my second Christmas. It looks like I got a big fire truck. I also got a Raggedy Andy which I had for several years. Mom stitched him up a few times and even made him a new set of clothes.

Wow, the Argyle Sweater got very obscure today.

Here is some Christmas craft I could probably handle. Yes I know is should say ReinBeers -

I guess it's close enough to the holiday to have a Christmas tune for this‪ #‎SongSunday‬. Next week I'll post my favorite Christmas song. Until then, this song was released in 1963 which people of a certain age will remember as a rather subdued holiday season due to the JFK assassination. The song reached #3 on the Christmas chart. Written by Brian WIlson and Mike Love, performed by The Beach Boys, here is Little Saint Nick -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_3HLtW8mCw

wjh

Football 2014 - Week 15

My recap of the only football games that matter

The College Football Playoff Committee certainly surprised everybody with their week 15 rankings. We all knew Mississippi State would drop out of contention. The surprise is that the committee moved TCU into the #3 slot and dropped FSU to #4. Alabama and Oregon remain on top. Baylor moves up to #5 and Ohio State is #6. All six teams have one more game. 

There was no high school Friday football for me this week. The PAC 12 title game was held between #2 Oregon and #7 Arizona. This was no contest as the Ducks dominated the Wildcats 51-13. It was even worse than the score indicates as Arizona scored their final TD as the clock ran out. Oregon had 627 total yards to only 224 for Arizona. Since the Ducks went into this game rated #2 it seems like a lock that they will make the playoffs.

Saturday started out with unranked 2-9, 0-9 Iowa State at #3 TCU. The Frogs had nothing to gain and everything to lose from this game. Thankfully TCU took care of business and won 55-3. They racked up 722 yards against only 236 for the Cyclones. Frogs QB Trevone Boykin threw for 460 yards and four TDs, rushed for 44 yards and caught a 55 yard pass for another TD. That's a mere 559 all-purpose yards and five TDs. Not a bad afternoon. TCU actually got off to a slow start and only led 17-3 at halftime. They stepped it up a little after intermission. The Horned Frogs did their part, they finish the regular season with an 11-1, 8-1 record. Now they must wait to for the selection committee to see what their postseason schedule will be.

The SEC championship game matched #16 Missouri against #1 Alabama. Mizzou kind of hung in there. They trailed 21-3 at the half but they scored ten third quarter points while holding 'Bama scoreless to get within eight at 21-13. Then the Tide got down to business and reeled off 21 straight points. Alabama went back to basics and rushed for 242 yards. Once again the SEC West proved far superior to the East. The Crimson Tide wins the SEC and should remain #1 in the playoff seedings. 

In a game that was not officially a conference title match #6 Baylor hosted #9 Kansas State. Both teams went into the game with identical 7-1 Big 12 (only 10 teams) records. Baylor got out to a quick 14-0 lead but K-State fought back. The Bears held on for a 38-27 win and I think won the Big 12. I don't think they did enough to pass #5 Ohio State and knock one of the top four teams out of the playoffs.

The next big game was the Big Ten (14 teams) championship game between #5 Ohio State and #13 Wisconsin. The Badgers were actually a slight favorite, probably because OSU's QB was injured in their last game. That trepidation in the Buckeyes ability to find a QB replacement proved misplaced. They completely routed Wisconsin 59-0. Ohio State is better than people thought or the Badgers were way overrated. The Buckeyes finish the season 12-1, 8-0 and Big Ten champions. Will this convincing victory over a ranked opponent propel them into the top four? It will be interesting to see what the committee does.

Finally we have the heart attack #4 FSU Seminoles vs the #11 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets for the ACC title. You know the Noles always make it exciting and this game was no exception. FSU fell behind in the first quarter but actually managed to be leading 28-21 at halftime. That hasn't been the norm lately. The Rambling Wreck got to within two points with 1:47 remaining in the game, but failed to recover the onside kick attempt. FSU won 37-35 and the ACC title. They finish the season with a perfect 13-0, 8-0 record. There is no way the selection committee can keep the Noles out of the playoffs. They are the only undefeated FBS team and are the defending national champs. Where will they be seeded?

About the same time that the pro games got started on Sunday the College Playoffs bracket was announced. Unfortunately for TCU and the Big 12 Conference the selection committee went with Ohio State. It's hard to argue with the selections. There was one undefeated team and five one defeat teams vying for four spots. Seems like a perfect reason to expand the playoffs to eight teams. FSU got a little more respect for their undefeated season and moved up to #3. The final regular season AP Poll had Baylor at #4 in place of Ohio State. We'll know in about a month how it all turns out. I'll go into the 1,493 other bowl games in a separate post.

In the NFL the Jaguars hosted division rival Houston. There was a ray of hope when Jax led 13-10 at the half but that soon disappeared as the Texas outscored Jacksonville 17-0 after intermission. Bortles was 20/39 for 205 yards with 1 int and 1 TD. As usual the ground game was anemic. They have scored the fewest points in the league. The Jaguars fall to 2-11 and are still very much in the race for top draft choice. Next game is in Baltimore. 

Tampa Bay had to go to beautiful downtown Detroit for their game. They could have stayed home and gotten the same outcome. The Bucs only trailed by a TD at the half but never got any closer. Final score was 34-17. They managed a whopping 26 yards on the ground in only 14 attempts. There were also three Buccaneer turnovers. They too are now at 2-11 and in the hunt for the draft race along with Jacksonville and a couple of others. Next up TB is at Carolina.

Atlanta had to wait until Monday night to lose. This is a southern team that plays in an indoor stadium going to Green Bay in December. It was 33° and snowing at kickoff. It took the Packers less than four minutes to score and then amazingly the Falcons came right back to tie it up. That looked like it was the high point for the Birds. The Packers then reeled off 24 points in the 2nd quarter. Game over. Not so fast cheeseheads. Atlanta got it back to within 10 a couple of times and with about two minutes left cut the Packers lead to six. Failure to recover the onside kick sealed the game for Green Bay 43-37. It was a good game. The Falcons are now 5-8 but still tied for the NFC South division lead (the whole division sucks). Next game is at home against the Steelers.

wjh

Scattershooting 12-07-14

Scattershooting while wondering whatever happened to the great

Rod Serling

Sunday's Summary

My incomplete recap of the week

59 years ago today (12/1) Rosa Parks was tired so she didn't give up her seat on the bus to a white passenger. That was a very courageous act in 1955 Montgomery, AL. I was living in the deep south back then. Blacks were suppose to know their place and their place was at the back of the bus. Thanks Rosa. Unfortunately there is still work to be done.

Gotta do a ‪#‎TuneTuesday‬ post. Last night one of the contestants, DaNica Shirey, on The Voice sang the Heart song These Dreams. It's a 1986 song co-written by Bernie Taupin, the long-time Elton John collaborator. I'm a Heart fan and like this song. It is one of the few that Nancy sings the lead on, usually Ann sings lead. The song reached #1 on Billboard. This video also shows that back in the day the Wilson sisters were babes. I like this original more than the version on The Voice.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41P8UxneDJE

Here is DaNica Shirey's version from The Voice -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RCHeupC2Ly0&list=PLlYqpJ9JE-J-vCj8y3BhfiR-Jl5MHu6LD

OK, this is just plain spooky. I noticed that Encore Westerns will be airing a Wanted Dead or Alive marathon New Year's Day. I haven't seen any episodes of this Steve McQueen show in years. I whipped over to Wikipedia to see exactly when and how long the show originally aired. I also had Pandora streaming. As I was reading the Wiki article the Bon Jovi song Wanted Dead or Alive came on Pandora. Life is strange. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SRvCvsRp5ho

A long standing Holmes family tradition

Some Roman numeral humor, always a crowd pleaser -

I just got my November report card from Pandora. I didn't even know I was being graded. Seems I listened to 1,101 songs and Southern Rock was my favorite genre. To be honest I don't know if that is good or bad. Did I make an A or did I fail? Can't wait to see how I do in December.

Let's go back to the start of my formal education for ‪#‎TBT‬. Here are photos of my first and last day of kindergarten at Queen of Peace school. All the pictures of these events are labeled Pre Primer so I guess that is what kindergarten was called back in ancient times. Can't imagine today's kids putting on a suit for school, even the first day.

 — in North Arlington, New Jersey.

 


















Done. Upgraded Linux Mint to release 17.1 (Rebecca) today (12/4). The new upgrade path via the Update Manager worked like a charm. Took about 15 minutes total. Only problem was one applet that didn't load.

Must be my day (12/4) for software upgrades. This afternoon I updated my laptop to Linux Mint 17.1. A little while later my Nexus 7 tablet notified me that the Android 5 Lollipop update was ready to install. I was wondering when my Android OTA update would finally get here. Turns out I actually got 5.0.1 version. The Android upgrade took way longer than the Linux upgrade.

Finally went to HWY 55 for lunch today. The place was about ¾ full. It's decorated minimally with a faux 50's theme. Some vinyl records on the walls, pink and light blue upholstery and a little chrome.

I ordered the Andy size cheeseburger with Swiss, onion, lettuce, tomato and jalapenos. I also had an order of regular fries and tea. Everything was average, good but nothing special. The burgers are served on a generic white burger bun. The hamburger patty was cooked past medium (I wasn't asked how I wanted it cooked) with no grill marks or crisp edges. The toppings were fresh but again nothing special, the jalapenos were mild which is not why I ordered them. The fries are pretty good. They are thin cut, were piping hot and had some crispy bits and ends which I like. They were barely salted which is OK with me but I think most people would want to add salt. The bill was a little over $8 without tip. They also have shakes, floats and frozen custard. Probably a good place to take the kids. The place is similar to Steak 'n Shake but with a more limited menu.

I'm sure I'll stop in again since it is convenient, fast and I often shop at the Kroger next door. I'll probably try something other than a burger next time. If you are just looking for a burger, there are better ones right across the street at Twisted Root plus you can get an adult beverage there.

While this is not my favorite Little Anthony and the Imperials, it is a good one and I thought it appropriate for this ‪#‎SongSunday‬. This is how TCU feels today after the College Playoff bracket was announced. The Imperials were formed in 1958. They had a string of hits in the 60's including this song that rose to #15 on the Pop chart and #8 on R&B in 1964 according to one source. Another source lists it at #5 in October '64. The higher ranking seems right to me. Here is I'm on the Outside (Looking In) -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xezsVMOATc

Here is the same song 40 years later. They still sounded pretty damn good - 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Cuscf7NdYw

12/07/41 - It was 73 years ago today. Most of the survivors are now gone too. Thank you and RIP. Unfortunately we are still at war today.

wjh

Football 2014 - Week 14

My recap of the only football games that matter

There were a lot of big rivalry games in the college ranks. It is also the end of the regular season for most teams. There were many exciting games and some upsets.

As usual the week's news started on Tuesday with the release of the College Football Playoff Rankings. There were no changes in the top seven spots. Alabama, Oregon, FSU and Mississippi State hold the four playoff slots with TCU at number five.

The football games started on Thanksgiving Day this week. The big college game was #5 TCU at Texas. This date used to be reserved for the annual Texas vs Texas A&M rivalry game. With A&M's move to the SEC, that rivalry ended because the great University of Texas was angry that A&M defected. They were going to punish the much inferior Aggies. Of course since then the Longhorns program has fallen on hard times and A&M is doing fine in the SEC. On this Thanksgiving Texas was thoroughly whipped by the little private school from Fort Worth 48-10. The Longhorns helped out the Frogs immensely by committing six turnovers. TCU had one pick six and was consistently playing with a short field. This was a convincing victory but will it be enough to keep the Frogs ahead of Baylor and Ohio State in the polls. TCU improves to 10-1 and has a final home game against 2-9, 0-8 Iowa State.

The USF Bulls had a Friday game against in-state rival UCF. The schools are in the same conference and about 100 miles apart on Interstate 4. A couple of years ago, USF was flying high in the Big East Conference and UCF was struggling in a minor conference. Not anymore. The Bulls have fallen on bad times, the Big East is gone as a football conference and the Knights have had a couple of good years. Once again USF proved that they are inept on offense. They managed 200 total yards but only five (5) on the ground for 22 attempts. How is that possible? Despite three turnovers, UCF squeaked out a thrilling 16-0 victory. USF finishes the season 4-8, 3-5 and are done. No bowl game this year.

There were a few other college games on Friday. #17 Missouri beat Arkansas 21-14 to clinch the SEC East title. Stanford crushed #8 UCLA 31-10 which knocked the Bruins out of the Pac-12 championship game.

In the Friday night lights high school division Bishop Kenny finally reached the end of their season. They lost 34-14 to Tallahassee Godby in the Region 1-5A final. Kenny got the game within seven in the third quarter before the Cougars pulled away in the fourth. The Crusaders end their season with a very good 10-2 record. It was the second year in a row that BK had at least 10 wins. They advanced one round farther in the playoffs this year. This season's success was somewhat unexpected after losing all Florida QB John Wolford last year to graduation. Congratulations to the team.

Saturday was full of college rivalries. Some were big games because of conference and national rankings. All were big games for bragging rights and recruiting.

Let's start with the one between between the undefeated #3 FSU Seminoles and the mostly inept Florida Gators. No contest right? Well, as we go through some of these games you will see that records and rankings aren't all that important. Like many Florida families we are divided in our loyalty. My oldest son and daughter-in-law are Noles, my youngest son and I are Gators. The game was 21-16 at halftime and then they traded one field goal each in the second half to end up 24-19. Last year's Heisman Trophy winner, Jameis Winston, threw four interceptions, three in the first quarter. Unfortunately, the Gators are severely challenged on offense and could only manage field goals from those turnovers. Gators QB, Treon Harris had two of his own interceptions. It was a sloppy outing by both teams. This was coach Will Muschamp's final game at Florida. He will not coach the team in a bowl game. His tenure was less than successful particularly the last two seasons. The Gators finish the regular season 6-5, 4-4 and now await bowl selection day. The Noles complete their second consecutive undefeated season at 12-0, 8-0. They head to the ACC championship game against #16 Georgia Tech.

In the SEC it was a mess on Saturday. It started out with the SEC East losing three rivalry games to ACC teams. The just mentioned FSU win over Florida as well as Clemson over South Carolina and Georgia Tech over Georgia. The once mighty SEC, at least the East, is in trouble. Then the #4 Mississippi State Bulldogs fell to in-state rival #19 Ole Miss. That knocks Miss. St. out of the playoffs. #17 Missouri was able to hold off Arkansas to clinch the SEC East title. In the big game #1 Alabama eventually prevailed over archrival #15 Auburn to stay atop the polls for the playoffs. Overall the SEC was 0-4 in non-conference games. Totally unacceptable. Alabama and Missouri play next week for the SEC championship. If, by chance, the Tigers knock off Bama there may not be any SEC teams in the playoffs.

In other college games #7 Baylor barely beat Texas Tech. Unranked Stanford beat #8 UCLA. Most of the rest of the games turned out as expected.

In the new AP Poll there were a few changes. Alabama leapfrogged FSU for the #1 spot, Oregon remained #3. TCU rose to #4 followed by Baylor and Ohio State. The four playoff teams will come from these six schools. The Tide, Noles, Ducks and Buckeyes have conference title games. TCU has what appears to be an easy outing against Iowa State. Baylor has a more challenging foe in Kansas State. We'll see how the College Playoff committee sees it on Tuesday. The final selection will be December 7th.

On to the NFL. Let's start with the Giants at Jaguars game. This was the return of Tom Coughlin to Jacksonville. Tom was the original coach of the Jags and did a terrific job of building a winning program. Unfortunately he was a complete asshole. He has mellowed a bit and has found success with the Giants. On this Sunday he lost on his old home turf. The Jaguars actually won a football game 25-24 over New York (who actually play in New Jersey). Neither of these bad teams scored in the first quarter and then the Giants scored three TDs in the second quarter for a 21-3 halftime lead. It's over right. The Jags are an offensively challenged team so what do they do, they score 22 second half points and hold NY to a FG for a 25-24 win. The winning FG was kicked with less than a half minute remaining in the game. The Giants won the statistical battle but also had three turnovers. The Jaguars defense scored two of their touchdowns, one more than the offense. At this point of the season a win doesn't really help Jacksonville. They are in the race for the top draft spot, not a playoff spot. The Jaguars are now 2-10. Next up is a home game against Houston.

In a surprise, the 4-7 Falcons beat the 9-2 Cardinals. Atlanta got out to a quick 17-0 lead and then held on. They had 500 total yards which has to be a season high. The Cardinals helped the cause with three turnovers. Amazingly this win moved the now 5-7 Falcons into first place in the dreadful NFC South. Next Atlanta, a southern city, has to travel to Green Bay. A lovely place in December. 

Two wins on Sunday is more than enough. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers put an end to those winning ways with a 14-13 loss to Cincinnati. As usual the Bucs got ahead 10-0 in the first half but then couldn't score or hold on. The Bengals managed just enough offense to win despite three turnovers. This game drops TB to 2-10 for the season. They are definitely in the hunt for top draft choice. They now travel to lovely Detroit to meet the 8-4 Lions. At least it's an enclosed stadium.

Next week at this time we will know the four teams in the college playoffs as well as the other bowl participants. Will the Horned Frogs make it? Can FSU continue to play badly and still win? These and other questions will soon be answered.

wjh