Jim Tressel: A Mans Man

In honor of another bowl game loss, I offer this T-Shirt, found on the Internet, to all of the Ohio State haters up there. Sweater vest and wine coolers, now that is a mans man.

Winners and Losers of the Bowl Season

Wow the Bowl Season has finally ended and what a season it has been. From the TCU vs. Boise State game early in the season to the Ohio State vs. Texas Fiesta Bowl, there have been a ton of ups and downs. Here are the winner and losers from the bowl season.

Winners

• Non-BCS Leagues: With Boise and TCU playing a high quality game early in the bowl season and Utah's win over Alabama in the Sugar Bowl teams from non-BCS leagues showed that hey can be a major part of the bowl season.
  
• The Pac-10: For years the league was looked at as being soft. A bad national TV deal leads many in the media to think that they are less of a conference, but during the course of the bowl season they showed that they are force from Oregon's win over Oklahoma State to USC bitch slapping of Penn State.
• Senior Big East QBs Pat White and Mike Teal: Two of the more successful players in the history of the Big East, both ended their careers with bowl win. White over North Carolina, Teal over North Carolina State. It was great to see White fathers singing after is son's bowl win, while Teal, who was the laughing stock of the conference at the start of the year, showed the class he had by bounding back and leading his team to another bowl win. As a season ticket holder at Rutgers, I can only say one thing to Mr. Teal, "Thank you."
• Tulsa: They are the little school that could. Every year they do a great job in developing a great offense and this year was no different. With Todd Graham, the Golden Hurricanes will continue to grow.
• Ole Miss and Vandy: Two of the lower SEC teams each won bowl game and the future looks bright for both teams.
  

Losers

• The Big 10: No shocker their. Every year they look slow and not at pace with other teams it was no different this year. Outclassed in the Fiesta and Rose bowls. They need to go back to drawing board.
  
• Miami: As a fan of the U, this was a hard bowl season from the loss to the California to the mess with QB Robert Marve and the firing of Offensive Coordinator Patrick Nix. It was not fun at all.
• The Sun Bowl: 3-0, no it was not a game from the Barclays Premier League, it was a bowl game. Oregon State and Pitt played one of the worst bowl games in years.
  
• The National Media: So an impressive win over Hawaii has made Notre Dame a national program again. Be careful what you wish for.

This is not good for the Birds

Some times playoff teams can fly under the radar, but not the Birds. This week they are featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated. So as a Bird's fan this is not a great sign cause now I have to worry about SI Cover Jinx.

An Ode to the World Juniors

When I was a young child, I know that makes me sound old, I could not wait to for my friend, who lived in back of me to give me the Hockey News during this time of the year so I could see what happened in the World Junior Hockey Champions. For years the tournament was hided from the American sporting public, but not this year.

The NHL Network showed the tournament and it may have reignited my love for the game that is played on a frozen pond.

In the end the Canadians showed why they have won five straight, they were the best team. The atmosphere in Ottawa was amazing, from the New Years Eve showed with the Americans to the final against Sweden, the crowd never stopped. They made the 19,000 seat area sound like a small college gym. Sometimes it made the hair on the back of you neck stand up. Canadian fans view the World Junior as their March Madness and that showed.

In addition to the atmosphere, there were the players. From John Tavares single handed taking over the New Years Eve clash against the Americans, to the fun loving P.K. Subban (picture right), to the giant Chris Pronger look alike Tyler Myers, the steadiness of the Sweds Mike Backlund and Erik Karlsson, to the power of American James van Riemsdyk. The players were the stars of the show. Some people view it as a step down from the NHL but the skills that were on display during the last 10 days were amazing.

In know somewhere up in sky that my friend is looking down smiling know that the tournament that we tried to follow, during the age before Internet was around, now has a home. Hey I can not wait till the puck drops in Saskatoon and Regina next year.

The Dream Continues

Wow the best weekend of the NFL season is behind us, as the Chargers, Cards, Eagles, and Ravens all advance to the divisional round. Here is how the Monday's newspapers covered Sunday games.

Philadelphia Daily News

The Examiner (Baltimore)

Star Tribune (Minneapolis)

The Miami Herald