Shades Of Blue

I'll be coming to your city.....

2009-05-03T00:17:00.004-06:00

R= Runner

B= Batter

F= Fielder

Question #1: R1 on first, less than two outs, B2 hits a line drive to F6 who allows the ball to strike his glove and then intentionally drops it so as to be able to double up the runners. Is this a legal play? What call should the umpire make, if any?

Had I been asked this question a couple of months ago I wouldn't have known the answer. After having read the rule book though nearly a half dozen times, studied the case book inside and out, read through the umpire's manual at nauseam, given this situation in a ball game I am confident that I could apply the correct rule and make the right call.

For the last few years I have had the itch to try my hand in high school umpiring. A real good friend of mine has been doing it for quite sometime, and with his consistent prodding I finally relented and this year decided to do it.

Most people have had a hard time understanding why I would want to do it. It's a thankless job. An umpire is constantly under the microscope and is open to criticism from the coaches, players and fans. I have a say in what the coaches and players can get away with but no control over the fans, and sometimes they can be ruthless. I've had to develop a thick skin.

So why do I do it? I love baseball. I love being around the game. I saw it as an opportunity to better learn the sport. I enjoy being in the middle of the game even if it is from an officiating position. So far it has been an enjoyable experience.

I enjoy the challenge of learning something new. There is a lot that goes into being a good umpire, from knowing the rules to knowing the mechanics that put you in the right place to make a call. When I watch baseball on tv, I find myself watching the umpires as much as I do the players. I keep track of how the umpire calls a watched strike compared to a swinging strike, how they punch someone out on a backwards K, or how the base ump sells his call on a close play. Just being an umpire for me is not enough, I want to be good at it as well. That's what I am working towards.

Question #2: With a fielder in a position to make a play, R2 is on first and R1 is touching second. R1 is hit by a batted ball by B3 while touching second. What is the call in this situation?

Evolution of a Hitter!

2009-03-02T22:44:00.013-07:00

If any of you have spent time around my 3 year old boy, Kade, then you already know how much he loves to hit a baseball. It's been that way since about the time he was 18 months old. The baseball bat never seemed foreign to him. From the first time he picked it up it was as if he already knew what to do with it.

There was talk of Kade becoming a hitter long before he was even born. At that time though, we were just hoping that the Kademan would make it to this world to even have that chance.

Kade is our miracle baby. For two weeks in May-June of 05, we weren't sure if Amanda and Kade were going to make it. Amanda, while 27 weeks pregnant with Kade, came down with a very serious case of pneumonia. As they put the tube down her throat so that the ventilator could breath for her, the doctor told me that she might not make it through all that was ahead of her. "You're wife might die." Those were words I most definitely was not prepared to hear.

Shortly thereafter the realization hit that not only could I lose my wife but also my unborn son. Everything dear to me was about to be taken away.

Not only was her health a concern, but that of Kade's as well. He wasn't quite far enough along that they felt comfortable taking him unless they absolutely had to. The worry was that his lungs were not quite ready. Out of precaution, just in case things turned for the worse, they pumped him full of a steroid to help his lungs develop.

My boy was now juiced.

From that came the talk of him being a power hitter, this while he was still in the womb. We made jokes of Payson City having to run drug screenings before they would allow him to play T-ball, or having to put an * next to his name when he gets to high school, etc.

We really didn't know at the time how appropriate it was to talk of Kade and hitting a baseball. It didn't take long for us to find out though.

Thankfully everything went well with Amanda. She recovered, went full term, and delivered a healthy little boy. We were so grateful to finally have him with us.

You can imagine how happy I was when it became apparent, when he was just over a year old, that Kade liked sports. He would sit down with me and watch whatever I was watching. When Memo would knock down the money shot and I would cheer, he would cheer also. We watched BYU football, Utah Jazz basketball, Sportscenter, etc. The one thing that caught his attention more than anything though was baseball. He was mesmerized by it.

It wasn't until the following spring that we finally bought him a bat. We got him one of those big red "Captain Cave Man" bats. He could barely hold the thing up. As big as it was though he knew exactly what to do with it without any coaching from me.

With time the bat and balls got smaller, and we graduated from the tee to under hand pitch and then on to overhand pitch.

He was hooked.

He is a shy kid. When someone new would come to the house, he wouldn't talk to them but eventually he would end up by their side with his little indoor bat and a ball. That's how he would break the ice. He would have them pitch to him.

We would watch him play make-believe and laugh because the majority of the time he was acting like he was swinging a bat or shooting a basket. Sports were always on his mind, especially baseball.

As he has gotten older though he isn't nearly as obsessed with hitting. He has other hobbies and interests, but baseball is still towards the top of the list.

I took him to get a hair cut a couple of weeks ago and when the gal asked him what he was going to do for fun that day he said, "go home and play baseball with my Dad." I love it.

Every mother crow thinks that her baby is the blackest, well, I think Kade is a pretty good little hitter. He's got coordination that I never had, but he also shares my love of the game. What Dad wouldn't be happy with that?

To be honest though, that's only a small part of it. I love it when he asks me to play baseball, I love the time that I get to spend with him throwing, I love that we have this special bond between us, a passion that brings us together. I love it not only because it's baseball and he's actually pretty good at it, but because every time I play baseball with my boy it reminds me of those long tear filled days when I pled with my Heavenly Father just for an opportunity to know my son.

We talked of baseball in the hospital, but at that time we didn't even know if he was going to live.

I love watching him hit a baseball because I can! It's an opportunity that I have been given, one that I am very grateful to have and one that I'll never take for granted.

I love being a Dad!

In the videos he is 18 months, 22 months, 2 years old and then lastly 3 years old. The last video you'll have to turn your head to the side to see. Sorry.

A great night of Basketball!

2009-02-12T14:13:00.005-07:00

If you are a basketball fan and you live in the state of Utah, chances are last night you had something to be happy about. The Jazz, Cougars and Utes all played and all three teams came away with wins.

On the College level, the MWC is shaping up to be a close contested battle by a number of teams vying for that #1 position. As of now the Utes sit alone atop the conference standings after pulling off a very important win over Aztec team that going into the game shared the top spot. BYU as of late has been playing some good basketball and still has a chance at the conference title with the majority of their remaining games at home, including a match up against the Utes at the Marriot Center. The problem for the Cougs however is that they have to travel to Las Vegas as well as San Diego, places that Dave Rose has yet to coach his team to victories.

You can feel the excitement for March madness build as we get closer and closer to the end of the season. The talk is that the state of Utah could possibly, once again, produce four teams that make their way into the dance. The Utes and Aggies are well on their way, the Cougs need to finish strong and the Wildcats need to win their conference tournament. It would be cool if all 4 could pull it off.

As the college teams look ahead to March, the Jazz are heading into the All-Star break looking forward to getting some key players back in the line-up. The Jazz have been hit hard by the injury bug but still find themselves in the play-off hunt. With the return of Boozer and AK the Jazz should be able to make a run and improve their spot in the West. As of now they sit at number 8.

I have at times been critical of Booz, I don't necessarily care much for the guy, but his return will give this team a big boost that they definitely could use. As much as I like Paul and as well as he has played in Boozers absence, I still think Boozer gives this team a better chance of winning with him in the starting line-up. Combine Carlos's double-doubles with an experienced Milsap going against the opposing bench and I think that sets the Jazz up to have quite a bit of success. These last 30 games should be pretty exciting. I love this time of year.

Last nights game felt like it had a post season atmosphere. I spent most of the time on my feet cheering and yelling. It was exciting basketball, a close game with back and forth lead changes. Big shots were made by both teams and because of that it made it even that much sweeter that the Jazz pulled it out in the end.

The two best plays of the night were D-wills crossover that about put Kobe on his butt and then Memo mocking Kobe after the big Turk knocked down a 3 to put the Jazz up for good.

Great game and a great win.

Collie to the NFL!

2009-01-09T12:08:00.004-07:00

Can't say I blame him.

If I were in his shoes I would do the same thing. He has nothing to gain by staying another year. He wouldn't come out of next season any more attractive to the NFL than he already is now. He would be risking injury by staying at the Y, and even as good as he is in college, an injury could take him out of consideration for the Pros much in the same way it did Luke Staley. Playing in the NFL has always been his goal, so I say go chase your dreams while you are healthy and able to do so.

He will be impossible to replace. In the history of BYU, even with a long list of good receivers to come through the program, they have never quite had one quite as dynamical as Austin. Not only will his play be missed on the field but his leadership as well. He was the one who emerged as the team leader during a season when this team sorely needed one.

Will the Y move on and survive without him? Sure. It won't be easy, but the Cougs will have a cast of receivers, including the returning McKay Jacobsen, who will try to fill the void as a collective group.

Looking at it with a "glass half full" approach, hopefully this will force Max to look the whole field and spread out his passes rather than keying in on only one receiver.

Good luck Austin!

The best Ute team ever?

2009-01-07T11:30:00.004-07:00

This will be the first and last time that I actually dedicate a post to the Ute football team in order to give them credit for being a great team.

Before the season started I went on record saying that I felt they would be a good team, but thought in regular Ute fashion they would squander a game away somewhere in the season as a result of their own undoing. At times they came close to proving me right but in the end were able to hold to their perfect record and put a exclamation point in dominating fashion onto a outstanding season. To go undefeated is no easy feat, especially when you have to finish it off by beating one of the best teams in the SEC to do it.

As I watched the game it brought to mind a couple of different questions about this team, questions that are still being thrown around the radio today. Is this team better than the 04 team, and are they really deserving of being voted #1 in the polls? Interestingly enough, my answer for both questions is the same for the same reason.

No!

As great as this team is, and they truly are great, they struggled at times during the regular season to barely hold on to victory. A two point win over a 3-9 Michigan team, an end of the game touchdown to beat out Air Force and a 3 point win over New Mexico are examples of games when this team struggled against average or less than average opponents. Not to mention the TCU game where the Utes were fortunate/lucky to come away with the win.

My point is, the 04 team rolled through their schedule. They dominated opponents game in and game out, leaving no room for criticism. They hit the ground running from the very beginning of the season and never slowed down. Unfortunately for them, they were never given the chance to prove how good they really were on the nations biggest stage.

The 08 team on the other hand was slower in progressing. They've peaked at the right time, and are playing as good of football as anyone now, but it wasn't sustained throughout the entire season. At times they looked less than stellar.

Listen, the truth of the matter is though that they really are an amazing team worthy of a top five finish. Should Ute Nation be clamoring for a #1 ranking? You bet. I don't think they are the best team though, but don't blame K-Whit and the fans for arguing the point. I would be doing the same if it were the Cougars.

I still wouldn't put them as the best Ute team of all time, and if I had a vote for this years champion they wouldn't get mine over OU, Texas, USC or even Florida. I think they could hang with them and on a given Saturday possibly pull off a win, but they weren't consistent enough for me over the whole season to count them as college football's best. One of the best, yes. But not the best.

In any regard, it was an amazing season that has all Cougar fans red with envy. The last time BYU had a season that is even close in comparison was back in 96 after knocking of K State in the Cotton Bowl. They finished with one loss and #5 in the final polls. The Utes have more than matched that twice in the last 5 seasons.

Utah isn't just a basketball school anymore. Who's the big brother now?

Reality Bites!

Coaching Changes...

2008-12-04T20:55:00.003-07:00

Though I bleed Cougar blue, as an Aggie alum I still like to keep up to date with the programs up at USU. It has been announced that Utah Defensive Coordinator Gary Anderson will take over the football head coaching position.

I'm excited to see what Coach Anderson can do with what appears to be a hopeless program. He has agreed to take over a team that for as long as I can remember has made a habit of losing. As impossible as a task that it may seem, it appears that the athletic program has finally decided to put some money into football. With Anderson's ability to recruit and a knowledge for coaching, maybe he is the guy to get that thing headed in the right direction. We'll know in a few years when he either gets fired or moves onto bigger and better things.

It sounds like he will be taking some other Coaches with him from the Utes staff as well.

I was also happy to see former BYU QB and current USC offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian land the job in Seattle. Much like Anderson, he has inherited a UW program that is hurting in a very bad way.

The odds are stacked against these guys but hopefully they can find a way to succeed.

How come 10-2 feels so bad?

2008-11-23T14:50:00.002-07:00

Going into this game I knew that BYU was going to have their hands full. I never denyed who the better team was, that being the Utes, but I had thought the disparity between the two teams was closer than what was shown last night on the field. I thought that the Cougars could hang with the Utes and if things bounced right for them they could be in a position to take this game in the fourth quarter.

Half way through the third quarter, when the score was 27-24, I was feeling pretty good about our chances to pull off the upset. Then the wheels came off.

My biggest concern going into the game was whether or not the Defense was going to get enough, if any stops to keep the Cougars in the game. The Utes offense moved the ball very effectively on the Y's D, but aside from the first quarter I thought the defense stepped up their level of play, and played well enough that the Offense had a chance to win this game. I wasn't expecting a lot from the defense, but they exceeded my expectations.

Overall, with the exception of #15, I thought the offense played a pretty good game. Austin Collie proved once again that he is a man playing amongst boys with another 100+ output by the junior receiver. As I watched him play I realized that our days of watching him wear Cougar Blue very well could be coming to an end. I really wouldn't be surprised to see him take his game to the next level in the upcoming draft.

I thought the running game was effective. Both backs ran hard, and for the most part were able to take the intial hit and still drive for a few extra yards. The offensive line I thought had a good game opening up holes to run through as well as giving protection to the quarterback.

Pitta was definitely missed. He was able to get in on a few plays, but he wasn't able to contribute like he normally would. It was nice to see Reed get a few touches, and to be honest, he should have be thrown to more.

Max Hall had what was probably the worst game of his life. To be honest, I actually feel kind of sorry for the guy. I screwed up a co-ed softball game this year and had a hard time letting it go. I can only imagine the let down that he is feeling right about now. To lose on that stage in the way that he did has to be pretty gut wrenching.

Who else can you blame though? He was personally responsible for 5 out of the 6 turnovers, with the sixth one coming on a bad pass that was tipped up in the air. The last one wasn't all his fault, but he still had a hand in it.

The timing of the turnovers couldn't have come at a worse moment either. Just before the half during the Cougars last drive, they had the momentum and were in a position to take the lead before going into the locker room. The Utes would then have to kick to them to start the second half. Hall throws a pick that still after watching the replay I am not sure who it was for. As bad as the pick was, he then followed it up with a personal foul that put the Utes in scoring positon. Not the kind of play you want to see from a team captain.

Fortuately, in the third quarter they were able to overcome it and work themselves back to a 3 point defecit. Again, with the ball and the momentum, Max turned the ball over killing the drive.

The Utes were able to score 28 points off of turnovers. It's hard for any defense to stop a team when they start with a 31 yard field, much less a 4 yard field. Every single possesion that BYU had in the fourth quarter ended in a turnover.

I won't take anything away from the Utes D. They definitely are a good squad. I hate it when people don't give a defense credit for creating the turnover, but I will say that Max made their jobs real easy at times. I could have sworn some of those balls had Christmas bows on them. They were in the right position though and made the play. In fact, Hall was lucky he was only picked 5 times.

It was an Ugly game. I hate seeing the Cougs lose, even more so when it is against that damn team in red. Congrats to the Utes though for doing something that the Y couldn't. They stayed focussed, grounded, took it one game at a time, won 12 straight and now will be the first non-bcs team to play for the second time in a BCS bowl. That blows. Jealousy is a hard pill to swallow.

I'm not ready to give up on Max. I still think he is a great qb, just had a bad night. He has some bad habits that he needs to address, but will have a very long offseason to think about them and hopefully work them out.

Bring on the bowl game. Nothing heals a wound faster than getting back on the field. If the Y ends up in Vegas, which all sources suspect they will, we'll be there with our game day gear cheering them on.

Out of the Mouth of Babes.....

2008-11-21T17:16:00.006-07:00

BYU football for me is much more than just the game itself. It is a key part of the relationship I have with my Dad. I know in the grand scheme of things it is only a game, but the memories that I have along side my father cheering on the Cougars are ones that I'll value forever.

So it should come as no surprise the excitement I have in the fact that my 3 year old has taken great interest in Cougar Football as well. Since the time this years media guide arrived to our home it has been in his room alongside his bed. Night after night we would flip through the pages talking about who was in each picture and what they did.

Kade made it to 4 out of the 6 home games. If you were to ask him he would tell you that he took me to the game and not the other way around. We enjoyed Cougar Dogs, souvenir cups, licorice, Cosmel (Cosmo) and sitting alongside Grandpa.

In the spirit of tomorrows game, Kade has agreed to give us his feelings about the game and the Utah oo-tes, straight from the Biggest Little BYU fan there is.

Elden B. Kimball bringing it...

2008-11-21T14:13:00.005-07:00

Super Y fan, Elden B. Kimball giving his take of the game to John and Hans on 1280 the zone.

Rise and Shout!

BYU Offense vs. Utah Defense

2008-11-20T16:58:00.004-07:00

I was going to link the article on the side but figured I would put it here so D.P. could give his take on it. If any of you other guys have an opinion feel free to leave it as well.

BYU Offense vs. Utah Defense

I don't think this match-up is nearly as important as the Utes Offense vs. BYU's defense. I think the Y's O will put up points but most likely not as many as usual. They should still have a good game though.

The Utes D is tough, and will most likely do a pretty good job of keeping BYU's offense in check. They won't shut them down, but won't need to to be able to win the game.

These two sides have been consistent all year long and I expect the same on Saturday.

CAUGHT FOR THE TOUCHDOWN!

2008-11-18T13:36:00.007-07:00

A few of my favorite BYU vs. Utah football memories:

Beck to Harline..-2006

4th and 18- Magic happens!-2007

Staley up the sideline-2001.

Coach Edwards final game.-2000

On a wing and a prayer!

2008-11-15T00:01:00.003-07:00

When the Air Force Academy came to town it was always one of my most favorite games to go to. Only because I knew that there would be a fly over prior to the game starting. Watching Air Force run their offense is about as exciting as watching paint dry, but the thrill of seeing a military jet so up close and personal and to be able to feel the power of the engine as it reverberated through my body is a highlight of my Cougar Football memories. To be honest I still get excited for it even now.

This years match up between the two teams takes place on the road in Colorado Springs. BYU's performance on the road so far this year has been less than stellar, the Falcons are playing some good football and even though I should be nervous for this game, surprisingly I am not. I might eat my words by tomorrow, but I think BYU will come out of this with a convincing win.

BYU has traditionally matched up well against AF and I don't think this year will be any different. It's no secret what Air Force will try to accomplish on offense. They are primarily a run offense that tries to control the clock as well as set the tempo of the game. Fortunately, if BYU has a strength on Defense it is their ability to stop the run. Their front seven is pretty stout and as long as they keep to their assignments they should be able to keep the Falcons in check.

AF does have a passing game but I don't think it's strong enough to really take advantage of the Y's weakness in the secondary position. I think BYU can cover the pass well, especially if they put the Falcons is situations where they know a pass is coming, like third and long plays. AF is capable of catching a team off guard with a little play action pass. They proved that against CSU this last week, but they won't win the game by straying to far away from what they do best which is run it down the defense's throat.

I will give the Falcons offense the advantage over BYU's defense but it won't be enough to claim victory in the end.

I think Max Hall will have a good day tomorrow. The Falcon's have a good defense but it won't be enough to keep the Cougars from getting in the end zone. As far as athleticism goes both teams are evenly matched with BYU being better in the skilled positions. I think they will be able to put together a balanced attack and in the end it will show by at least 10 points on the scoreboard at the end of the game.

These last two games for BYU are going to be tough. Air Force is good enough to beat BYU, there is no doubt about that, but I don't think it will happen. Bronco has had time to prepare his guys, they have proven over the years to be a disciplined group and I expect good position mastery and good assignment football to get the job done. I don't think BYU will have to rely on any "magic" to win this one.

If they can come home with a victory, the stage will be set for next weeks battle up on the hill.

-As a side note, I made it to every home game this year and must say, it was kind of a boring, lackluster home schedule. The only game that had any hype going into as being a tough game was the one against UCLA and it turned out to be anything but a nail biter.

Four out of the six games were blow out wins by BYU. The only game that BYU even trailed in was the UNLV game. The Rebels took a fourth quarter lead and BYU had to make a sustained drive late in the game to ensure the win. Other than that the games were never in question.

As a fan I'll definitely take the wins and cheer every good play, but every once in awhile it's fun to see your team get tested. As fun as it is to watch BYU put up lots of points, the wins that you remember are the close ones that came down to the very end, ie. Utah (2001, 2006,20007), Miami, TCU (2007), etc..

Next season could be the opposite with possibly some pretty exciting games. Florida State is scheduled to come to town, as well as conference opponents TCU, Utah and Air Force. With ASU as well as possibly an opening date against Oklahoma, next season is shaping up to be a fun year for BYU fans.

I guess I should worry about next year though after we get all the way through this season.

A look back/ A look ahead....

2008-11-06T14:31:00.004-07:00

ONE HAND GRAB

This last Saturday the Y traveled to Fort Collins and came away with a win. Like many of their games this season it wasn't pretty but they got the job done nonetheless. It took a last minute drive of around 80 yards that ended with Pitta busting across the goal line after catching a pass from Hall to finally seal the deal with only 22 seconds left on the clock.

Many BYU fans were left frustrated and upset because the game was closer than they thought it should be. The post game shows were full of BYU fans complaining about the play of the defense and how Bronco has let this team slide into the state that they find themselves.

If you are one of these fans and couldn't find anything worth cheering for in last Saturday's game you need to come back to reality. The last five games are more of an indication of what this team's is all about as opposed to what the first four games led us to believe. As Max Hall said they aren't as good as we all thought they were. If you are still holding onto the BCS hype and top ten ranking you are delusional.

They are not the team we thought they were. That's not to say that they are a bad team either though. They're not great, but they're still pretty good. The quest for perfection is dead but their is still plenty to play for. The wins aren't always pretty but this team is still finding a way to win. Heading into their tenth game with a 8-1 record and ranked in the top 20 in most polls is nothing to complain about. BYU fans need to get over their disappointment of the TCU loss and realize that this year is still on track to end as a great season. With a little help they could even still end with a share of the conference title.

The CSU game was entertaining. The offense moved the ball well and when put in a position to where they had to get a score they drove the length of the field and punched it in. It was exciting football. I enjoyed it. You won't find me complaining about a win.

The Cougs have three games left on their schedule, all three of which are winnable. Their biggest test will come at the end of the season at RES against what has turned out to be a solid Running Ute team. If they can get by San Diego State and Air Force unscathed that Nov 22 match-up still has the potential to be one of the biggest games this rivalry has seen.

With some key wins to finish the year, BYU will set themselves up to give the BCS another try next year. With ASU and FSU on their schedule, and possibly opening up with Oklahoma in Dallas, the Cougs will face a tough road to the BCS, but if their ever was a BYU team mature enough to make that run, next years team will be it. At least then nobody can discredit their SOS.

Kade and I have our tickets for this coming Saturday. I expect a lopsided Cougar win over the bottom team of the MWC. If things go well hopefully the starters will be out early so they can save themselves for a tough road game against what is always a scrappy Air Force team.

-Utah vs TCU to this point is probably the biggest game the MWC has ever had. Hopefully it lives up to it's hype. For a BYU fan it is a win-win situation. The only way BYU has a shot at a share of the MWC is if Utah can knock off TCU. If TCU wins, despite not having much of a chance of a shared championship, at least we can take consolation from watching the Utes get beat on the National Stage in front of everyone to see. So, no matter who wins I'll be happy with the results.

If I were to make a guess I would say TCU takes it in a close one. Dr. P. has me convinced that B.J. really isn't that great of a QB, and if his inconsistent play were to bite his team in the butt and cost them a win, tonight would be the game. It should be a great defensive battle, but I'll go with the odds makers and say TCU wins by three, 17-14.

A few thoughts-

2008-10-25T21:01:00.005-06:00

-When the day started, I had no intentions of going to the football game. My Dad's tickets were being used by one of my older brothers, and since I had been to every game so far I didn't put up too much of a fuss that not a single one was left for me.

Amanda and I had decided earlier in the week that since we weren't going to the game we would at least put on the game day gear and drive up to Wingers to catch the 1280's pre-game show. Eating wings and watching some of the game there win Hans Olsen and Kevin Graham sounded better than staying at home and watching it on our little TV.

We apparently were the only ones who either didn't have tickets or even likes Hans Olsen because when we arrived the place was empty. We couldn't have timed it any better because as we pulled into the parking lot they offered two tickets to the next fans to walk through the door and ask for them. Those fans happened to be us.

Even though we had plans to chow on wings, now that we had tickets in hand and a 3 year old boy who really wanted to go, my amazing wife gladly dropped Kade and I off at the stadium and sent us on our way. I'm lucky to have a wife who not only shares my love of BYU football but who can also appreciate my love of sharing it with my boy.

The tickets weren't all that great, my boy seemed to pick the most inopportune moments to need to go to the bathroom (when Kade says he has to go you don't wait) and I realized when it was time to pay for our Team Awesome hot dog that I had left my debit card at Wingers. Despite all that, we still had a great time.

I think most Dads could understand the enjoyment that comes from walking into the stadium with your teams colors on and listening to the excitement in your young boys voice as he takes it all in.

I love being a Dad.

-Not much I want to say about the game other than I am glad the Cougs got the win. I was hoping they would come out with a little more fire and intensity, get an early lead and have the rebels put away going into the last quarter.

I was disappointed that they couldn't put UNLV away and that they kept trading touchdowns with them. The offense played well but the defense seemed to struggle. I was glad to see that when they needed a big stop at the end of the game the defense was able to pull through and keep them out of the endzone. I would have been more happy though had they not even let it stay that close.

It wasn't pretty but at least it was a win.

-How bad does it suck that if no team from the MWC runs the table, the best bowl game that the conference can get is the Las Vegas Bowl against the fifth place team of a conference that was absolutely dominated by Mountain West teams?

Come on Craig Thompson, earn your money! Is that the best we can do?

Congratulations, if you don't go to Vegas then you get to play in the Poinsettia Bowl against Navy. If that doesn't excite you, how about the Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth? Did I mention Albuquerque? What about Boise in December?

The Bowl tie in's for the MWC absolutely blow. I know the Utes and TCU both have a chance to still bust into the BCS, but looking at their schedules I think both teams will drop at least one between now and the end of the year. At that point the conference will be left playing in the same lousy bowls against equally lousy opponents.

Looking on the bright side, at least nobody has to go to Memphis.

-Four days to go until the Jazz start their regular season. I don't multi task all that well so I spend most of my time watching the Cougars and at the end of the football season change my focus to the Jazz. I have been keeping an eye on D-Will though and his health status. The Jazz are fortunate that he only sprained his ankle. Deron has said that when he initially rolled it he thought that he had sustained a season ending injury. When it happened he heard a pop.

I think the Jazz will be alright in his absence with Price and Knight running the point. They're obviously not nearly as good but I think they will get the job done. It goes without saying though that all Jazz fans alike anxiously await the return of our franchise player.

-Any of you guys watching the "World Serious"? (Kade-ism) I don't really care for either team but have enjoyed watching it anyways. I am hoping that it goes 7 games. I love October baseball. In fact, I can't think of a better month for sports. You know on any given Saturday in October that you will always have something good to watch on the TV.

Later!

Quest for Redemption!

2008-10-21T20:06:00.002-06:00

Within minutes of the start of the BYU/TCU game I knew that the Cougars were in for a very long night. The last time I felt that way watching a game was last season when BYU came out and lost the momentum early on against Tulsa. It was frustrating to say the least to watch as BYU fell further and further behind in that game with absolutely no answer to stop TCU. BYU came out flat and TCU was playing out of their heads.

What was learned from that night? It depends on who you ask.

Is TCU the powerhouse that they appeared to be? And conversely, is BYU nothing more than just an average team that was exposed for who they really are.

TCU is obviously capable of playing well. They showed that against the Y. I think they are a solid team but I think Thursday night was more the exception than the norm. Their defense is outstanding but their offense has been suspect at times. I think they will finish the season with a good record but I don't think they will get through conference play undefeated. I think when they travel to RES that they will be in for a battle that will give them a loss in league play.

After the loss, everybody placed blame for the loss on the fact that TCU has better athletes than they Y. That's definitly the case, but come on, who doesn't? UCLA had better athletes. Washington had better athletes. Almost every team BYU goes against the argument could be made that they have better athletes.

BYU has proven that over the years they can compete and beat teams with better athletes than themselves. I do believe TCU's atheleticism contributed in part to the loss, but I think the main factor that caused the complete lapse in play was lack of preparation.

By not practicing on Sunday and having to travel on Wednesday to play Thursday, it essentially left BYU two days to prepare for the game. Contrast that with the fact that coach Patterson said that his team had be preparing for BYU since January. When looking ahead to the season, the game against BYU was more important to them than playing well against #1 Oklahoma. Their tackling dummies had BYU stickers on them. This was their big game.

BYU had a big Bullseye on their back and the Frogs hit the center of the target. I'm not trying to make excuses for the Cougars. It was Bronco's responsibility to make sure his team was ready and he admittedly said that he let them down by not getting them prepared to play.

So back to the question. Was this game an indication of what type of team BYU really is? Are they really that bad? I don't think so. They obviously can play down to that level if they come in unprepared, but we have seen also what they can do when things come together. I believe we saw a good team have an off night. It happens.

To all you BYU fans who have given up on this season, don't. The BCS hype is over, sure. But there is still a lot to play for including a possible share in the conference championsip, a win over the rival Utes, a bowl bid, and most importantly they can set themselves up for next year. If they can run the table the rest of the season they will be going into next year in a position even better than the one they started this year with. Not only will they have the whole offense coming back, but they will have the majority of their defense returning as well.

Is that enough to motivate the Cougars as well as their fans. For me it is. I expect the Y to come out with a chip on their shoulders and finish the season strong. I think at the end of the year we'll look back on a one loss season which will be an improvement over last year's record, a top 20 ranking for the third consecutive time in as many years, and an optimistic outlook towards next season for what possiblilities lay in store for this team.

Will it happen? We'll see. Either way I'll be their to cheer on the mighty Cougs in their Quest for Redemption.

Their Quest begins Saturday. Bring on the Rebels.

Where Champions are made!

2008-10-15T22:58:00.008-06:00

What does Harvey Unga and a set of flags have in common? More than you might think.

A story broke today that came as no surprise to a lot of us here in Payson. Obviously though, from the story, it was apparent that Bronco wasn't privy to the same information that we all had.

Harvey was unable to travel with the team to Fort Worth because there was a question of whether or not he was in compliance with NCAA regulations. The item in doubt was whether or not he violated any rules by playing city league flag football.

For the last season and a half Harvey has not only been breaking tackles, catching passes and scoring touchdowns at LES, but has been doing the same exact things twice a week at the old Hillman Fields here in Payson.

You might wonder why an athlete, who plays on the biggest stage here in the state and has so much talent, would waste his time and risk it all on a flag football field. I'll tell you why. Because we're that good.

That's right. He comes down here for the competition. You can only become the best by playing against the best. To those who might not understand the level of play that takes place here under the lights in Payson, you might read this story and automatically assume that he is a ringer. You might come to the conclusion that he was brought down to guarantee his team a championship. Well, I have two hoodies that say champion on the front that would argue otherwise.

Sure he's a great flag football player, but he is no Payson City champion. If an easy championship is what he wants he might as well stick to the MWC because nobody is going to hand it to him here just because he has graced us with his presence.

You think the Utes or TCU have a tough D? You think their intimidating? Wait till you look across the line and go eye to eye with Jed McClellen, 2007 Defensive MVP. Sure he's only 5'2", but don't let size fool you. Good luck trying to put a block on Hub when he comes in on a full out blitz. Or try getting open for a pass with either Yama or Hooper covering you. It won't happen.

BYU hoodies are nice but real champions wear Skull and Crossbones. I mean, come on, nothing defines football greatness like a pirate symbol embroidered across the front of a hoodie. I got one in black and gray.

I'm guessing Harvey's flag football days have come to an end. He was able to catch up to the Cougars on a later commercial flight once they got word that no rules were violated, but I am sure Bronco isn't too happy about having his star running back risking injury with the likes of us.

That's alright. He'll be just fine. Even though there was so much more that he could develop skill wise in our league, he'll still go on and do great things. In a way it's gratifying to know that we helped him get to where he is at today.

War the Fighting Cocks, back to back city league champions, for accomplishing something in football that Unga couldn't.

Champions are made on the Hillman Fields, not ..... well, something like that anyways.

What to do, what to do

2008-10-14T17:07:00.002-06:00

I go back and forth with cheering for the Utes. On one hand, they are the key to the promised land of BCS bowl births. On the other hand, they have ripped the hearts out of their fans over the past couple of years, and I don't know if I can let the Utah Yucks do that to me. When they trip over some crappy conference foe, I don't want to admit that they had me going. I think I am better off shutting my eyes when they play and just looking at the score and telling myself that it doesn't matter either way.

So what I have decided is this: Logically, I know that no matter what I scream at the TV or who I cheer for, it will have no bearing with the football gods, and the chips will fall where they may. So I think I have to stay true to myself and continue to hate the Yucks with a passion and hope that they fall hard every week and are pathetic at every turn. Then I shield myself from letting them have power over me and I don't have to worry that they can dissapoint me when they choke. Let BYU control their destiny and if by chance the Yucks are undefeated at the end of the season when the showdown happens, I will still be filled with that awesome hate that isn't watered down from the confusion of cheering them on during the season.

So here's to BYU's little brother - The Utah Yucks - enjoy the ride, but just know that no matter what happens, you will be the stepping stone to cap off a great season for the Boys in Blue. Go Cougars!!

Making a deal with the Devil!

2008-10-01T11:00:00.005-06:00

I have made a decision in my life that very well could affect my personal salvation and that of my entire family. It is a decision that never in a million years did I ever think that I would make. It's a decision that goes against one of my innermost core beliefs. Though it is racking my entire body with feelings of guilt and shame, because of circumstances out of my control I feel like I have no other choice.

As a kid growing up it was always black and white.(blue and white would be better said) There was no middle ground. We were and continue to be Cougar fans.

Along with my love for the Cougars came a disliking for the team in red. The Utes were the enemy. On any given weekend in the fall I would cheer for the Cougars and any team that played the Utes. That's just how it was.

In 1998, when the Utes played for the NCAA basketball championship, I cheered for Kentucky. In 2004, though it was a long shot, I hoped that Pitt could put a complete game together and knock off Urban and his crew. It didn't matter how much exposure the conference would get, if it was the Utes doing the playing I wanted them to lose.

At times my feelings were rewarded. In 2001, I laughed as Lance Rice mismanaged the clock and the Utes ran out of time on the 4 yard line down only by one point. In 2005, I was amused when the Utes failed 3 times to punch it in the endzone from the 1 inch line and lost to CSU. When Frank "the tank" Summers ran roughshod over the Utes defense and shut the men in red out 27-0, I was giddy.

What do I do now though?

BYU is now in the discussions of not only breaking into the BCS, but they are also being mentioned by the national media as possibly landing in the championship game.

A lot of things would have to occur for that to even be a possibility, but the talk is being generated none the less. Is it possible? I guess. Likely? No. But it's still fun to speculate.

The biggest source of criticism against the Cougars is their strength of schedule. It's no secret that they haven't played nor will play anybody good until possibly the last game of the season. This unfortunately is where the Y will have to rely on the Utes.

If things were to turn out in college football the same way they did last year with all the BCS conference champions having 2 or more losses, a 2 loss team could still leap frog BYU in the BCS polls based on their SOS. That is unless they can play a top ten opponent and beat them on their own field.

The perfect storm is building. If BYU and Utah were to match up at the end of the year both undefeated, you can bet both would be ranked in the top ten. It would be the battle of the century. The stakes would be huge. The teams would not only be playing for bragging rights but also for a conference championship, BCS bowl birth and, though it would be a long shot, they could possibly be playing for an appearance in the BCS championship game. Both teams need to be ranked though to be even considered for the big daddy of the bowls.

My dilemma is, can I really bring myself to cheer for the Utes and hope that they win every game so as to remain undefeated?

I am sickened to admit that with the circumstances being what they are, tomorrow night when the Utes and OSU kickoff, for the first time in my life I will sit in front of my TV and will say, "a Utah man am I." I will watch the Utes and will fight off the feelings to root against them, feelings that come to me just as naturally as breathing. I will be cheering that the team in that awful color of red can pull off the win and continue to move up in the polls.

There is a lot of risk with hoping for an undefeated Ute season. If Utah were to win that final game they would steal everything right out from under the Cougars and they would be the ones to enjoy the BCS party. It would open us up to smack talk like none that Cougar fans have ever experienced. I'm willing to risk it though. With great risk, comes even greater reward.

The stars are aligning. There is still along ways to go and a lot of football to be played. BYU has to remain undefeated and that will not be an easy task. In the end though, if they can pull it off, this year has the potential to be the best in BYU history. The reward could be great.

For that I reason I have made the decision that I have. I have turned a blind eye on all that I was taught as a kid with regards to this rivalry.

May God have mercy on my soul!

Powder River, Let 'Er Buck!

2008-09-23T21:41:00.005-06:00

With a 44-0 shutout of the Wyoming Cowboys, the Cougars increased the count of unanswered points to 103. The last two games, though decisive blowouts of the opposing teams, have still left a lot of people wondering how good the Cougars really are? Were those wins really that impressive?

They impressed me, and I'll tell you why.

Offensively:

In the case of the UCLA game, there is no doubt that their offense is struggling. The defense on the other hand was the side of the ball for the Bruins that was going to be their strong point this season. With all the coaching changes that took place at UCLA, the defense retained their coordinator from the old coaching staff. The schemes are still the same.

Despite all the injuries to the Bruins, the defense remained healthy. Two of there D-lineman, as well as one of their corners most likely will see time in the NFL. The Bosworth brothers were the talk of the night by the ESPN commentators covering the Tennessee game in the Rose Bowl.

The Bruins defense is good, and the Y still put up 59 points against them. That impresses me.

What impresses me even more is that Max Hall went untouched for the entire game. The offensive line gave him such good protection that I am guessing he didn't even have to wash his jersey in between games. In fact, other than a couple of hits in the opening game against UNI, Max Hall hasn't really taken any hits since. That impresses me.

The offense wasn't nearly as impressive in the game against the Cowboys. We've become to accustomed to the methodical, almost machine like first drive of the game for a touchdown that the Cougars normally start with. I think 65,000 fans sat stunned when the Cougars stalled the first two times they possessed the ball.

The second quarter they got things rolling though and scored on three straight possessions, one of which came off of a 62 yard strike from Hall to Collie. When the passing game wasn't clicking the offense made some adjustments and went to the running game. The success from the running game eventually led to the turn around of the passing game, and from there the scores came easily.

It wasn't the near flawless performance that we have seen at times this year, but it was still good enough to get Max out of the game by midway through the third quarter.

When BYU was up 41-0 I told my Dad that if they score again they ought to do a on-side kick. We decided they wouldn't though because Coach Glen would be expecting it.

Props to the O-line and Unga for jump starting the offense and keeping Max healthy.

Defensively:

Any time a defensive squad can hold two division 1 teams scoreless in as many weeks, that in itself is impressive.

I think the points are a little misleading because of the weak offenses that they faced, but I will still give them props for the physical play and for forcing so many turnovers.

In both games the Bruins and Cowboys were able to move the ball into scoring position, but because of determination and a never quit attitude by the Cougs defense, they came away with nothing.

In the Wyoming game the defense scored 14 points off of turnovers. Anytime that you have an offense with the scoring ability of the Y as well as a defense that can create points, that's a pretty good combination that will lead to victories.

I think the defense is better than what some local fans might think, but like with anything else only time will tell.

I don't think we will know any clearer after their next game when they travel to Logan to face Utah State, even if they do get another shut out. (That's a very good possibility)

Anytime your team can outscore their opponents 103-0 in two games time, and you still find something to critique, it means you're nitpicking. I know that. I think the Cougs are as good as their #11 ranking and look forward to the challenges they face in the future to prove that they are deserving of the attention that they have received.

With the Utes and the Frogs in the top 25, if the Cougs can get through those two games with wins they will definitely deserve the national recognition. The MWC is tough this year. The national media and BCS need to take notice. I think they have.

It's about time.

Thursday's Heroes

2008-09-19T21:07:00.006-06:00

During the football season I really enjoy to watch the BYU broadcast Cougar Diary. In it you see highlights of the previous weeks game as well as some behind the scene footage of the athletes.

My most favorite part of the program is the section titled Thursday's Heroes. Each thursday Bronco brings in a Cougar fan who has fallen on some hard times health wise to visit practice. They get to meet the team. The players present them with some gifts and express to them how they are the true heroes for their resilience through such hard situations.

Whether you are a Cougar fan or not I think everyone could still appreciate what is being done by the BYU football team. It's worth watching. This is the episode after the first game this season.

(You'll have to pause the music down at the bottom of the blog to be able to hear the video)

Kicking it in the Jungle!

2008-09-17T23:38:00.005-06:00

Bronco joined Jim Rome today on his radio show. I was actually surprised how relaxed and comfortable Coach Mendenhall sounded as he answered the questions. Bronco isn't known for being the best interview but actually did a great job. Take a listen: Bronco and Jim.

The Powers That Be....

2008-09-17T09:54:00.008-06:00

DOMINANCE

HOW YOU FEELING THERE COACH?

Welcome back Rick! I was at the game Saturday and there really isn't much to say that the score didn't already cover. It was an old fashioned beat down.

The offense looked great as usual, and after a weak showing last Saturday in Seattle the defense stepped it up and proved that they are better than what we had thought. It was a great game all around.

There is talk of a let down after such a big win in the upcoming game against the Cowboys. I don't see it happening. I think this team is focussed and will come out firing against Wyoming. I will be there at LES to witness what I am expecting to be a lop sided victory for the Cougs.

Who are the 6 power conferences this year?

Is it really the six that have been designated by the BCS as being deserving of the automatic birth into the championship series bowl games?

Is the Big East really a better conference than the MWC or the WAC? How about the ACC? How about the PAC Ten that went 0-4 against Mountain West teams on Saturday?

As bad as some of these conferences are playing the potential is there for some of the teams that win their respective conference championship to get to a BCS bowl game unranked. In 2004 Pitt was ranked #19 for hells sake. How were they more deserving of the payoff than the 18 teams that were in front of them.

Here's how I would rate them (at least this year):

1. SEC- I think they are the best football conference. They pull in the best athletes and over the years have had great success. They need to travel a little more outside of the south to prove their worth, but I still would give them the nod as being #1.

2. Big Twelve- Another great football conference. With teams like Oklahoma, Texas and Missouri being members of their conference I think they are pretty solid. They have cellar dwellers like any other conference but they are real strong at the top. My #2.

3. Big Ten- This is where I think the conferences get a little overrated. I don't think OSU is worthy of the pub that they have been given. The Utes proved what type of team Michigan has, and the rest of the conference is descent but not great by any means.

4. MWC- Yeah, that's right. I said it. This is where I stray from the conventional thinking. The MWC has had good success this year against the BCS opponents that they have faced. They have two teams in the top 25 as well as a TCU team that is about to break in. The cellar dwellar of the MWC (UNLV) just knocked off what many people had predicted to be the second best team in the PAC Ten, ASU. With TCU, BYU and the Utes at the top of the conference playing good football, as well as the Air Force Academy, the conference is strong. If you want to argue otherwise, please do. Up to this point in the season though the MWC has owned the PAC Ten. The record is proof of that. Not to mention a win by the Utes in the Big House. I will be interested to see how TCU fairs against Oklahoma.

5. Pac Ten- USC is the cream of the crop. No question about it. In my opinion and nearly everyone else they are more than deserving of the #1 ranking that they have received. But aside from them, who does the PAC Ten have. Oregon maybe? Every other team sucks and most of them have been beaten by a MWC opponent. (Washington, UCLA, Stanford, ASU, Arizona, soon to be Oregon State) Washington State is no good, and CAL just lost to a weak Maryland team. How good is the Pac Ten? My #5.

6. This one is hard for me. I am going to say the ACC, but I could be easily swayed. The Big East is lousy, so I won't even consider them, but there are a few good teams from the WAC and Conf. USA that are making some noise. I think ECU, as well as Fresno State and Boise State are as good this year as most of the teams in either of the two remaining "power coferences."

This is just my opinion, based on what I have seen so far this year. I very well could be wrong in my way of thinking as some of you will probably try to point out. Either way, if you have an opinion of who and why, lets hear it.

A good run of bad luck! (Picture Heavy)

2008-09-16T17:19:00.010-06:00

This last week I spent 5 days backpacking up in the Wind River Mountains along with my Dad and Elton (34/31). We had been planning this trip for quite awhile but had cancelled it. At the last minute we decided to go and I am glad we did.

Because it was last minute it took some convincing on my part to get Elton to go along. He had some concerns going into the trip that in a deciding conversation I was able to put to rest. His concerns went something like this:

Elton- So, is this trip going to be expensive?

Shane- It will be the cheapest trip you have ever been on. All you will need to buy is food for the week and a fishing license.

The truth- Very expensive!

Fishing License $56

Indian Trespassing Fee $50

Reservation Recreation Fee $5

Fuel $50

Hotel $25

Truck Ride across the Reservation to get to the trail head $250 (ouch)

Elton- Is it going to snow on us?

Shane- Heck no! This time of year the weather is beautiful. The monsoon season has passed and the weather pattern should be dry. The weather will be perfect.

The Truth- The weather is going to suck!

It rained most of the trip, and the last day we were there the rain turned to snow. It was wet and miserable.

Elton- Is the fishing going to be good?

Shane- The fishing will be amazing. Not only will you catch a ton of fish, but the majority will be good size as well.

The Truth- It might be a little slow.

Actually, we caught a lot of fish, but only a dozen or so were very good. Most of the fish we caught were only about 10" or so.

(Elton and a Hawg)

Even though the weather didn't cooperate, it was a little more expensive than planned and the fishing was kind of slow, we still had a great time. I've been going up to this area since I was a little kid. I have a lot of good memories up there with my Dad and am grateful I was able to go again with him.

He turns 75 years old this fall and isn't sure how many more trips he has left in him. I'm hoping there are still a few more in his future. It was fun to spend the time with him while doing something that we both enjoy so much. I won't soon forget this last week.

Good looking Brookie

My best fish of the trip (Cutthroat)

A small Golden Trout caught by Elton.

A view from our camp.

No Wyoming trip is complete without a ride on a Jack-A-Lope.

Unfortunate way to end the game....

2008-09-06T22:15:00.007-06:00

I had a feeling going into this game that Jake Locker would play a big role in it's outcome, I just didn't think it would be in the way that it turned out.

If you saw the game, or have watched any highlights you know that it ended with some controversy. After a 17 play drive in which Locker put his team on his back and lead them down the field to score, he got hit with a celebration penalty for throwing the ball in the air. Rather than a chip shot extra point attempt to tie the game, they got pushed back 15 yards. BYU ended up blocking the field goal to end the game with the one point win, 28 to 27.

I'm glad the Cougs got out of there with the victory, I just wish it could have been under better circumstances.

Locker played a heck of a game and it was a shame to see a call affect the outcome of the game. It was the right call however, it just happens to be a stupid rule. At least that part of it anyways. The rule says:

After a score or any other play, the player in possession immediately

must return the ball to an official or leave it near the dead-ball spot.

This prohibits:

(a) Kicking, throwing, spinning or carrying (including off of the

field) the ball any distance that requires an official to retrieve it.

(b) Spiking the ball to the ground [Exception: A forward pass to

conserve time (Rule 7-3-2-d)].

(d) Any other unsportsmanlike act or actions that delay the game.

The thing that people are failing to credit though is that the Y's defensive line stepped up big time and blocked the extra point. Yes it was 15 yards farther, but it still was right down the middle and wasn't that difficult.

How many times is a 35 yard field goal blocked? Not very often. With the position of the ball on the field, had Washington put up a better front the kick would have been automatic.

It's not the Y's fault for how things ended. They had no control over the call, but when they needed the big play to seal the deal, Jan Jorgensen got a hand on the ball to block the extra point. The day wasn't pretty, but we'll take it.

BYU's offense is absolutely amazing. No question about it. Washington's defense was helpless when Max Hall and company were on the field. The only possession that they Y didn't score in the second half is when they drove 94 yards and Harvey Unga coughed it up on the 1 yard line. Had he just held onto the ball their never would have been any controversy.

Hall is a stud, Pitta is amazing and Unga just punishes the defenders. Those three had great games. It's also worth mentioning that Max Hall didn't take any real hits today thanks to the excellent blocking by his offensive line.

The defense on the other hand looked porous. Not the front seven so much, but the secondary definitely struggles. They gave up some big plays and had Locker not flat out missed some of his wide open receivers they would have given up a half dozen more.

Despite the great offensive day I wasn't too impressed with the Cougars defensive showing in Seattle. They should have handled the Huskies better than they did. It was their chance to shine in the national spotlight and unfortunately they kind of fizzled against what might be the worst team in the Pac Ten Conference. The defense needs to step it up.

The redeeming factor in all this though is that an apparently good UCLA team comes to Provo next week to play. If the Cougs can play some good football and get a decisive victory, people will forget really quickly the outcome of today's game and the controversy surrounding it.

Again, I am glad with the win. However, with all the BCS talk generated by the team and coaching staff, as a fan I am going to hold them to a higher standard. A one point victory over a pore Washington team isn't going to get it done if you want the respect from the National Media.

They will need a good showing from both the offense as well as the defense if they want to beat UCLA on Saturday.

I think they will do just that.

Go Cougs!

A look back/ A look ahead....

2008-09-03T00:00:00.006-06:00

At the end of the day when the national media took a glance at the BYU/NIU score, I think they saw what they had probably expected to see. A 24 point win by the Cougars over the visiting Panthers.

Those of us at the game though saw things as they really unfolded and realize that the score can be a bit misleading. Fortunately for the Cougars, despite their mistakes, they still came out on top with the first win of the season.

The Good:

Max Hall for the most part had a great day. He completed 34 of 41 for 486 yards. He and Dennis Pitta connected for 11 of those completions for 213 yards.

The offense in the first half put up 27 points while the defense held NIU to only a field goal.

Justin Sorenson put every kickoff into the end-zone throughout the game. I don't believe we saw that once last year.

Overall, aside from a few miscues the defense played pretty well against a Div 1-FCS offense that is better than most people are giving them credit. The defense is considered by most critics as being the week spot of the team. I think they will surprise some people and actually be better than expected.

The offense is as good as advertised. They are going to put up good numbers against every team they face. The O-line is tough. Matt Reynolds missed a block once at the left tackle position for which Max paid the price, but other than that they gave him great protection.

This offense is going to be fun to watch.

The Bad:

The defense gave up two big plays in the game, one a 69 yard run by the QB and the other a 76 yard strike off of a double reverse pass. It brought back memories of Tulsa exploiting our secondary last season.

The whole third quarter and part of the fourth was no good. The Cougars fumbled the ball 4 times. Max Hall took two blind side hits, one of which resulted in a fumble in the end-zone, and the other he got his bell rung and was slow to get up. I don't think it is any secret that this team desperately needs Max to stay healthy.

I think BYU went conservative and thought they could coast to the win in the second half. I don't like that mentality. I think this year more than any, with all the national attention they are receiving, they need to bury their opponents and put up a lot of points. I am glad that they were able to finish it out and win by 24, but they never should have been only ahead by 10 points going into the fourth quarter.

Final thoughts:

All and all I think it was a good day. Both sides of the ball played pretty good. Sure they had some mistakes but that is to be expected in the first game of the season. They now know what areas to work on and I am expecting a pretty well played game on Saturday against Washington.

Speaking of which:

Cougar fans, if you don't know who Jake Locker is, by Saturday afternoon you will. The guy is an absolute stud. I've heard some analysts say he is quite possibly the most talented, athletic QB in college football. That's the bad news.

The good news is that it appears he is the only weapon UW has. If BYU can contain him and keep him somewhat in check, they should be able to pull out the win quite convincingly. As we know though a non-conference road win has eluded Bronco since he took over as head coach.

The next two games are crucial. This is the time that BYU needs to step up and prove that they are worthy of the hype that they have been given.

Question - Where'd who go? Answer- ...

2008-08-29T17:04:00.006-06:00

August was a busy month for me both at work and at home. It seemed liked I spent most of it on the road living out of a suit case. When my work schedule didn't have me out of town, our family get-aways did.

Earlier in the month Amanda and I hopped on a flight out to Denver to go spend some time with Brett (Ostertag Forever) and his family to see a Rockies game. If you have never seen a game at Coors Field, you ought too make the short trip out over the front range and take in a game. It's a great ball park, actually one of my favorites.

My favorite part of the night was when my little boy asked me to buy him a baseball so that he could "hit it so hard over the fence."

This last week we loaded up the kids in the truck and made the drive up to Island Park to spend some time at Andy's cabin. We spent a day in Yellowstone and then the rest of the time lounging around taking it easy with an occasional water ski now and again.

It had been ten years since the last time I had water-skied. I didn't hit the wake with the same reckless abandon that I use to, but over all I think I did alright. After ten years of not skiing I was glad to just be able to get up.

With tomorrow being the official kick off to the college football season, I'm sure there'll be more to blog about.

Kade and I have tickets in hand and we'll be at LES cheering on the Cougars tomorrow afternoon.

Talking Points

2008-08-05T11:52:00.007-06:00

Congratulations to Goodness (JP) on being named the head baseball coach at Mountain View high school.

When I heard the news, the thought that went through my mind was that it is about time. I mean that in a good way. If anyone was born to Coach, that person is definitely Jon. I've been saying for years that the guy needed to be either on the sideline, on the bench, or in the dugout coaching. I don't know anyone that knows the fundamentals of sports as well and can teach them any better than JP.

He'll do a damn good job. I'm sure of that.

Congratulations Bud!

I'm not one to really get caught up in the Olympic Games. I should, but I never really have. I'm excited though to watch the Men's team take it to the world on the hard court. I'll be surprised if they don't bring home the gold.

I have been able to tune in for a couple of their warm up games. I was afraid that it would end up being an All-Star style of play with all offense and no defense. The style of play you would find out on the streets. They same style of play that embarrassed the USA basketball community during the last summer olympics. Surprisingly though (at least for me) these guys play well as a team.

I think they have checked their egos at the door and are going to do what it takes to win the gold, which is playing unselfish ball. To see the best in the world come together as a team is pretty amazing. I don't think they can be beat.

Anybody else getting tired of this story?

I like Brett Favre, always have. I won't fault him for wanting to come back out of retirement. People change their mind. In fact, I will never be the one to criticize someone for being indecisive. Those of you that have spent anytime around me know that I tend to be a little indecisive myself. (Schizo was one of my nick name for some reason in college)

Him wanting to come back though has put the Packer organization in a no win situation. They're screwed no matter what they do.

I think Rodgers is screwed as well. Anything short of a Super Bowl and I think everyone we'll be comparing him to Brett and wondering how far Favre could have taken them. If he comes out and struggles at all the fan base and media their in Green Bay are going to tear him apart.

I'm glad Brett didn't take the 20 million dollar buy out. This whole thing has been bad on his legacy and what he'll be remembered for, but had he taken the pay off he definitely would have been remembered in a very bad light.

Also team sponsor of the newest and possibly greatest co-ed softball team ever assembled. After PC Players allowed our contract to expire and the team disbanded, Amanda and I found ourselves out on the streets wandering aimlessly looking for another team to take us in.

That team is Wellness Complete.

League play starts tomorrow night. I unfortunately won't be able to make it to the opener but you can count on the weekly updates starting after next weeks doubleheader. I'm sure you are excited for that.

-Fall camp is under way. I know the games are still a ways off but for me this is where the excitement all begins. It's nice to turn on the radio or the news and hear football talk, even if at times it is about the team in red up on the hill.

Cougars and Utes alike should be excited. All indications point to the fact that it could be a very special year for each team.

That's all I got.

Later!

Go Utes!

2008-07-28T13:45:00.002-06:00

Get your tickets while they last!

2008-07-27T19:16:00.009-06:00

The hardest thing about scoring a ticket to this game will be finding the time to go to the local high school for the spirit rally to pick up your free tickets.

BYU hater first, Ute Fan second. That is how it goes with those that follow athletics (if you want to call them that) that take place up on the hill.

While sitting in Elders quorum today, I overheard UteFan going off on how lame BYU is for scheduling a Division 1 FCS (Football Championship Subdivision/formerly 1-AA) opponent. When I asked him how he felt to have the mighty Weber State Wildcats (also 1-AA) rolling into Rice Eccles this season he had no idea what I was talking about. He didn't even know his own teams schedule.

Should I be surprised that he didn't even know who was coming into town to take on the Utes? No. In fact, I would be even more surprised to learn that he could actually find his way to Rice Eccles to see a game, considering the fact that to be a Ute fan doesn't mean you have to actually go watch them in person. UteFan doesn't attend games. It's not part of his culture.

Is it ignorance that makes the Yewt overlook the patsies on their schedule, or is it that their hypocrisy knows no bounds?

Weber State belongs to the Big Sky Conference. It's the same conference that provided the real barn burner up at Rice Eccles back in 2006 when the mighty Northern Arizona Lumberjacks came to town.

Before Utefan goes off on me about their strength of schedule this year, let me point out once again that it is nearly identical to the Cougars schedule. Both teams have conference play, both teams play Utah State, both teams have a division 1 FCS team on the schedule, and both have 2 games against average teams from one of the Big Six BCS conferences.

I'll give the Utes some credit for having the cahones to go to the big house and take on Michigan. But, lets be honest here. You guys got bought. You are the Wolverines patsy. They don't respect you, and if they did the Utes could have demanded a home and home or said no deal. I think in the end it could actually work in the Utes favor when Michigan over looks them. I really think that the Utes will go into Ann Arbor and get the win, but at the end of the year it will be a win over a great, storied program having a lousy, rebuilding year.

OSU is no different of a schedule than that of Washington or UCLA. Over the years all three teams have been average Pac Ten teams, with some years being better and some worse than others. OSU is in rebuilding mode and will be lucky to finish over 500. Again, at the end of the year it won't be a win worth bragging about, that is if the Utes don't choke at home.

Unwar the hypocritical/ignorant Ute fan who brings the Division 1-AA smack. By doing so you prove how weak you really are.

Go Cougs!

CJ Miles is the Antichrist...

2008-07-27T09:38:00.003-06:00

So we now have CJ Miles for $15 million. That's great. Let me tell you why I hate this move. We have two proven players in Brewer and Milsap who are going to need deals done within the timeframe that Miles' deal goes. We are already strapped for salary with Okur, AK, Boozer (I know may be gone after this year), and now Williams. Miles has been in the league for 3 years and hasn't broken through to that next level of being a go-to guy, so why not let him go to the Thunder from Down Under in Oklahoma and focus on other players that are up and coming. You already know what you are going to get from CJ and no one knows better than Jerry Sloan. So I have a bone to pick with anyone ripping Jerry Sloan about being a detriment to his players - He hasn't been a detriment to Paul Milsap who got significant playing time his rookie season, and he hasn't been a detriment to Ronnie Brewer who is a starter in his second season. Enough with the Sloan bashing. This is a damn good coach who has an eye for talent and recognizes what the best thing for his team is. So basically, if you rip on Jerry Sloan, your credibility is shot and you are an idiot. CJ Miles doesn't come to the Rocky Mountain Review because he is "worried about getting injured". Listen CJ, why don't you start worrying about getting better, enhancing your career, or maybe getting a few less DNP's instead.

I can think of a lot of things I would have spent $15 million on before resigning CJ...More Jazz Girls, a bigger cannon for the Bear to shoot stuff at the crowd, and a supply of new nets, just in case.

We will be talking about how bad this was for the Jazz in a couple of years when big free agents have come and gone. At least we'll still have CJ, my candidate for 13th man of the year.

Our "National" Past Time - South of the Mason Dixon Line.

2008-07-20T13:49:00.012-06:00

As I was looking through my schedule I noticed that I had a 23 hour layover. As much as I like my job the one part of it that I do not like is the down time in the Hotels. So, to keep myself entertained I tried to come up with something to do to pass the time.

This time of year that usually means baseball if I can find a place to watch a game. I don't care if it is the Billings Mustangs or the Missoula Osprey, if they play baseball and I can watch, I'll go.

Fortunately, the city I was in had a little better option than pioneer league baseball. I got on the internet and saw that the Washington Nationals were in town. I'm not a Washington fan but I'll never pass up the opportunity to go to a MLB game.

My buddy Clint lives in the area so I gave him a call and he picked me up at the airport with tickets in hand and we headed over to the ballpark.

Walking across the parking lot I found a bullet that had been shot. No blood on it but it had started to mushroom. Not something you find everyday.

There was a monument out in the parking lot in honor of Hammerin Hank Aaron. It was the old site of Fulton County Stadium where he hit #715 to surpass Babe Ruth's record.

Then....

And now.....

We got to the park early and were able to watch both teams take batting practice.

If you truly are baseball fans, these guys need no introduction.

A Living Legend

Hall of Famer? Should be.

Close to game time

These were our seats.

The winning pitcher.

The other team's third baseman was pretty good. I think his name is Larry.

What do you think Bob?

Final Score

Winning Team

Good Company

The KadeMan sporting a new hat.

So the Nationals got beat but that's OK. I wasn't cheering for them anyways, that and Clint is a die hard fan for the other team. I was glad to see him leave happy.

After the game Clint offered to take me to the "Shoe Show." (A show where the girls dance with just shoes on) The offer was tempting but the game was sufficient entertainment.

It was a great game and a very fun way to spend a layover. Thanks again Clint for getting the tickets and showing me a good time down in Dixie.

My final thoughts, metaphorically speaking:

War me, an infidel living amongst a group of Muslims, for being the only one to have made the pilgrimage to Mecca.

Later!

An old fashion beat down!

2008-07-14T16:17:00.007-06:00

You had probably heard of the celebrity fight that took place over the weekend.

Jose Canseco, 6'4" and 245 lbs, had put out a challenge to any celebrity athlete that wanted to get in the ring and go toe to toe with him. The rules were that they would use 14 ounce gloves and would fight three 2-minute rounds.

Vai Sikahema, the same Vai that was an standout football player at BYU and played professionally for the Philadelphia Eagles, took him up on the challenge. Vai stands at 5'9" and ways only 205 lbs., thats seven inches and 45 pounds that he gives up to the bigger Canseco. Watching the highlights of the fight though you could see that he was never at a disadvantage.

After two knockdowns and what amounted to less than a round, the fight was stopped. The highlights say it all.

ESPN Story (click here)

I met Vai when I was a kid. His niece lived in my ward and he came to church with her family one day. It was a big deal to me because I really looked up to him as a football player. I remember the testimony he shared in sacrament about how their is a time and season for all things.

Looks like it was his time to beat up on a has-been baseball player.

War Vai for putting the hammer down and taking it to Canseco.

Talking Points

2008-07-08T19:27:00.006-06:00

-I wasn't able to make it to the games but it sounds like Pirate Motor Sports went 0-2. The pressure was high with it being champions night and we folded like Carlos Boozer in the playoffs. That's alright. We'll be back next year with all returning starters at every position. Based on Phil Steeles logic we should be pretty good.

In the meantime all you Pirate Motor Sports fans that have been tuning in weekly for the update of our games will have to settle for BYU and Utah Jazz talk, with maybe an occasional Ute post here and there as well. Hope it will pacify you.

-We should know soon if the Jazz are going to make a play for anyone. I don't see how with D-Will getting a max contract that they will have any money to throw at anyone with out trading someone beforehand. As much as I would like to see AK or even Boozer go for someone of equal or greater quality in return I don't see that happening as well. I will be interested to see how things shake out but am not expecting anything too shocking.

-This has nothing to do with anything going on other than I thought it was funny. Enjoy.

It's a slow sports week. If you have anything to share feel free to do so. Otherwise, Later!

ESPN Team Preview- BYU Cougars

2008-07-02T15:51:00.010-06:00

BYU Preview

Another Preseason Poll - BYU #13

The season can't come soon enough!

Later!

PCRMSBT

2008-06-30T23:56:00.006-06:00

Tonight was the first night of the Payson City Recreation Men's Softball Tournament (PCRMSBT). It doesn't quite have the same ring to it nor the easy flow off the tongue that the CWS has, but it still generated some pretty exciting moments.

Leading up to this day I found myself actually getting pretty excited to play in this tournament. I love to play softball but enjoy it even more when there is something more on the line than just going home with a win for the week. Granted, in this tournament we are mainly playing for bragging rights and a t-shirt, but at my age I'll take any competition that I can get.

For the first game of the night Pirate Motor Sports played a team that we hadn't faced the entire year, JB Electric. We didn't hit very well (actually pretty bad) but still managed to bring in a few runs. Fortunately we played just good enough defense, despite only having 9 guys once again, to preserve a small lead all the way up to the sixth inning when they were able to tie us at 7-7.

The score remained the same going into the bottom of the seventh with us getting the last at bats being that we were the home team. I believe it was J-rod that hit first and was able to get on base. At that point the stage was set as Hub stepped to the plate with it being the bottom of the last inning and the winning run on first. Rather than caving to the pressure he steps up and in walk off fashion hits a two run jack to the opposite field to win the game for us. It was a thing of beauty. It was the only dinger of the whole game and couldn't have come at a better time.

Going into game #2 we had regained some of our confidence having just pulled off a close victory. Immediately though CK Playground Apparel was able to jump out to an early 7 run lead. They're a good team that doesn't lose very often but so far this year we have had their number. Tonight though, early on, it appeared that they had brought their A-Game and that we might be in trouble.

Kind of like Wall.e ( 1/3 of Pirate Motor Sports was seen today at Stadium Theatres taking in a matinee) we persevered and never lost focus of our task at hand. We made a rally, sparked by another long ball by Hub, that is quite possibly unmatched by any other scoring spree in Payson Recreation history. (so I might be exaggerating a little)

We came back from seven down and by the fourth inning had put up 31 runs to take a 15 run lead going into their last at bats. Our defense was solid, but our bats are what made the difference. They absolutely came alive.

To be honest, I actually hit pretty lousy even in the second game. I had one hit that actually felt like there was some good contact. Lady luck was on my side though and for one reason or another the ball always seemed to find an open space. I'll take it.

In a double elimination tournament to get the first two wins is huge. We are sitting pretty good right now and hopefully can carry some of the momentum into next weeks games when we go for the championship.

Stay tuned.

New Look

2008-06-30T15:18:00.002-06:00

The new look of the website rocks, I like it. The only thing I would add is the names of regular contributors. I don't know who is who with all the aliases. That way I know who to smack talk at and how to throw low blows.
On another note, BYU has me excited for this year. Unfortunately I do not get to see many games down here in AZ. I should start a company to stream video cheaper than the one that exists. I could be going to all the games for the cost of buying what they have. How in the world did Utah get ranked ahead of BYU in that clowns pre-season rankings? This is coming from a Utah Alum, although I requested to be excommunicated from the Utes. That place is a joke.

Anybody but Obama in 08!!!

Yummy Ankle

2008-06-27T19:46:00.003-06:00

For those of you clowns that were at USU with me back in the glory days and saw me blow out my ankle, this post is for you. The small town doc in Logan did not do a very good job and missed diagnosing a giant bone chip caught between my foot/ankle and rubbing my ligaments a tendons to the point of permanent damage. Since I am not much of a doctor going person until I got married, I finally went in after 1o years of dealing with it. Here are a couple of pics of my ankle, gotta love it. Long live intermural b-ball!!!!

The NBA Draft

2008-06-26T20:41:00.002-06:00

I am pumped about the Jazz's pick in the draft. I had ankle surgery and I have been on my back high on pain killers for the past couple of days, so I have had time to sit and watch the whole draft. I just about lost my dinner when the so-called experts on ESPN were talking about the Jazz's needs and said that they should go with a 2 guard and that they are weak there. Are you kidding me??? What have they been watching and where do I sign up to become an analyst? The Jazz have plenty of 2 guard and then some. The thing the Jazz lack the most is a defensive stopper in the middle ala Mark Eaton. Okur kicks butt and I would put him in the top 10 centers in the league, but he cannot guard a statue. For match up purposes, they need to have a big man and Kostos is that dude. He is 7' 2" and not only is he an inside presence, he has a nice soft touch and has hugh upside. Fez looked good and now Kostos, I think the Jazz are making good picks and I am alrady putting on my D-Will underoos and looking forward to next season. Now the Jazz can ditch the stiff aka Jaron Collins. Collins has made his run and now he needs to go. The second round is going right now and if the Jazz can pick up maybe a 4 or even a foreign point guard that can come over in a couple of years I will be satisfied.

Talking Points

2008-06-24T19:19:00.010-06:00

-Pirate Motor Sports went 2-0 last night in our weekly double header. Our bats came alive and for the most part everyone played pretty well. We only had nine guys show up but still were able to get the wins in both games.

I couldn't hold on to a ball to save my life. I knew that my play was pretty pathetic when after catching a routine pop up in the infield (a real can of corn) Ri-bone tried to make me feel better by telling me I had just redeemed myself. How weak is that. What makes it even worse is that I dang near dropped that one also. I'm thinking about trading my glove in for a new one. (it's got to be the glove right?) I think Mickey might have just what I'm looking for.

It'll make turning the double play a little difficult when I try to get the ball out of the glove. That's alright though. It's not the getting the ball out of my glove that is the problem right now.

The Alexander brothers came to play. Both Tikes and Ri-bone pounded the ball well and both had good games in the field. Riley was a black hole their at shortstop having a real solid performance for the night, and Tikes made the play of the evening stopping a hard hit ball at third for the final out of the second game. Hub made a pretty amazing catch out in left field as well. After getting turned around a little he was able to get the glove up and still haul it in.

The best throw of the night came from out in center field. J-rod bated a dude into trying to get to third when he should have stopped at second. The throw was dead on and the guy never had a chance. Real nice play.

The funniest moment of the night was when Ri-bone drove one on a line out over the fence. We were up one on homers so, despite being a great hit, it was still an out. No big deal. Everyone still congratulated him for hitting it so hard. Two batters later J-rod steps to the plate. He hits a towering shot out over the center field wall which also, in the end, was an out. Even though the result was no different than Ri-bones, J-rod took a pretty good lashing from the Alexander posse sitting on the bench. I thought it was pretty funny. He's getting quite the reputation of going deep when it counts the least.

Next week the tournament begins. Hopefully we can get after it early and get a good start this year.

-The CWS is winding down. As I type Fresno State has come back after trailing 5-0 to start the game, and have put up 11 runs to take an 11-6 lead. This is an elimination game for Fresno State. Hopefully they can hang on to push this thing to a game #3. As they already have proven though a five run lead doesn't mean much in Omaha.

Pretty slow week. That's all I got.

Later!

Talking Points

2008-06-19T10:58:00.006-06:00

philsteele.com

- Phil Steele's preseason poll is out. Not surprisingly he has BYU ranked at number 17. Preseason polls are usually based on what the team did the year before and how many starters they have coming back.

Considering the fact that the Y finished in the top twenty two years in a row, have won the last two conference championships outright, and have 9 starters on offense returning, to be ranked #17 in my opinion is right about where they should be.

The thing that surprised me though is that he has Utah ranked ahead of the Cougars at number 14. I don't doubt that the Utes could be tough this year. I don't expect them to be (I expect them to underachieve as usual), but that's not to say they don't have the talent to be good. I wouldn't put them at 14 though.

Even more unbelievable is seeing Notre Dame at #19. Put down the crack pipe Phil.

-Pirate Motor Sports went 1-1 on this last weeks double header. Elton (34/31) and Travis both went yard and both had the web gems of the evening. Elton made a nice basket catch over his shoulder at 2nd to take away bush league single, and Travis made a nice running catch at the wall to rob what would have been an extra base hit. Ri-bone flexed his muscles at the plate as well and put one out.

-How many of you watched El Tigre this last weekend. The guy is flat out amazing. I don't usually watch golf but I found myself intrigued watching him and Rocco go at it in the playoff on Monday. It was definitely entertaining. Sounds like he is done for the year. Hopefully there is no long term damage from pushing it the way he did.

-I just have to say how much enjoyment it brought me to learn that the Lakers had lost the series. I didn't get to watch the last game but was very pleased to learn that Kobe and company got blown out to end their season. Paul Pierce was the man, definitely deserving of being named Finals MVP.

Where's Lunch Box?

-Another team gone in the CWS. Stanford knocked off Miami last night to eliminate them from the tournament. Tikes and Goodness are the last two standing. There hopes lie on a Carolina team that is facing elimination themselves. Can they get it done? They have to beat LSU this evening and then go on and get two in a row from Fresno State. It's a tough task ahead but they definitely have the talent to pull it off. JP's prediction of a final series against Stanford might turn out to be prophetic. It could be the difference in the tie breaker.

Later!

CWS-Game #1

2008-06-16T00:02:00.005-06:00

Not a good weekend for our picks unless your team wears the Carolina shade of blue.

Out of seven of us who picked a team, only four different schools were chosen amongst us. Out of those four schools chosen, 3 of them lost their opening game in the college world series. The Tar Heels were the only team that went into their game favored that didn't fall in an upset.

What does that mean? Only three teams since 1980 have started the tournament with a loss and then gone on to win the championship, the most recent being Oregon State in 2006. It doesn't happen very often, but it does happen.

Could Stanford be the Dark Horse? Amanda and I watched this one and despite having the hottest bats in College baseball, FSU couldn't get much going against the starting pitcher from Stanford.

Stanford 16 Florida State 5

This Dude's junk is un-hittable. I've never seen a breaking ball fall off the table like his does. He punished Miami after they had their ninth inning meltdown. There is a reason why he is a first round draft pick. He's that good.

Georgia 7 Miami 4

Rice was my pick. I didn't get to see the game but the score says it all.

Fresno State 17 Rice 5

Again, didn't watch this one as well as I would have liked. We had visitors over and the majority thought the NBA finals were more important. What I did see though it looked like UNC controlled the game from the beginning.

LSU 4 UNC 8

Tikes and Goodness are the only ones sitting pretty good right now. Fortunately it is a double elimination tournament with a lot of baseball to be played.

This thing aint over yet.

I'll be keeping a close watch on the afternoon game tomorrow between Miami and FSU. At least one amongst us will be eliminated with the possibility of three at once should #1 Miami get knocked out.

Miami (Fat One, Agent Scarn, 34/31) vs. Florida State (K&K's Mom), 12:00 noon.

Good Luck.

Shades of Brown

2008-06-15T12:54:00.003-06:00

Gas: $300

Hotel: $98

Food: $50

Fishing License: $40

Darren's Life Vest Citation: $45

Fishing the Beaverhead in Montana for 3 days and catching this 19 inch brown trout (as well as a multitude of other fish): Priceless

Talking Points

2008-06-10T01:43:00.002-06:00

-Pirate Motor Sports went 1-1 tonight. No real web gems that I remember. Elton, Hub (Casey) and Worm touched em all. Elton showed up again tonight in dramatic fashion and took his deep off the light post out in left field during his first at bat. Hub (Casey) also went deep out to left center while trying to go opposite field. Worm poured salt in the wound and hit a grand slam when we were up by almost twenty points.

The best highlight of the night would have to be with Worm pitching. He called his own shot for a three pitch inning and actually delivered on his promise. With that being our best highlight it's pretty easy to see that it was a slow night.

I had as many errors as good plays. Can of corn anyone? I've been giving them out a lot lately as well.

-NBA finals: Go Celtics. Enough said.

-Triple Crown: Looks like we'll have to wait yet another year to see if history will be made. Big Brown looked out of it from the get go. (They should have kept him on the juice) I thought the Jockey did the right thing by pulling up and taking it easy coming down the home stretch.

Nearing the end of the road.....

2008-06-10T00:09:00.016-06:00

Welcome to Rosenblatt stadium, home of the college world series. Since 1950 the NCAA baseball champion has been crowned on this field. It's a tournament with a long history and quite a bit of tradition. It's a tournament that I look forward to as much, if not more, than any other. What makes it even more enjoyable for me is that my wife gets into the games just as much as I do. Every June we look forward to picking a team and following them through the tourney.

The most exciting baseball that I have ever seen played has been while watching the CWS. The passion that these kids play with, in my opinion, is unmatched by anything I have seen in the pros. Miraculous comebacks, walk off home-runs, small ball, amazing glove work, you name it, it's all a part of the CWS year in and year out.

The teams have advanced, the stage has been set, and on Saturday the tournament will begin. As I pick my team I have decided to try to involve some of you as well. Since I am so excited and also feeling generous I thought that I would borrow the idea from Amanda and Vanessa and offer a free give-away of my own.

This is the deal. Pick a team. If the team you pick wins the series I will give you and a guest free tickets to go take in an Orem Owlz baseball game. I know it's not much, but it's something and it's free.

If you win and are feeling a little more daring, you can trade in your free tickets to the game for a secret prize. (It's cheesy, I know. Bare with me though) There is a catch with the secret prize however. It's a bigger, better prize but it would not be free (discounted, but not free). I can't advertise what it is, but it would involve you and a guest traveling to see a baseball game somewhere outside of Orem, Utah. I will give more details to whomever wins.

All I ask in return is that a picture is given to me to post on this blog of you enjoying the baseball game. Not too much to ask, right?

Rules of the contest.

1. You have until the first pitch of the first game to pick your team. After which, the contest is closed. (Saturday, June 14, 12:00 noon)

2. For tie breaking purposes, I also need you to pick three other things.

The final two teams will play in a three game series. Tell me which game your team will win the best of three playoff, whether it's the second or third game.

Tell me also the final margin of victory in the very last game without going over.

Lastly, guess who their final opponent will be. (pick wisely)

Example:

Stanford, 2nd game, 10 points, North Carolina

3. I would like to limit this to people I know. I know on Vanessa's give-away she had people introducing themselves in their comments. If I don't know you, sorry. Introduce yourself and next time you can join. I'm not saying you have to have been my best friend from childhood but I would have like to have at least met you. And, if you are one of my best friends from childhood, sorry but no preferential treatment.

Sound fair?

The teams are:

Bracket #1

Stanford

Florida State

Georgia

Miami

Bracket #2

Fresno State

Rice

LSU

North Carolina

Good Luck!

Braket

College World Series Experience

Talking Points

2008-06-03T23:15:00.007-06:00

-WCWS

You won't catch me very often blogging about women athletics. In fact, it's not very often that I even watch women play sports. (No offense ladies) I don't care for the Lez-NBA (I know, they play better fundamental basketball), I don't enjoy gymnastics, and even get bored with women in bathing suits playing beach volleyball.

Without fail though Amanda and I tune in each year to watch the gals go at it on the softball diamond in the WCWS in Oklahoma City. These chicks not only look good, but they tear it up out in the field as well.

Congratulations to the She-Devils of ASU on winning their first national championship. They pounded the Aggies of Texas A&M 11-0 for their second win in the best out of three series.

Now the coverage moves on to Omaha for the men's series. Looking forward to that.

-More Softball: The team formerly known as Pirate Motor Sports (I know, it was news to me as well) had our weekly double header last night. The first game we lost by the 15 run mercy rule. How pathetic is that? We lost to a team that is essentially the closest thing we have to a rival, Lift Rite Concrete. Last time we played them we took it to them. I guess this was there time for revenge. We hit lousy and to their credit they hit very well.

In the second game 45 runs were scored between both teams with us winning by a margin of three points. That's softball for you. They were a good hitting team but we were able to hold them off during their last ups. They left the bases loaded to finish the game.

Top 5 web gems

5. Not even a web gem. In fact it would be the opposite of a web gem but, come on, how am I really suppose to come up with 5 actual gems in a city league softball game?

Number 5 occurred when the first baseman for the other team missed a throw from I believe their shortstop (I'm not sure, I was too busy running) and it tagged me square in the side of my calf. I have a softball sized welt (imagine that, hit by a softball and left with a softball size welt) on the side of my leg just below the knee. I guess it's better there than my melon. I know, Boo-Hoo. I'll walk it off and rub some dirt on it. I'll be ok.

4. Casey (Tikes and Ri-Bone's brother) threw a strike to nail a dude out at home in game #1. The ball was thrown on a line from out in right center. Someday the word will get out not to run on that arm. Very nice throw.

3. In game #2 J-rod called his own solo shot to lead off an inning. Normally that would be a selfish thing to do, hit a home run with nobody on that results in us being up one on homers, but the fact that he called it we'll have to give him a pass.

2. His next at bat, that same J-rod accidentally hit another homer to give us the first out of the inning because we were up one on home runs. You're probably wondering why an out would be a gem. I count it because I can't hit home runs even if I try and the dude steps up and accidentally goes deep. I wish I had that bad of luck.

Cole Bott knows what I am talking about. Don't you Cole? "Gone"

1. And number one, our very own 34/31 (Elton) doing his best Derrick Fisher impersonation shows up part way through the second game. The fans in attendance absolutely went wild when he stepped to the plate and on his very first cut of the year hit a stand up double out over left center. It was magical.

Good to have you back with us E.

-NBA finals: Two days until they start. I'll go on record now and say Lakers in six. As much as I want the Celtics to win, I just don't see it happening.

-Lastly: Not sports related, but funny. If any of you have ever been to my wife's blog you may have noticed on the side bar her list of Kade-isms. They're funny little sayings that my boy comes up with from time to time. I thought his last one was great but I don't believe it is going to make it to her list so I'll include it here.

The other day we took our shih tzu Boo in to be groomed. When she came home Kade decided he wanted to hold her. Usually we call her affectionately Boo Boo or Boobers, our own little nickname for the dog. That day, Kade decided her name was "Boobies." Do you see where this is going?

So, the Kade-ism for the day was, "Dad, I want to hold Boobies." Me too son. Me too.

Who's in your Fave Five?

2008-06-01T09:24:00.006-06:00

Invincible's Vince Papale

This last month I spent a lot of time at home. SkyWest had me on call which meant I stayed at the house with my cell phone on me at all times waiting for them to call to tell me they needed me. As it turned out they only needed me 3 days out of the whole month.

Needless to say, I had quite a bit of free time to kill. I tried to do various things to keep myself occupied. I was able to get a lot of yard-work done, I threw a lot of pitches to Kade out back, took a few naps, and even got in a couple of DVD's, one of which was Invincible with Marky Mark minus the funky bunch. Mark Wahlburg plays Vince Papale, a bartender who tries out for the Philadelphia Eagles in an open tryout and makes the team. You've probably seen it. I thought it was a pretty good show.

I'm a sucker for sport shows. They are my favorite movies to watch. How many times have you heard someone say "Hollywood couldn't write that script" when describing something amazing that happened sports related? You hear it all the time. I think it is true, that some sports stories are so amazing that they are nearly unbelievable. That's why for me they make the best movies.

So, with that in mind, after I watched Invincible I though about the sports movies that I enjoyed the most. Borrowing the idea from Sir Chuck Barkley I have come up with my own fave five. These are the five sport movies that I enjoy the most.

SDR's Fave Five-Sports Movies

1. The Rookie- The only show I have ever been to where when it was over the whole audience in the theater started to clap. Great movie.

2. Field of Dreams- Ray: Hey, Dad... you wanna have a catch? John: I'd like that. My favorite lines in the whole show. If it wasn't so girly I would admit that this part of the show always chokes me up. But since I am a man, I won't mention that. I'm not a big Kevin Costner fan but thought he did a great job in this show.

3. Seabiscuit- You bet it is a sports movie. I loved the book and thought they did a pretty good job with the movie. What a great story of an underdog beating the odds. You don't have to like horse racing to enjoy the story of the biscuit.

4. The Sandlot- It's fiction, and it's a kids movie. I realize that. But come on, who doesn't like the Sandlot? I crack up every time I watch it. In some respects it takes me back to my own childhood playing baseball on an improvised diamond in the neighbors front yard, or the after school football games out in my parents orchard, or getting everyone together for a 3-on-3 basketball tournament. Being a kid was fun.

5. Hoosiers- A classic. I think when most people think of all time great sport movies this is one of the first shows that comes to mind.

Honorable Mentions- Rudy, Major League, Miracle, For the Love of the Game, Invincible.

My do not watch list- Bull Durham, anything with Freddy Prince Jr..

So there it is. I'm not saying they are the best, just that they are my favorites.

What are yours?

Thank You!

2008-05-26T13:09:00.008-06:00

On behalf of Shades of Blue and those of us who post here, I would like to take the opportunity on this Memorial Day to thank the brave men and women who have fought and continue to fight to protect the freedoms that we enjoy. We honor the memory of those that have paid the ultimate price with their lives on our behalf and promise to ensure that their death was not in vain.

There is a soldier out in harms way at this time who is a good friend to Shades of Blue. He checks this blog every so often from over in Baghdad where he is deployed. I would like to thank him as well for the sacrifice that he has made.

Many of you know James from our childhood. He was our friend, our teammate, our coach, and for Brian and I someone we considered another member of the family.

James, there are damn few like you. We miss you and look forward to your safe return. Take care brother and we'll see you soon.

The Savior of IndyCar Racing....

2008-05-25T22:25:00.016-06:00

At least that is what they are saying.

Do you recognize the driver in this photo. You would had you been watching the Indy 500 this afternoon.

How about this one?

That's right. It's Danica Patrick. I tuned in for the last 60 laps of the Indy 500 and all I heard about was Danica this, and Danica that. Even though she was well behind, when they would return from commercial break they were sure to update the viewers of her placing even before telling who was in the lead. Why? Is it because she is such an amazing driver? Or, is it because she looks good in a Bikini? What do you think?

Since her rookie season in 2005 she has had 53 starts. Of the 53 starts she has one win. That's right. ONE. In the race today where she owned the media attention she finished an amazing 22nd.

Call me sexist if you want but if a women wants to earn the respect of her men counterparts in a male dominated sport do it by winning and not by just looking good. The only way she deserved the hype she received today is if the race was won by whoever had the best looks. Otherwise we shouldn't know her name any more so than the driver who finished 21st.

At least she didn't run anyone over on pit row. That's newsworthy.

Danica, rely on your ability and not just your body.

Yours truely,

Anna Kournicova

Danica, Why don't you quit embarrassing yourself and just stick with racing other women?

Sincerely,

Michelle Wie

Talking Points

-At the Munson family BBQ I beat Amanda's brother twice in a row in 1-on-1 basketball. When Amanda found out that I had won she asked, "How did you beat him? Is it because he is out of shape or what?" The thought never crossed her mind that I actually have any basketball ability. I get no respect around here. (In Tyler's defense he did have a bum knee. But still, where's the credit?)

-Pirate Motor Sports has a bye tomorrow night. You'll have to wait another week for the much anticipated recap of the monday night doubleheader. If you were to tune into baseball tonight and catch the nights top ten it would be nearly identical to what you could expect from the softball diamond. Maybe that could hold you over until next week.

-Big Brown has a cracked hoof. The 30 year drought of the Triple Crown might make it to 31. I hope not. They say he should still be able to race.

-Even though I said I wouldn't, I have found myself watching quite a bit of the conference finals. I had thought that I would want to see the Lakers play the Celtics in the finals, but as I watch I find myself cheering for the Spurs. (I know, break out the tweezers) What can I say? I hate the Lakers.

It's similar to the feeling I get when I try to convince myself to cheer for the Utes because it is what is best for the conference. In the end though I can't bring myself to do it for fear of possibly making myself physically ill. I haven't quite got to the sick part but I am confident that cheering for the Utes would cause me to projectile vomit and break a rib. I don't care what anyone says the MWC is not worth that pain.

So to sum it all up: Go Spurs!

Oh yeah: Go Celtics too!

And while I'm at it: Utes Suck!

Later.....

A Moment of Silence

2008-05-25T12:59:00.006-06:00

Please remove your Bingham Baseball caps for a moment of silence. Yes, it is true. They lost the State Championship to Timpanogos. For full details, click here.

At least the girls took state. Click here for their history making win.

Talking Points

2008-05-20T11:23:00.004-06:00

-Teamwork:

Pirate Motor Sports made the clean sweep last night in our double-header. Not only did we blow out the competition but one of the teams actually was upset because we let up and took it easy on them. I think because we had guys hitting left handed that they felt like we were trying to show them up.

Their left fielder in an attempt to throw a guy out at home overthrew the backstop and bounced it off the complex building roof where the scorekeepers sit. I've never seen anything quite like that before.

I predicted a 6-4-3 double play by Tikes and I. It didn't happen. Instead we upped the degree of difficulty and made it a 5-4-3 double played turned to absolute perfection. Unfortunately we assumed Vanessa would be there as the blog photographer, but she wasn't, so the moment wasn't forever captured on film. No posters for us. The season is still young though.

Tikes brother hit a dinger out over Payson main street that ended up in the high school parking lot. Shortly thereafter my 2 year old boy disappeared and was eventually found out on the road with a ball in his hand. The kid has got a nose for the ball.

-Western Conference Finals

The Spurs closed out the series on the road against the Hornets. I had the feeling that their experience would come through in the end and even told Elton as much about a week ago. I can't stand watching the Spurs. I think I would rather sit at home and pluck out my pubes with a pair of tweezers than watch them win another championship. (Graphic? Yes. But I doubt any of you now question how bad I dislike watching the Spurs play)

So, who do I cheer for now? I hate the Lakers, and can't stand watching the Spurs. That's a dilemma.

-Locker Clean Out

Jazz cleaned out their lockers. D-Will says Utah is the place where he would like to stay. As of right now everyone is saying the right things. I think he will stay but the question is for how long. Will he go the route of Lebron and Wade and sign the short contract or will he lock into something long term? We'll see.

-Lastly

No, I am not unemployed. Yes I do have a job. I have been on here a lot though lately.

Vying for the Triple Crown!

2008-05-18T23:31:00.015-06:00

Yeah, that's right. We're going to talk a little horse racing. The Jazz season is over, BYU football doesn't start for another 3 months and I don't have a baseball team that I follow (I'll leave the Baseball talk up to the Fat One), so you get to listen to me go on about horses.

For quite a few years now I have taken some interest in the Triple Crown. I say Triple Crown rather than using the general term of horse racing because it's not so much the racing that interests me but rather the history that goes along with it.

Back in May of 2002 Amanda and I found ourselves lounging around our Bountiful apartment on a Saturday afternoon with no plans and nothing to do. Bored, and with nothing to watch on the tv, we stopped on the channel that was covering the Preakness Stakes, which happened to be on that day.

As a part of the pre-race build up they spent a lot of time promoting the Triple Crown. I didn't know anything about it at the time and found myself being really intrigued at what was being said. After learning that it is a task of near impossibility, our excitement grew even more when we watched the Derby winner, War Emblem, take the race that day clinching 2/3 of what is horse racing's greatest honor.

With great anticipation, we tuned in 3 weeks later only to watch War Emblem fall short in the Belmont stakes. Though we didn't witness a Triple Crown Winner at that time, each year since then we have followed the races in hopes of seeing a horse accomplish the feat.

You might be wondering what the big deal is with the Triple Crown. Let me give you a little history and maybe you'll understand a little better.

In order to win the Triple Crown, a horse must win the Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes all in the same year. That's three long races, in three different states, in a span of 5 weeks. Sounds simple right? I mean, come on, how many times have you seen your favorite team win 3 in a row? It's actually harder than it sounds.

Since 1875 (the first time all three races were ran in the same year) only 11 horses have been able to succeed in winning the Triple Crown. That's 11 horses in 132 years of racing. The last horse to do so was a horse by the name of Affirmed who won it back in 1978.

Since 1978 11 horses have won the first two legs only to fall short in the Belmont Stakes. You might remember the names Smarty Jones, and Funny Cide, some of the more recent horses (within the last few years) that gave their all to make history only to lose in the third and final race.

That brings us to this year. Big Brown, a horse that is being called by many in the racing circles as the most dominating horse since Secretariet, has taken the first two legs with relative ease, really without even being pushed by the competition.

On June 7 he will run in the Belmont Stakes and many believe will be the horse to finally end the 30 year Triple Crown drought. He's that good, in fact, he is believed to be better than just good and will prove that when he takes his place amongst a dozen great horses to do what thousands of horses who came before him couldn't.

Will he be regarded within the same category of such horses as Secretariat and Seattle Slew, or War Admiral (the horse that ran against Seabiscuit)? Horses that rose to the occasion and proved that they were something great by winning it all, or will he be another horse that got close but was unable to seal the deal. We'll find out in less than three weeks.

They believe the possible spoiler in the upcoming race is a Japan based horse by the name Casino Drive. He hasn't ran in a whole lot of races but the ones he has ran in he has done very well. Should be a good match-up.

Preakness Stakes

Kentucky Derby

Off Season Regimine for the Jazz

2008-05-16T22:15:00.002-06:00

Great season with good progress from the keystone (D-Will) from the Jazz. The team need to try and improve this off season and so here is a list for the Jazz to implement in the offseason.

Team Goals
1. Trade Kirilenko and get something even if it is an expiring contract and draft picks. He is not improving and is actually getting worse. He is the most over-paid player in the NBA. I believe it was Fortune magazine that published the most over-paid athletes and he was at the top of the list for the NBA. Normally as a Jazz fan I would try and justify the contract and look at him in blue colored glasses, but I can't and I won't. He needs to get dealt to a lottery team that he can be the man like he thinks he is. He is just one of those players that does not get it. He has not improved since his rookie year and he won't. This should have been the year for huge strides, he is in his prime. Instead, AK has settled into a malcontent that only brings distraction and pulls at the heart strings of fans with occasional good games. He is done, get what you can for him and move him. The Jazz have Milsap, Miles and Korver to take his place and I think they can fill his shoes and more.
2. Get rid of Hart and Collins and develop Almond and Fesinko (spelling). Fez really could become a force and Morris can light it up from deep with a little confidence. If the Jazz have Fez develop into an inside force to alternate with Okurs outside game and sub in for Boozer, that is a good front line. Have Morris back up Brewer and become a Vinnie Johnson/Eddie Johnson 6th man that comes in and gives the Jazz a boost. At three you have the trio listed above with Milsap starting and bringing the energy. Then you have price and Williams at point. I believe this lineup gives the Jazz the best chance to win. You still have Harpring as well to come in and bang around like a pinball and piss opposing players off.

These are the team goals, now I will break out player by player goals.

D-Will
He does not have a lot to improve on. I would suggest that he spend a summer in Utah learning to fly-fish and mountain bike. My biggest fear is that he bails on the Jazz in hopes of greater exposure in a bigger market. If we can get him to fall in love with Utah that would be great. I hope all of the honeys in the bars give him lots of love and that the state legislature changes the liquor laws for him to import good stuff. Also, I think he needs to a hollywood hair stylist to change his hair-do. His hair may be the ugliest in the league and he needs to realize that it just isn't Utah that holds back his endorsements, but that he is an ugly mofo and advertisers are afraid he may scare young children. I love D-Will and believe he is the heart and soul of the future, KEEP HIM HAPPY. One more thing, Larry Miller should give him a car dealership.

Ronnie Brewer
He needs to go to the Jeff Horny school of shooting and re-break that damn arm so he doesn't rival Shawn Marion for the ugliest shot in the NBA. He also needs to move in with Bruce Bowen and go to his school of dirty basketball. If he can learn to play defense, he has all the physical gifts to be a special defender. The NBA is full of 2 guards that light it up and it is funny that every year they light the Jazz up for 50 points. This is nothing new, it has happened for years and I would love to see them finally get that stopper they so desperately need. Bowen can teach him all the dirty little tricks from stepping on peoples heels to under-cutting to flopping lessons. He could become the defensive man. Jerry Sloan could then play him 35 minutes a game instead of 22 mins.

Paul Milsap (New Starting 3)
This man is a beast and has all the tools to be an all-star. He defends, he scores and he is the energy player for the team. I would suggest that he goes to the United Nations and learn diplomacy. He struggles with foul trouble at times and I think if he could work on the refs a little better he could improve dramatically. He also needs to take Jiu-Jitsu to beat Carlos Boozers ass for his practical jokes and for taking advantage of his humble personality. I have heard that he gets a lot of grief for his naivity. Other than that, I would love to see him get the minutes.

Carlos Boozer
Ok, he has shown brillance for most of the year. He was a stud and led the Jazz in scoring. He is great with both hands. However that being said he choked horribly in the playoffs. He played 1 good game in 12 post season games. I can not describe how disappointed I have been in his performance. His instructions for the offseason is to hang out with some navy seals and learn what real pressure is. He also should do yoga and learn to relax his rectal sphincter muscle so he can play in crunch time. He can do it, he just needs to. He should also get a tanning pass because he is pasty, I have more color than he does. I could give a hundred other suggestions, but he just needs to bring it.

Memo
He has been money in the latter part of this year up until game 6 against the Lakers. Nobody can bring it every night unless your name is Kobe or King James. He needs to grow his hair out so he can look like other great foreigners in the league. He also need to go hang out with Shaq and learn how to play muscle ball. He is an amazing player in clutch and just needs to learn to play with his back to the hoop. He could also go to heavy metal concerts and go in mosh pits which will help with his intestinal fortitude.

Price
Hang out with D-Will, enough said.

Almond
Learn self-hypnosis and hypnotize yourself every game and convince yourself that it is the D-League that you are playing in and drop 50.

Korver
Hang out with Kutcher and sneak a few peeks at Demi, has there ever been a woman in her mid 40s that is so hot? If he can go to the olympics and hang out with the track and field guys to improve his athletism that would be great. He is what he is and that is danger, danger...

Miles
Give Sloan a nice MANssage. You need to get some more PT. I really think you have some great skills and I would like to see what you can bring.

Harpring
Go hang out with the million dollar man or whatever that bionic man was called. Get your knees healthy and keep doing what you do. Get some R&R and lots of lovin from the wifey, you deserve it.

Fez
Just keep being the big lovable goof ball that you are.

AK 47
Have fun in France, you hit some big threes at the end of the game 6. You did just enough for the fans to fall in love with you again. I personally hope you go and run for political office in France and decide to forego your max contract. If you do go back you need to go hang out with Jerome Bettis and learn to hold on to the damn ball. Or if you could go see what Greg Ostertag is up to and ask him why he had better hands than you that could work as well. You may also want to read some books on emotional IQ and see if you can get over yourself and see yourself for what you are. If you come back, come back with a good attitude, avoid controversy i.e. getting vacation visas instead of practicing for game 6. Just live up to expectations!!!

For the Jazz the last thing is to beat the crappy teams in the regular season. Just think if you would have won half the games you lost that you should have won.... You would have been a one seed and you would have beat the lakers in a seven game series. Bring it every night!!!! I wish it wasn't over but it is. Good job, you have kept my passion.

Game 6 - At the Half

2008-05-16T21:54:00.002-06:00

The wheels are coming off!

This has been very frustrating. The Jazz have picked a lousy night not to show up and play some defense. How many easy lay-ups have the Lakers had with not a single Jazz player slowing them down? I can remember a few by Kobe alone.

They are definitely playing out of sync. Nineteen points is going to be hard to come back from. They really needed to make a run before the half to realistically have a shot of getting back in this thing. I thought they were going to after Williams knocked down that three only to come back and give it up on the next possession. We'll see. Hopefully they can come back and have a great third quarter and make a game of it.

So far it has been nothing but the Lake Show. I hate that show.

monson of the trib

2008-05-16T01:13:00.002-06:00

Monson is a fool, he is such an arrogant, pugnacious, holier-than-thou ass that I cannot stand it. I was bothered when I used to listen to him in SLC and he would claim every ten minutes that, "I'm not a fan." He would use this to try and give credibility to his argument. He would insinuate that a fan means fanatic, which in turn means that they see a biased view of the game and therefore anything they say can be excused as misappropriated passion. I moved to Phoenix thinking that this must be the M.O. of all sports talk personalities, but I quickly found out that this is not true. The hosts down here really cheer on the local teams and want and wish for their success. They at times even say "we" when they are talking about a professional team here in the valley of the sun. This email was set off by Monsons column on the refs and the Jazz fans stupidity in believing that the refs were bad in game 5. He tries to come off logical and objective with an outsiders view, but he ends up showing how big of an idiot he is. I could tear apart his whole column, but I will suffice myself with one single point. He claims that if there was a corrupt official then everyone around him would know and he would be outed immediately which would in turn lead to the demise of the NBA. Are you kidding me? There was an example last year of an official manipulating games for mobsters. He did this for years and got away with it. He was regarded as a good referee. Monson even has the gall to mention Tim Doughnhey briefly to supposedly support his argument at the end of his column. Are you kidding me!!!! He is a fool, I worked with him for a while and sat by his desk at 1280 and he is even worse in person. I have no respect for him. That being said, I do not think the refs were the reason the Jazz lost. I put the blame on Boozer and lack of execution when they had the opportunity to take the lead. Did the refs blow the calls at the end? Yes they did numerous times, but I think players ultimately decide the game. Would the NBA prefer the Lakers to be in the finals? Yes they would, they would want the Lakers against the Celtics. The make big time bucks off of advertising dollars which are determined by television ratings. The Ls and Cs would be by far the most profitable for the NBA. YEs the NBA and David Stern have a preference on who plays the finals. Did Stern instruct the officials? Most likely no, but to denigrate Jazz fans for questioning is not right, and Monson once again did this. He continues to thrive in his controversy and I just wasted 10 minutes of my time writing about him. He is a pompous ass and writes garbage. Is that the best story he can come up with right now? This has been a great post-season with incredible games and story lines and all Gordon can come up with is to rip local fans again. Shame on him!

Game Five

2008-05-14T22:43:00.002-06:00

So the game is at the end of the third quarter right now, but I have to write. I heard that writing is a good way to express your frustration and my cat has a bloody nose, so I have to find another outlet now. What is going on with Carlos friggin Boozer???? His butt puckers every time he shoots. He looks like a rookie right now and he is absolutely atrocious. The Jazz have been on the fringe of taking the lead all game, but it seems like when they get close booz will screw it up. I mean come on!

Notwithstanding my frustration with boozer, I actually have a good feeling about the game. The Jazz are scrapping on every play and it just looks like Kobe the assasin is flat (I attibute this to his back). With Kobe on the skids and D "Mr. Clutch" Will in the game, I really think they can pull this off.

Has anyone noticed that Jerry Sloan looks like someone is pulling his pubes out with tweezers during the inter-quarter interviews and the camera in the locker room? He is such a stud. Ok 4th quarter started and Radmonavic just hit a three so I am going tback to my screaming. I'm out!

Game #5 Preview- How bad is that back really?

2008-05-14T09:30:00.005-06:00

Bryant's sore back still painful, but much better.

Sounds like Kobe is still in quite a bit of pain. As much as I hope his back slows him down, I am expecting Kobe to still come out and get his points. Hopefully though, it takes him 30+ shots to get his 30 some odd points like it did in game #4. One area I could see him still hurting the Jazz despite the bad back is at the foul line. Their is no doubt that he is going to get the calls tonight with the game being at the Staple Center.

I still think the key is in controlling the role players, specifically the bench. Their bench plays well at home (similar to the Jazz's bench) and hurt the Jazz in the first two games. If the Jazz can limit their production, as well as get some good bench play from their own guys, I think they win this game. It's going to take a complete game by the Jazz, everyone included. They can't take any quarters off like they did last time they were in LA. Sounds pretty obvious, huh? Obvious isn't always simple though.

Somebody put a body on Fisher as well. If somebody is going to beat the Jazz, please let it be someone other than him. I get a sick feeling in my stomach every time he shoots because in this series he has rarely missed. I don't want to hear the reports that will come if Fisher is the one to step up and bury his old team with an ailing Kobe.

The odds are still stacked against the Jazz in this series. Somebody always beats the odds though. Might as well be the Jazz. Can they win? I think so. It's going to be tough but they can do it. Tonight is as good as any to get that road win that they need to advance in this series.

Go Jazz!

Cougs lose Tonga for the season...

2008-05-12T22:44:00.003-06:00

Manase Tonga, one of BYU's most experienced running backs, has been suspended from the University for academic reasons. He can re-apply for admission in October which means he won't be eligible to play in this upcoming season. Sounds like he is going redshirt.

How does that happen? How, going into your senior year, do you end up academically ineligible? I'm not going to blame the coaching staff. This guy is an adult and the blame should fall squarely on his shoulders. He is going into his senior season, on probably the best team BYU has had in over a decade, in what is turning into the most anticipated season by fans and players alike, and he gets suspended. Come on dude, college isn't that hard and if it is you have a million resources available to you to help you get through.

So what does the loss of Tonga mean? I have heard and hope the reports are true that BYU is loaded at the running back position. Bronco is confident that he has guys that will step in and take this opportunity and make the most of it. Despite the depth at the position, I still think that the Cougs will be losing some much needed senior leadership along with the great blocking ability that Tonga brought to the backfield.

I don't believe Tonga is a make-or-break loss that will determine the outcome of the season. I think he will be missed, but the team will move on without him and I believe will still be dang good. It's a shame though for him that he won't be able to play this season. At least it happened plenty early so the cougs can prepare through fall camp without him.

Side Notes:

-Pirate Motor Sports went 1-1 tonight. I had more errors than I did good plays. My last two at bats were fouls caught by the third baseman. It pretty much sucked. I don't remember being this frustrated playing softball dating back to the days of playing Co-ed softball up at USU. Back then it was a different kind of frustration, but frustration none the less.

I'm reminded of the game when Dustin dropped the ball out in the outfield and instead of picking it up he through his glove down and unleashed a verbal sequence of 4-letter words towards the ball that to this day has never been rivaled nor probably ever will be. All this while the guy rounded the bases and scored giving them the win. I still remember how shocked Heidi Merrill was. She couldn't believe that Big D, having a mouth like that, had actually served a mission with her brother. She didn't appreciate Dustin's profane poetry like we all did.

Or, how about losing to Shaw's co-ed team every time we played them? It wasn't so bad losing to Shaw, but having to put up with the smack talk from Jimmy was more than frustrating. He was the worst player on the team including the girls but was still the most vocal. As hard as we tried Warf Rat could never get the win to shut him up.

-Kobe says he is going to play in game #5 even with the back pain. I'm sure he'll still do his thing. I hope we don't end up with another story like the time MJ pulled himself out of the grave to score 40+ against the Jazz in the finals while suffering from the flu. If we're lucky a crippled Kobe will continue to take a lot of shots and shoot his team right out of the game.

Just like that....

2008-05-11T22:05:00.004-06:00

the Utah Jazz are right back in this thing. A lot can change in just a couple of days.

The Jazz went from almost flat lining, to having a pulse, to now having a full on heart beat. Dave (Lunch Box) went from being an obnoxious Laker fan, to an educated Laker fan who can appreciate good basketball from either side, to a Laker fan who no longer responds to his text messages. (He's going to blame that on the fact that he is in Hawaii. Is that really an excuse?) Carlos Boozer went from slumping, to everyone's hero, then back to hiding once again.(Please come back Carlos) Kobe went from unstoppable to a cripple that could barely pull himself off of the floor. (Actually, as a cripple he was still nearly unstoppable)

Rather than being down and out the Jazz are right back in this thing and now find themselves in a best out of three series. How will it all turn out?

My gut feeling is that the series will go seven games. I would love to see the Jazz steal the next game but am hesitant to predict it happening. Adam has said all along that he thought game 5 would be the game the Jazz steal. Here's hoping it happens.

If (and it's still a big if) the Jazz make it through this round who would you rather have them matchup against, the Spurs or the Hornets? As I watched the Spurs spank the Hornets earlier this evening it brought back bad memories of watching them do the same to our beloved team. Part of me says bring on the Spurs so that the Jazz can finally get that monkey off their backs and beat Ginobli, Parker, and Duncan just so they can say they did. On the other hand though I would love to see a D-Will vs. CP3 battle. D-Will has taken it to Paul so far in their short careers and I would love to see more of it on a national stage with the country watching. I think the Jazz match up well with the Hornets.

I think in either case though the Jazz, if they get past the Lakers, would advance to the finals. I think they could beat either team.

This sort of talk is definitely putting the cart before the horse. Is that so wrong though? Isn't that what fans do?

Back to the task at hand. I hope the Jazz actually show up to play for game 5 unlike the game 5 down in Houston. If they can get the win that would be great, but at least if nothing else I hope that they give themselves a chance to win coming down to the final minutes. Please keep it close. I hope that isn't asking too much.

Notes:

-Play of the Day has to go to Ronnie Price blocking Luke Walton from behind on the easy fast break layup. Nothing like getting denied by the shortest guy on the court.

-Pirate Motor Sports (my softball team) is 2-o on the season. I have realized that my age is catching up to me. Softball should not be a sport that makes you sore the next day, especially when half of the time was spent catching behind the plate. This year could be our year to take the title. We are three-peat champions in flag football but can never get it together to win it on the softball diamond.

-My two year old boy has outgrown our 1/4 acre lot. My vinyl fence cannot contain his swing. His new game is using the fence as his home run wall. The neighbor kids are trained already to know to just toss the balls back over onto our grass. I bought him a new glove and some cleats the other day (they're about three sizes to big and look like ski's on his feet) and laugh as I watch him out on the grass pretending like he is catching balls with his mitt. The joys of being a dad.

%&^ (&^ Jazz

2008-05-08T21:43:00.002-06:00

Attention shoppers, there is a disaster in Utah. I had to wait a day to write this post to avoid a profanity laced diatribe. Where have the stars on the Jazz gone? How is it possible that I sit there hoping that Jerry pulls Carlos out of the game and puts Milsap in? Where did the Jazz defense go? When did quick jump shots become the jazz offense?

The first two games were eerily similar in how they played out. The Jazz quickly dug a large deficit, only to claw their way back to just close enough to get my hopes up, only to quickly revert back to a style of play that put them down in the first place. It is a shame that Carlos has disappeared in the post-season. He really had a good year, but he has lost all confidence. He shows flashes on occasion and will take it to the hole, but he has settled for jump shots most of the time, and the majority of those are not in rhythm and with hesitation. When was the last time that we saw his patented left handed power layup? I honestly do not remember one in the playoffs.
Memo has been a stud up until game 2. He has been arguably the most consistent player for the Jazz in the post season. D-Will has disappeared for stretches, but I put some of that blame on Boozer. How is D-Will supposed to excel when the number 2 of the 1 - 2 punch is not performing. The Lakers have been able to back off and go under the screens on the pick and roll because booz cannot hit a shot. By doing this, it eliminates D-Will's lane to the hoop and makes it very difficult for the Jazz offense. D-Will is amazing when he gets mad and decides to take over a game, but he cannot do that for 48 minutes, and he shouldn't have to. This is going to be a very short series unless the Jazz pull their heads out and play. These first two games have not been competitive. Most the time I prefer a blow out instead of getting my heart ripped out at the end, but I really would like to see the Jazz play up to their capability.

Another interesting side note that I don't think is getting enough play in the press is that of Derek Fisher. I think he tries to be a good guy and he is a class act, however I have changed my mind on him asking out of his contract from the Jazz. The Jazz benevolence has cost them dearly. The NBA is a business, and the Jazz just gave away one of their major assets for nothing to a direct competitor in the same geographical area. I do not think they should have done that. If they had put some sort of stipulation on Fishers release such as that he had to sign with a team in the east, they would have been much better off. I cringe every time he knocks down a jumper or makes a play. He technically should be under contract with the Jazz this year. His nice comments in the press about him rooting for the Jazz except for the Lakers doesn't change things. My opinion on his daughter is that it is a very sad and unfortunate situation. He should care about his daughter more than his career and good for him that he does. The problem starts in that his daughters doctor is in NY and he moved from Utah to LA because of better access to health care. I have heard that a couple of times from the announcers and talking sports heads, but is that really the case? From my understanding, Utah has some of the most renowned oncology departments in the nation. I remember two different coaches in the NBA coming to Utah to be treated for their cancer. Primary Children's Hospital is one of the top rated pediatric hospitals in the nation as well. So the argument that yes Fisher's daughters primary physician is in NY, but the secondary and maintenance health care is not accessible in Utah does not fly with me. My gut tells me that his evangelical side did not agree with Utah's predominant religion and therefore it was a good excuse to get out and back to California. This being said, I really do hope that his daughter makes a full recovery, but he cannot complain if Jazz fans do not receive him with a standing ovation. The first time I heard he was booed, I disagreed with it and thought it was low class, however as I thought about it and the things I mentioned above, I now would stand and boo him as well. One other thing is that with the money he makes, one more year in a contract with the Jazz should have been easily fulfilled. Boozer's family with his kids sickle cell anemia lived in Miami for most the season because of the climate. He fulfilled his contractual obligations. Fisher did not fulfill his.

Ok, it is time for the Jazz to step up. I told Shane before the series that I think that the Jazz will steal game five in LA, so I was expecting loses, just not the sort of loses the Jazz have had. It is time to step up and at least make it a series. The Lakers are young and will be around a long time, so the Jazz need to learn to win now.

So you're telling me there's a chance!

2008-05-08T09:38:00.007-06:00

Only 13 of the 211 teams that lost the first two games in a best-of-seven NBA playoff series have been able to come back and win after falling that far behind. Could the Jazz be team number fourteen? Or, are those odds insurmountable for this years team?

We watched them do it last year against Houston in the first round when they went down and stole game number seven away from the Rockets. Who's to say they can't do it again this year against the Lakers? I think the Lakers are definitely a better team than what the Rockets were, but I would hope that the Jazz are as well.

We've all heard the old, worn out adage that a series isn't really a series until someone wins on the road. As cliche as it sounds there is some truth to that statement. The Jazz still have a chance to get back in this series with the next two games being played at the ESA, but they cannot afford to let the Lakers get a split. The Jazz need to hold down the fort and take both games #3 and #4 if they realistically have a chance.

Jazz fans, don't jump off the wagon just yet. There is still a lot of basketball to be played and I am confident we still have a lot of cheering to do. This thing isn't over just yet.

The Jazz had their opportunities in game's 1 and 2 to get a win but it didn't work out that way. In both games they dug themselves a hole early on that they ultimately, despite a good effort, were not able to overcome. It wasn't all bad though and hopefully the team can come back and put it all together here at home.

Boozer seems confused on the court as to what to do to get out of his funk. He was useless to the Jazz in game #2. Not only did he not perform on the offensive side of the ball, but he had no answer to stop Odom on defense from driving to the basket for easy layups. Props to Milsap for stepping up and having a great game in his absence. There for awhile in the first half Paul was what kept the Jazz in the game.

Deron started slow but turned it on in the third quarter. I think the switch has been flipped and he realizes now how he can exploit Fisher. Doug Collins spoke of that very thing during the game.

Speaking of Fisher, as much as I still question his motives for leaving Utah, that guy buried the Jazz last night. He had a great game, especially shooting from behind the three point line. He is a true competitor.

The Jazz are playing now with their backs against the wall. That's not such a bad thing though because this team does well when they are pressured. I would expect them to come out Friday with a fire underneath them. We will see a completely different team than the one we have seen thus far in LA.

Eventually that will have to change though. They need to be able to take that same intensity on the road to win this series. It's a long shot, but maybe an elimination game #7 in LA is just the motivation this teams needs.

My prediction is that we'll at least make it that far to find out.

A little love for Kobe....

2008-05-05T13:31:00.008-06:00

So, we have to endure another series where the announcers are in love with yet another player. Last series it was T-Mac, this series it will be Mr. MVP.

I really don't like the guy at all but apparently I don't know him as well as they do. The announcers were saying during game one that his teammates really love him as well. That would explain a lot of things.

I guess this is how the Lakers roll.

Is that Walton running to get in on the action? Must run in the family.

Most teams give high-5's or knuckles. At most maybe a chest bump.

Dave (LUNCH BOX), I've noticed you're kind of a lovable guy yourself, always giving out hugs, etc. when you say hello to someone. Is this why man-on-man affection doesn't bother you, it's part of your Laker culture?

Welcome to the blog Dave!

Worn Out......

2008-05-04T22:33:00.002-06:00

At least that was how it looked anyways.

Coming into the game I felt that if the Jazz were going to split the first two games in LA this would be the one to get the win from. I was hoping the Jazz would carry some momentum from the other night against Houston and catch a rusty Laker team coming off basically a two week break since the Nuggets rolled over for them. The Jazz came out hot but by the second quarter they looked like a team that had been through a battle and was still feeling the affect of it.

To many turnovers that first half. Boozer had 6 of them himself. More than the whole rest of the team combined. In the second quarter the Lakers really ran the court well and got a lot of easy baskets in transition. Again, it looked like the Jazz had no legs left under them. It was frustrating to see them settle for jump shots after going inside had been so effective. It's too bad because aside from that one bad quarter, the Jazz matched the play of the Lakers for the other 3/4 of the game.

Is all lost? I don't think so. The Lakers are an outstanding team with the most amazing player of this decade leading them, but I think the Jazz can still make this series interesting. Kobe is going to do his thing, that's a given, but if the Jazz can contain the rest of the Lakers and keep them in check they have a legitimate shot of beating these guys.

Had you told me before the game that the Jazz's bench would score 26 points, six guys would score in double digits, they would have 3 times as many offensive rebounds as the Lakers (25 to their 8), and 21 assists, I would have said that it was going to be a well played game. I would have expected a win.

The Jazz will get their wins. This series is going to be a real test for the Lakers, one which I wouldn't be surprised to see them fail. I am expecting the Jazz to come out in game #2 and play a tough, physical game. I don't expect the let down like we saw today. After a 3 day rest they should have fresh legs and be ready to roll.

Who will get the win? I am going to re-adjust my blue shades, get behind the team, and predict a Jazz win. I think it will be a close game with the Jazz stealing game number two from the Lakers.

What say you?

It's about time

2008-05-03T11:23:00.002-06:00

The Jazz finally found their transition game and put the Rockets out of commission. I have to tip my hat to Adelman and his coaching this series. He really put the clamps down on the Jazz and their style of basketball. Game 6 was a mixture of elation and disappoinment. I have been telling Shane that Boozer has to start taking it to the hoop. Carlito started out the game doing just that. He was able to get Dikembe in foul trouble in 2 minutes and the Jazz were rolling. Ronnie Brewer was a star! The offense was thriving and the UCLA cuts were flourishing. After building a 19 point lead however, the Jazz decided it was time to start hoisting up early, ill-advised jump shots again. I was cursing and my wife was looking at me with disgust. How could they not see that they were playing into the Rockets game plan again? This happened with our first team on the court again, and Boozer was terrible. He brought back memories of Malone and his fall away 15 footers. I am starting to wonder if Boozer has what it takes to be a go to guy in the clutch. It seems to me that Memo is a much better option in that he will post people when necessary, and I feel confident when he shoots the outside shot, not to mention his 6 straight double double.
The second half turned out better, but it still was not Jazz basketball. The team was D-Will's team and the game belonged to him. He was outstanding in every way. Every time he shot the ball, I was already putting my arms in the air. There is little doubt in my mind that his stats would surpass Chris Paul's stats if he were given the same latitude to shoot when he wanted. He is capable of breaking down defenders off of the dribble and taking it to the hole, and his outside shooting is lights out. As far as I'm concerned there is no comparison to Jason Kidd outside of their body types. Kidd in his 87 years in the league has never developed a consistent outside game, and D-Will is as dangerous as anybody (outside the Novak kid from Houston, where was he all series?) The third quarter belonged to Deron and he gave the Jazz the much needed victory. The fourth quarter was just a walk in the park and I had little doubt that the Jazz were going to win. Mcgrady can't play in the crucial minutes of a game, he never has and never will. I loved seeing him clank his free throws and his uncomfortable face every time the camera showed him. It reminded me of what my face probably looked like at Junior High school dances when I would hang out in the dark corners wanting to go ask the ladies to dance, or Shane's face on his wedding night... Goodbye T-Mac, go back to Houston and you are not welcome in Zion. I can't believe he had the gall to come out and say he "hated" Jazz fans. Since when have you thrived in hostile environments Tracy? Did you think that would help your game? You fish-eyed, brick laying, broken down baby! I loved when he started limping and acting hurt toward the fourth quarter, talk about a built in excuse waiting to happen. Reefer Alston was another example of somebody not wanting to perform, he needed to rub some feminine cream on and get back on the court. It is a close out game in the playoffs, get an injection, tape up the ankle and get on the court. We as Jazz fans have been fortunate enough to have witnessed Stockton and Malone play through injuries and earn their pay checks.
In the end, it was a good performance by the Jazz. I find myself stupidly questioning the wizard Jerry Sloan for his substition pattern again. Why does Ronnie Brewer not get more PT in crunch time? He is a play maker. He does not need the ball in his hands to contribute and his defense is awesome to watch. This being said, Jerry is king. He has coached and deserved to coach longer than any other coach the same ball club. He knows what he is doing, and that is why he sits where he does and I sit in my underwear writing on blogs. Hopefully he stays with the Jazz another ten years, he deserves it and the NBA would be worse without him.

ODDS AND ENDS
Did anyboy watch Boston and Atlanta? Man it would be funny to watch the C's go down to the 8 seed in the East. Atlanta would have been 12th in the west behind Golden State, Portland and Sacramento. That is funny stuff. You could see their butts puckering on TV. Could this be another upset the likes of Denver with Dikembe of the 90s or Golden State over Dallas last year? Stay tuned, Sunday is decsion day for the Cs. I think they will win based on talent and KG's will to win. He is a beast and is hard not to like. I would actually like to see him win it all. He is the MVP this year, he isn't the best player in basketball, but no player can lead a team like KG. He is an emotional giant and would succeed at any job he had. If only Mccain had his leadership ability.
The playoffs have been great! The NBA is back finally. We went through a few years of thugs and gangstas, but it appears the NBA has quality stars that will lead the NBA for the foreseeable future. It is awesome to watch the stank nuggs choke and play selfish basketball and fail. Melo is a thug of the past and his best days are behind him already. He is doomed to a Pac man fall from grace. That team should be blown up. They cannot compete with the Jazz or Portland starting next year.

Alright, props to the Jazz and their victory. Hopefully they can play well against the Lakers. I will post a matchup breakout in the next couple of days (not that you care). I'm feeling BLUE!

A Wasted Opportunity

2008-04-30T18:10:00.006-06:00

Before game 5 I had decided to stick with my original prediction that the Jazz would take this series in six games. Because of that I had to take off my blue shades and actually pick against the Jazz. I prefaced it however with the statement that I wouldn't be surprised if the Jazz did win and was hoping they proved me wrong. I predicted a close game and would have been content had the Jazz at least made a good showing and had given themselves a shot to win it in the last minutes.

The Jazz did prove me wrong but not in the way I had hoped. Rather than it being a close game the Jazz lost in blowout fashion. Had they kept it close and at least had a chance in the end I wouldn't call it a wasted opportunity, but based on how it turned out I believe it was just that.

So what went wrong?

1. Poor Bench play- For the first four games of the series the Jazz's bench averaged nearly 23 ppg. In game five they only scored 9 points as a group. Two of those points came from Jason Hart who under normal circumstances never sees the court but was in during the garbage minutes. The main core of bench guys couldn't even put up double digits as a collective group. Not good.

2. Foul shots- Once again the Jazz struggled from the line. Interestingly in this series the team that shoots the best from the line wins the game. The Jazz only shot 56% from the line which is nearly 20% below their yearly average. The Rockets on the other hand shot 79% from the line, 7% above their average.

3. Rafer Alston- Is he the X-factor? The Rockets are 2-1 with him in the lineup. He gave them an early boost from the 3 point line. For the game he hit 4 of 7 from the behind the arc.

4. Tracy McGrady- T-Mac actually showed up for the entire game, and even had 8 points in the 4th qtr. He had 29 points as well as a handful of assists. Overall he played a good game.

5. Rockets D-fense- I think Jazz fans are finally starting to realize that this is a good team. There is a reason why they won 55 games on the year and ran off 22 in a row. The Jazz averaged nearly 106 ppg throughout the season. For the series they haven't even broke 100 points in any of the five games and have averaged 86 ppg all together. The Rockets are a great defensive team.

This is my short list of reasons. I think any if not all played a role into the loss the other night, and I am sure their are other factors as well that could make the list.

So how will the Jazz respond after such a bad loss?

I am expecting a good game from the Jazz on Friday night. We have talked on here before, and really have no evidence to back it up other than our own personal observations, but it seems the Jazz play well the next game following a bad loss. I wouldn't expect anything less with them coming home to the ESA in front of the home crowd.

The Jazz played below average in Game 5, except for maybe Boozer who had 19 points and 10 rebounds. I don't expect the team to underachieve in game 6. I expect Carlos along with the rest of the guys to play at least to their average with a few guys going above average. D-will is such a competitor that I wouldn't be surprised to see him come out with a chip on his shoulder and a point to prove. Look for a good game from the boys in white and blue.

I am going to stick with my pre-series prediction. The Jazz are going to take game 6 in front of a loud and boisterous crowd and end the Rockets season for the second year in a row. Should be an exciting game to watch.

Bring on the Lake Show!

Odds and Ends

2008-04-29T17:58:00.003-06:00

I have been gloomy with how the series have gone with the Rockets, but a point Shane made brought it back in perspective. If someone would have told me that Utah would be up 3-1 after 4 games I would have thought that was about right. My biggest concern is how ugly this series has been. It hasn't just been the physicality that has been ugly, but the shot selection, coaching, defense, bench, offense, officiating and the commentating. I find myself frustrated after every game, even the wins. I am excited for them to extinguish the rockets and move onto the Lake show. I am scared of that series, but I think it will be a prettier brand of basketball. Also, I have always liked to cheer for the underdog, and in the Lakers series they will be. Hopefully they will close out the rockets in 5 and move on.

On another front, I have to give my love to the Diamondbacks. They are playing a great brand of baseball. Their pitching is leading the majors in ERA, and their hitting and scoring is in the top echelons of the majors. I know their colors are red (instead of gay purple like before) but I love this team. If anybody gets a chance to watch a game, I'd suggest you check them out. If Randy Johnson can pitch around 15-20 games of solid baseball and Harin and Webb continue their dominance, the D-backs will be in the World Series representing the NL. The AL is not looking as tough this year, check out the AL East where Tampa Bay is leading the Yankees and the Red Socks. The Devilrays entire team makes less than A-Rod. That is embarrassing and should not happen. It should show the owners that they should not overpay for one player. Baseball is a team sport, which leads me to the next point; baseball should implement a salary cap. There are two major sins committed by the Yankees and the Devil Rays. First, the most apparent, the Yankees are ridiculous in that they make so much money that they will pay whatever to get the biggest names in baseball, and that is just not right. This abuse by the Yankees hurts smaller market teams in that the smaller market teams don't get the big names, which leads to less interest by fans, which leads to lower attendance, which leads to less corporate interest, which coupled with attendance means less revenue and all this equals the apathy that many people have towards baseball now, and the smaller teams not spending the money. Bud Selig tried to rectify this by imposing a profit sharing cap where teams that spend over a certain amount have to share with the smaller teams to keep them operating. This leads me to the bigger of the two sins, the smaller market teams like and especially the D-rays pockets the money and pays the lowest amount they can to their players. Their highest paid player is a middle reliever, what a travesty! The sin they are committing with the aid of Selig's terrible leadership, is that they understand it is a team sport and they can stay just competitive enough each year with the young players, that they will never pay enough to their young guys. Salary caps are great in that they have a maximum amount or a minimum amount a team can spend in a year. There is a hard cap (like the NFL) which makes it so no team can spend more than the determined line (no matter what) which is determined by looking at the overall balance sheets of the teams combined, or a soft cap like the NBA where teams can choose to break the cap, but that means they have to pay a hefty luxury tax. No team goes over by too much, unless you are the Knicks and that is why Isaiah will never work again in the NBA. There is also a minimum, and that is why some teams trade for expiring contracts. Anyways this is a boring post, but baseball is really screwed up and Bud Selig needs to fix it or get out of the way. The popularity for America's game has been waning since the strike and now because of roids. We have to get it back and the way to do it is increasing the competition and parity a la NFL. Every team has a shot every year and every team has a level ball field... Ok I am done with my rant. Nobody drop the Florida Marlins on me as an example, they are an aberration, and they have traded or released all their players every time they get them. Their strength is in their farm system and they exploit the talent at minimum salaries and then get rid of them when they mature. They are guilty of sin numero 2.

I love T-Mac... just kidding. Go Jazz

It's Mr. Williams to you!

2008-04-27T00:07:00.011-06:00

Did any of you catch T-Mac's post game interview? That guy has an ego as large as the state he calls home.

A reporter asked him about the game plan that the Jazz had in place to slow him down. He said that they played him more physical in game four than any of the rest and that they were putting a body on him as soon as he crossed mid court. When asked if it had any affect on his play he said no. It didn't matter what they did he still got his shots. He got his shots all right, 25 of them in fact, but because of the pressure put on him by the Jazz he only made 9 of them. You keep shooting T-Mac, shooting your team right out of the game.

The guy disappears when it matters most. In the fourth quarter of game #4 he scored 4 points. He had one layup and the rest of his points came on foul shots of which he went 2/4. I loved it when he clanked a foul shot hard off the rim as the fans chanted over-rated. For the game he only shot 50% as well from the line.

He also had his pocket picked by Harpering in the fourth which led to points on the other end. Like he said though, the defensive pressure had no affect on his game.

The guy wasn't about to give the Jazz any credit. But that was only the half of it. He was asked about the rebound Memo got after Williams missed a couple of free throws at the end of the game. He took the opportunity to blame a teammate for not grabbing the ball after he had tipped it to him, he then threw his coach under the bus for having the wrong guys in the game. He then had to stop in his answer to get clarification on whether to pronounce Williams' name Deron or Da-ron. What a punk.

You think he really didn't know how to pronounce Deron's name? They have been going up against each other for three years. If he doesn't know how to pronounce Deron by now it is because he isn't all that smart. He was taking a shot at D-Will for missing the FT's. The guy bothers me. I will take much pleasure in watching him get bumped from the playoffs in the first round yet once again. How many will that make? Seven?

The best sign of the night in the crowd had to be the one that had a picture of him in a golf shirt and the caption "Second Round Virgin." I got a good laugh out of that one.

OVERRATED

T-Mac's Post Game Interview

THE SKY IS FALLING!

2008-04-26T11:08:00.004-06:00

You would think by the way the fans are reacting to Thursday's loss that the Jazz were just eliminated from the playoffs. As we drove home from the airport we listened to one fan after another call into the radio station we were listening to and complain how the team should have done this or should have done that.

It was a bad loss, don't get me wrong, but it was only one loss. Taking the glass half full approach, as far as I can tell the Jazz still own the home court advantage, they still have a series lead of two games to one, and they get to come back to the friendly confines of the ESA to redeem themselves. In my estimation things are still looking pretty good.

Prior to the start of the series I felt that the Jazz coming into tonight's game would be sitting with lead of 2 to 1. I didn't think the wins and losses would have occurred where they did, but regardless they sit win wise right where I thought they would be.

I didn't think a loss would come on their home court. I won't blame the loss on foul shots because by doing so you would also have to take into consideration that in the previous two losses the Rockets shot about 10% lower in FT's than their yearly average. Would it have changed the outcome of the game had they shot consistent with what they normally shoot? I don't know. Possibly. It definitely would have made things a lot closer.

I think the hustle plays are what made the difference. It was apparent the Rockets were playing with more energy and determination than what the Jazz had showed up with. They out rebounded the Jazz. They had 16 offensive boards, 7 of which came from Landry who is a bench player. That's too many extra possessions in a tight game. They had more steals than the Jazz and fewer turnovers.

I think the teams showed up that night with two different mindsets. The Rockets came into that game in survival mode. If they lose that one their series is essentially over. They were playing with a sense of urgency.

The Jazz on the other hand appeared to have shown up thinking that because of their usual success at home that this was going to be just another win at the ESA. I think a lot of us felt that way.

They won't make that mistake tonight. I am expecting the Jazz to come out refocussed with a sense of urgency themselves. The Jazz historically respond well after a tough loss. I don't expect tonight to be any different.

I think tonight's game is huge in that it will determine the outcome of this series. The Rockets have the chance to steal back the momentum along with home court, whereas the Jazz can basically put the series out of reach. The Jazz need to get a win. I think they will.

I am still feeling pretty confident with my prediction of the Jazz winning it in 6. After tonight they will be one game closer to doing so.

Take me out to the Ball Game!

2008-04-26T09:31:00.003-06:00

A Great Place To See a Game

Sporting a New Hat

The Cheap Seats

Vacations are great, but it's always nice to come home. We took the kids this last week down to SoCal and spent a few days at Disneyland. Kade has been asking to go to Disney for a few months now, so we finally went.

We took a day off in between trips to the park and made our way down to San Diego to see the Padres play. For me, it was the highlight of the trip. What a great place to see a baseball game.

We watched future hall of famer Greg Maddux pitch 7 scoreless innings, only to watch Trevor Hoffman enter in the 9th and blow the save. He gave up a homerun to Giant's Benjie Molina. The game went 13 innings and the Padres ended up on the short end of it.

That's alright though because we have no attachment to either team and were just there for the experience. It was a great one.

Dear Shane

2008-04-22T22:52:00.002-06:00

Hey fellers what's the deal, I feel like I am writing messages to Shane! Where is everybody?.... Hello, hello, hello, is there anybody out there, just yell if you can hear me....

The Jazz are kickin some major arce. Hopefully the Stank Nuggets can wear the LakeShow down a little bit and the Jazz can sweep. Doug Collins sucks as an announcer, he was blatantly cheering for the Rockets.

Taking Back the Home Court- Game 1 thoughts.

2008-04-19T22:24:00.002-06:00

What a game! This last week after the San Antonio loss Adam and I speculated on how the Jazz would respond after such an embarrassing showing. We both agreed that, based on their history, they would come into Houston hungry for a win and play a good game. I think they did even better than what we had expected.

I was glad to see them withstand the runs that the Rockets made. There were times that the momentum was in Houston's favor but the Jazz stuck with their game plan and were able to steal it back from the Rockets. This team in the past has had a tendency to fold under that type of pressure and give up, but not tonight.

Is D-will amazing or what? Kyle Korver knocked down some key threes as well and then that block on Lazy Eyes was huge. That is about the time the Jazz pulled away for good. AK played a great game, and Boozer was big down in the paint. Harpering is a gritty player that knows how to get the job done. It's no wonder he has lasted so long in Sloan's system. Overall it was a great game by everyone.

This win gave the Jazz the much desired home court advantage. We all know how well they play at home. I am glad with this first win, and am feeling pretty good about their odds of possibly coming back to Utah with two of them. Monday can't come soon enough. Should be a good game.

One Team....One Dream. Oh yeah baby. Go Jazz!

March Madness NBA Style

2008-04-17T23:47:00.002-06:00

We should start our predictions for the playoffs. Here are mine:
1st Round
West
Lakers over the Stank Nuggets 5 games
Mavs over New Orleans (Insert comment on Bush creating Hurricane Katrina) in 7 games
Suns over San Antonio (bowen is as dirty as USU's football team's personal lives) 6 games
Jazz over Houston (Mcgrady cements his legacy as the worst playoff player in history) 6 games

LEast
Boston over Atlanta 4 games (Atlanta could have had Paul or D-Will, ouch)
Detroit over Philly 5 games (Yawn)
Orlando over Toronto 7 games (Bigger Yawn)
Lebron over Washington 6 games (Would these teams have made the playoffs in the west)

Second Round
West
Jazz beat the Lakers 6 games (I'm such a friggin homer)
Suns over the Mavs 5 games (Mark Cuban must kick himself every day for letting Nash go 4 years ago because "his best years were behind him" Good luck with J Kidd, I remeber watching him play college ball when I was in Junior High School)

LEast
Boston over Cleveland 5 games
Detroit over Orlando 5 games

Conference Finals
West
Jazz beat the Suns 6 games (by this time Shaq and Grant Hill will be broken down and be in street clothes)

LEast
Boston over Detroit 7 games (still a boring series)

Finals
Boston over Utah 6 games (once again the Jazz fall just short. Thankfully this time I will be in the country to see them in the finals.)

Random Odds
2:1 AK-47 becomes a distraction
3:1 AK cries
2:1 Karl Malone secretly cheers against the Jazz
A sure bet=Karl Malone is interviewed and he talks in third person

Gonna be good, gonna be DANG good.

2008-04-16T16:25:00.002-06:00

I was likely one of the few, if not only, of the Blue Bloggers that attended the spring scrimmage in Lavell Edwards Stadium last Saturday. Consequently, I wanted to make my inaugural post be on this topic. I've been spewing my commentary elsewhere, at work and with other Coug brethren.
I am on board! The anticipation for this fall was only heightened for me on Saturday afternoon as I sat in the stands with my bro. This team looks very poised to do things that have never been done before and it will be extremely exciting to see each week unfold. I like how the Bronco regime has changed our approach and they have really solidified how they prepare in the spring to maximize preparation for fall camp and minimize injury. I thought that the offense looked even better, as many of the offensive line looks more seasoned and ready to step up and be leaders within their position and throughout the whole team. I particularly think that Oswald and Dallas Reynolds will be even better at the Tackles and we will see less sacks coming off the edge. They looked better and more fine-tuned. Feinga and Matt Reynolds looked nasty at the Guards and it will be intriguing to see if Travis Bright heals completely to compete for the right guard spot. The thing I like the best with these guys is depth. Tom Sorenson is ready to go, RJ Willing can back up wherever and is solid. Garrett Reden will get healthy like Bright. These guys are going to be brutal. Imagine having to scheme against our passing game and then think as an afterthought, "how in the heck are we going to stop their run??"
The scrimmage with the 1's was very controlled. They didn't play to full contact in tackling, but they looked to be going full in blocks, etc. They worked situationally to start the scrimmage, working on Blue Zone stuff and 2-minute drill situations. I was impressed, at one point, they scramble to about the 42 yard line with time running down, ran in the field goal team, and Payne nearly drills a 57 yarder with time expiring! It hit the left upright but was a phenomenal effort. I thought to myself that Payne isn't giving up his spot to Sorenson without a battle! Not to mention, it is going to be very crucial that we are substantially better in the kicking game, specifically field goals and kickoffs to have a dream season next year.
What I most wanted to comment on is the talent that was displayed once the 1's got their work in. I was thoroughly impressed with a few guys. Diluigi has great vision and just looks like a football player. He looks very multi-faceted and seems to be picking up the offense well. He had a couple of nice runs and yards after the catch where he displayed excellent ability to see the field and gain positive yards. Spencer Hafoka looked solid and will be a great receiver. Curt Mcuen threw a sweet corner route to Hafoka that he laid out for and secured a nasty catch. He looks lanky and athletic and he will only get faster. I also liked the looks of Kaneakua Friel. He could play for a lot of teams as a starter at tight end, and I would venture to guess that he will see some good action this fall behind Pitta and George. He is also lanky and looks to create a lot of mismatches against linebackers on a regular basis. That position is deep again. As far as a position that I was most impressed with?? Running backs. Your famous fellow Davis Dart, Brian Kariya looked great and I think he will eventually contribute. I was impressed with him back when they won the 5A title and he carried them on his back. I have heard that he is a great kid and worker and I was hoping that he would come back from a mission and be a contributor. I also thought Isaac Taylor made some nice plays. Wayne Latu runs the ball very strong but scares me in the pass game. I think there are several guys that could play if we have injuries at running back and I feel we are deeper there than last year.
On defense. I like the looks of Andrew Rich. He's a safety, transfer from Snow that came paying his own way. He is from Bonneville and looks big and nasty. He is a competitor and I think that he will be a solid backup to Kellen Fowler and/or Jordan Pendleton. He will see the field and will likely contribute mightily on special teams. He had a pick and just ran it right up the middle of the field almost to say "I dare you to stop me". I like the looks of him. Another safety, Jamison Frazier had a nice pick where he showed some athleticism to go up and grab a ball on a vert route. G Pittman plays with some spunk and confidence. He looks like he thinks he can cover anyone and it has been a while since we have had a corner like that. I think Criddle always played with a lot of confidence and Jaime Hill seems to be instilling that attitude in our secondary guys. I was impressed with G and look forward to seeing him help that defense get more takeaways in the fall. The move for Vic So'oto was awesome. He looks tough, physical and athletic. I think as he learns more of the gap assignments in the run game, he will become a force and once again, the outside linebackers may be the strength of the defense.
All in all, it looks like the Cougs are doing what they need to do to reach their goals. Being able to reach those goals is anyone's guess, but at least they seem to be putting forth the effort and they aren't afraid of setting lofty goals and playing for a dream season. I like that and am glad to be on board. I never got off of the bandwagon and plan to be on it for many years to come.
August 30 at Lavell Edwards Stadium and September 6 in Husky Stadium can't come soon enough for me!
Go Cougs!

Let the games begin!

2008-04-16T13:06:00.002-06:00

The Jazz have had a great season, while they have under-achieved against lesser opponents, they have excelled against the upper echelon teams and tend to rise to the level of their competition. Luckily for them, the playoffs in the West is full of high caliber squads. The Jazz are the epitome of what team basketball is. Their discipline comes from their hard nosed coach. Deron Williams has developed into the leader they desperately lacked in since the days of Stockton and Malone, and in some ways he is a better leader in that he is vocal where Stockton was quiet, and he can be respected where Malone couldn't put a sentence together and was self-centered in the latter part of his career. This years team is probably the most complete team Utah has ever had. Memo has peaked at the right time, and in my estimation, should be the player of the month in the Western conference. He has been a double-double machine and his shooting has been very consistent. Booz has fallen off from the start of the year, but is still capable of dominating the paint. Korver gives the Jazz the outside shooting they have lacked since the departure of Horny, and Harpring is the physical stalwart that any contender has to have in the playoffs, ie Bowen, Wallace, Rodman and so on. Kirilenko has to play well in order to facilitate the trade he so desperately wants, hopefully he can keep his head and not break down emotionally like last year. Brewer has developed into a defensive stud and is the king of garbage points. I have never seen a player dunk as easily as he does. Milsap is our energy player that does anything and everything to contribute. Price has improved dramatically as the season has progressed and has confidence which is key in b-ball. All and all, the Jazz has what it takes, it all comes down to execution.
The West is tough, but every team I look at has major flaws. The Lakers have the best player in basketball, who has the killer instinct not seen since Jordan. However, they have major injury problems and a lack of depth. I just don't know if they can overcome the physicality of the playoffs in a seven game series. The Hornets won when they were supposed to win all year. They are young and energetic and can run some people into the ground. They lack experience, and they tend to wilt under pressure. The Spurs are still a complete team and a real threat. The big problem they face is father time. Parker is still inconsistent, my compadre Ginobili is banged up and Duncan is not as dominant as he was even a year ago. Houston has skated through and caught some breaks. Their biggest strength is that they play team basketball and good defense. Adeleman has piggy-backed on the Van Gundy era of hard nosed b-ball, but has also added a good offense. If they had Yao, I would be afraid of them. McGrady is the Phil Mickelson of basketball, he has a hard time performing under pressure. Is this the year he breaks it like Mickelson did at the Masters 04? Phoenix is a wreck, I listen to talk radio constantly down here and they make me sick. I have grown to hate the suns, part of it could be be having been hit in the back by a hot dog when I went to a game and cheered for the Jazz. And no, it was a real hot dog and not a man dog like some of you may be thinking. Anyways, Shaq can guard a five foot radius in the paint and gobble up boards, but with Memos range and Boozers speed coupled with Amare's lack of interest in defense. The Jazz should dominate them over a seven game series. Dallas has potential, but I hated the trade for Kidd, he can't guard the quicker points anymore and Williams and Paul with take him to school. Nowitzki is a stud, but cannot do it by himself. Lastly, Denver is full of thugs and gangstas and is a prime example of what is wrong with professional athletes (please see articles on Melo's recent arrest in the middle of the most crucial week of the season). I love to see the Jazz pound them, Denver has no chance!
I may be biased by my shades of blue, but I firmly believe the Jazz to have a better shot than any team to advance to face the dream team in green. Hopefully they are not too tired after weathering the vicious West. Alright I am a homer, hopefully we can get some smack going. Anyone that wants to Instant Message during the games, I am on MSN messenger and my account is abchecketts@hotmail.com. I will have my laptop fired up watching my 60 inch plasma in HD with the wife locked out of the house. Later boludos!

Get that out of here!

2008-04-15T12:08:00.001-06:00

Last night Brian and I met up at the ESA to watch the Jazz take on the Rockets. It very well could have been a preview of what we'll see in the first round of the playoffs. I hope so. I think the Jazz match up well against them.

It is amazing how close the western conference is. Teams 1 through 6 are only separated by two games. Should the Jazz care who they get matched up against in the first round? Is it going to matter or is every series going to be a dog fight because the teams are so closely matched?

I think it does matter. I would like to see the Jazz matched up against the Rockets or maybe even the Suns. I think against either team they would advance to the next round. The Spurs however still make me nervous mainly because of the fact that the Jazz can't seem to win down in San Antonio. Hopefully that will change tomorrow.

Either way it should be exciting. I'm more stoked for these playoffs than I have been since the championship runs in the late 90's. As Bolerjack would say, "buckle up, it should be a wild ride."

What are the odds of the Angry Black Man getting out of the first round?

Shades Of Blue

I'll be coming to your city.....

Evolution of a Hitter!

A great night of Basketball!

Collie to the NFL!

The best Ute team ever?

Coaching Changes...

How come 10-2 feels so bad?

Out of the Mouth of Babes.....

Elden B. Kimball bringing it...

BYU Offense vs. Utah Defense

CAUGHT FOR THE TOUCHDOWN!

On a wing and a prayer!

A look back/ A look ahead....

A few thoughts-

Quest for Redemption!

Where Champions are made!

What to do, what to do

Making a deal with the Devil!

Powder River, Let 'Er Buck!

Thursday's Heroes

Kicking it in the Jungle!

The Powers That Be....

A good run of bad luck! (Picture Heavy)

Unfortunate way to end the game....

A look back/ A look ahead....

Question - Where'd who go? Answer- ...

Talking Points

Go Utes!

Get your tickets while they last!

CJ Miles is the Antichrist...

Our "National" Past Time - South of the Mason Dixon Line.

An old fashion beat down!

Talking Points

ESPN Team Preview- BYU Cougars

PCRMSBT

New Look

Yummy Ankle

The NBA Draft

Talking Points

Talking Points

CWS-Game #1

Shades of Brown

Talking Points

Nearing the end of the road.....

Talking Points

Who's in your Fave Five?

Thank You!

The Savior of IndyCar Racing....

A Moment of Silence

Talking Points

Vying for the Triple Crown!

Off Season Regimine for the Jazz

Game 6 - At the Half

monson of the trib

Game Five

Game #5 Preview- How bad is that back really?

Cougs lose Tonga for the season...

Just like that....

%*&^ (*&^ Jazz

So you're telling me there's a chance!

A little love for Kobe....

Worn Out......

It's about time

A Wasted Opportunity

Odds and Ends

It's Mr. Williams to you!

THE SKY IS FALLING!

Take me out to the Ball Game!

Dear Shane

Taking Back the Home Court- Game 1 thoughts.

March Madness NBA Style

Gonna be good, gonna be DANG good.

Let the games begin!

Get that out of here!

%&^ (&^ Jazz