If The Heisman Went Out Today...

Is that the Heisman pose that Adrian Peterson, freshman running back for Oklahoma, is making or is it just me?

I'm a little biased of course (being a Sooner fan), but isn't Peterson the best player in the country? 

I have always been under the impression that the best player on the best team wins the award.  Last year, Jason White of Oklahoma was phenominal but was he the best player in the country?  Not quite.  Larry Fitzgerald was.  This year my pick would be Matt Leinart, QB for USC.  Then again, Leinart might not be the best player on his team.  Reggie Bush, USC's RB, is the most amazing athlete in the country bar none.

So if you had a vote for the Heisman...who would you vote for?  Peterson?  Bush?  Leinart?  Michigan wide receiver Braylon Edwards? 

Could Jason White get the award again?  He went 27-for-44 for 389 yards and four TD's this weekend vs Kansas. 

Cedric Benson?  Good running back;  team is so-so and his coach, Mack Brown, is god awful.  He's out. 

Kyle Orton?  Dont get me started.  He's out.  That's all I'm saying.

My Pick?  Adrian Peterson if OU stays undefeated and he stays on pace for 2,000 yards.

P.S. I know that NONE of you follow English soccer (well, maybe one or two of you), but in the story below I mentioned the Arsenal/Manchester United game.  If you notice I said that Man U needs to start getting goals from van Nistelrooy and Rooney.  Man U beat Arsenal 2-0 Sunday ending Arsenal's streak at 49 without a loss.  Who scored the 2 goals you ask?  That's right...van Nistelrooy and Rooney.  Guess I'm doing something right.

The Sports Weekend

What a great weekend of sports we have ahead of us.  

The World Series gets underway this weekend with the St Louis Cardinals traveling to Boston to face the Red Sox in Game 1 Saturday night.  Could this series be any more exciting than the ALCS or NLCS?  I highly doubt it but I'm looking forward to see what both teams have to offer.   Of these two teams, which player would you rather have right now?  On one hand is Papi, Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz.  He is batting .429 and has three game-winning hits this postseason.  Manny Ramirez might be the American League MVP but Papi is Mr October in Boston this fall.

 Another dinger for Ortiz.

On the otherhand is St Louis first baseman Albert Pujols (pronounced Pu-HOLES for those of you who don't know...including me four months ago).  In the NLCS, Pujols batted .500 with four homers and nine RBI's.  Not bad.  When Barry Bonds retires maybe Pujols will get an NL MVP.   He deserves it.

Also on Saturday the college football season rolls along.  The best matchup of the weekend takes place in West Lafayette, Indiana where Michigan squares up against Purdue.  Purdue should be undefeated but Kyle Orton, senior QB for the Boilers, fumbled the ball away with 2 minutes left and blew Purdue's chances at a national title, the Rose Bowl, and the Heisman Trophy for himself.   Congratulations Kyle, you ruined your teams year.  How does that make you feel?   Tell him what you think of his performance against UW by e-mailing him:  KOrton@Purdue.edu

Another great game is the Alabama-Tennessee game.  The Tide blame Phillip Fulmer for being sanctioned by the NCAA.  Need a good read?  Read about what the fans of Alabama think about Fulmer here.  Talk about a nasty rivalry. 

 Tide fans LOVE Fulmer...like Red Sox fans love George Steinbrenner.

The Wisconsin Badgers, still undefeated because of that Orton fumble which was run into the endzone for the go ahead TD, face Northwestern in Madison.  The Badgers have to watch out for a letdown after such a big win last weekend.  Wisconsin lost 16-7 last year to the Wildcats.   It won't happen this year.   Wisconsin moves to 8-0.  

On Sunday the New England Patriots face the NY J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS.  The last time these two teams faced off Jets QB Chad Pennington had five interceptions.  If the Jets want to stay undefeated Pennington can not turn the ball over at all.   Both teams are undefeated but somebody is going home with a loss.  That team will be the Jets.  Tom Brady and the Pats win again.  

Looking for some REAL excitement this weekend?  The National Bullriding World Finals take place on Friday night.  I mean, what's not to love?  I don't know exactly.  Bullriding is not my cup of tea.  Do I look like a person who wants to be bucked off a 2000 lb bull?   Right.  

My Top Eight Sporting Events This Weekend

1. Manchester United vs Arsenal -- Top two teams in England the past ten years face off.  Arsenal hasn't lost in 49 games.  Yes, thats right, 49 games.  Man U need to start getting goals from their amazing strike force of Ruud van Nistelrooy and Wayne Rooney or they are going to have no chance to win the Premiership this year (This is MY top eight list remember which is why this is #1).

2. St Louis Cardinals at Boston Red Sox -- Game 1 is Saturday night.  It's a good thing this matchup comes down to more than just managing because Tony LaRussa would whip Terry Francona in a managing contest...if there was such a thing.  Can Boston 'Reverse the Curse?'   Yes.  Bosox in 6.

3. New York Jets at New England Patriots -- explained above.  Tom Brady won't let the Pats lose.

4. Northwestern at Wisconsin -- Anthony Davis rushes for 200 yards.  John Stocco keeps playing with composure.  Wisconsin wins.

5. Michigan at Purdue -- Come on Kyle, I know you are a better QB than what you showed last weekend.  And another thing...Stop acting like you were playing so great by taking the lead over the Badgers.  Wisconsin's defense line, the best in the country, was out.   Every single one of them.  Just another reason to smile at your fumble last weekend.

6. Dallas Cowboys at Green Bay Packers -- So Favre looked great last weekend.  Can somebody explain to me why he can't do that week in and week out?  If the Pack draft Orton next year I'm becoming a Bear fan...or maybe a Viking fan.  At least they are good.

7. Jacksonville Jaguars at Indianapolis Colts -- Colts ran rampant over the Jags in their last matchup.  Jaguars QB Byron Leftwich has a bad ankle but will play.  Can anybody else see Leftwich getting the Steve McNair syndrome very, VERY early in his career?   He will always play, hurt or not, but does that help or hurt him in the long run?  

8. Miami (Fla.) at North Carolina State -- Canes QB Brock Berlin is going to fall apart sometime.  It will happen sooner than later.  Bank on it.  

"That is damn good scotch. I could do a commercial for this stuff. Mmmmm, boy that Hennigans goes down smooth. And afterwords you don't even smell. That's right folks. I just had three shots of Hennigans and I don't smell. Imagine, you can walk around drunk all day. That's Hennigans, the no-smell, no-tell, scotch."

-Cosmo Kramer

GO PACK GO!!!

So last night the Packers played the Tennessee Titans on Monday Night Football.  What a great game that was.  I could barely stand to watch more than one quarter.  In that fifteen minute period of time, I watched Favre throw an awful interception, the defense miss tackle after tackle and Ahman Green fumble yet again.  When are people going to realize that just because he rushes for a lot of yards doesnt mean he is great?  Year after year he fumbles in every big game.  Honestly, I believe that Mike Sherman has to go.  The Pack has one of the best quarterbacks to ever lace up cleats in Brett Favre.  He is only going to be around for another couple years and we need to take advantage of him while he is still here.

To salvage this season...Sherman has to go and now. 

  Run Adrian, Run

On the college front, who has seen Oklahoma's freshman running back Adrian Peterson?  I saw him last year as a high school senior in Texas.  He is showing the Big 12 why he was the best player in the country last year.  He rushed for over 220 yards vs Texas last weekend.  Then again we all know how pathetic of a coach Mack Brown is.  As a Sooner fan, Mack strikes no fear and I'm sure that every other Sooner fan feels the same way.  Now if Steve Spurrier was the coach of the Longhorns that would be different.  It would be scary to see what Spurrier could do with the talent in Austin. 

Who would like to see Roger Clemens in the World Series pitching at Yankee Stadium next week?  I know I would.  I would much rather see a Cardinals vs Red Sox World Series though. 

Wisconsin plays Purdue this weekend.  This game features the Boilermakers high flying offense with Kyle Orton at QB vs a Badger defense which is one of the best, if not the best, in the country.  The Badgers completely shut down Ohio State's offense last weekend.  It was great to hear the Buckeye fans booing after every three and out.  Bring on Purdue.  It's going to be a great great college football game.  Anthony Davis rushes for 175 yards and the Badgers win, 27-21. 

The WNBA Finals are in full swing and....hahahahaha.  Sorry.  Wasted time and energy there.

My Top Eight Football games this weekend.

1.  Wisconsin at Purdue -- Already explained above.

2.  Seattle at New England -- Damn you St Louis for ruining an undefeated matchup.  Great game still. 

3.  Virginia at Florida State -- Yes Virginia is ranked #6 in the country but they havent traveled to Doak Campbell Stadium yet.  Should be a good one.

4.  Louisville at Miami (Fla) -- Who wouldn't LOVE to see the Canes go down at home on national television? 

5.  Arizona State at USC -- Can anybody stop the Trojans?  I'll answer that question.  Yes.  The Sooners in January.  I have all the answers...anybody else notice that?

6.  Houston at Tennessee -- Tennessee is Tennessee.  McNair is tough as nails.  Chris Brown is a great running back but boy, I really like watching the Texans play.  Andre Johnson is a wonderful wide receiver.

7.  Pittsburgh at Dallas -- Get ready Dallas...Ben Roethlisberger is coming to town.  Wow, he looks good.  Did the Chargers make a mistake or is it just me? 

8.  Green Bay at Detroit -- Okay so we realize its going to be a long year in Title *cough, cough* Town but we better beat Detroit.  If the Pack start 1-5 Favre will retire mid-season.  Mark my words...or something...