Experiencing the Palouse

Have you ever used a public toilet that has the automatic flushing capability and the thin paper lining for the seat? If not, you're in luck because this will help you in your future struggles. If you have, then you know exactly what I'm talking about when I say that the experience can be slightly awkward and a bit frustrating but ultimately feeling good. If you are anything like me, you try to avoid using public toilets for as long as bearably possible, so when you finally have to take the plunge, it's relatively urgent. Swiftly, you enter the restroom and find a clear stall to plant your buds for the next few minutes. After wiping the seat of random piddle, while leaning forward, you get your lining from the back wall and tear out the center piece leaving the tongue-shaped part hanging, and precisely place it over the seat carefully covering the entire seat (not leaving a bit of it exposed - for those fellow germaphobes). Just dealing with the liner makes things a little awkward because it's always nice to "sit and go", like at home. As you raise back up to undo your pants, the flush begins and the swirling water grabs your paper hanging tongue to drag your lining away into the abyss of sewage. Ugh! This is where the frustration begins and has potential to climax at a very high level. At that point you either give up on the lining, if urgency is an issue; or you have to get creative to find a way to outsmart the "eye of the toilet" - you know, that motion detector that tells the water to flow because the squatter has left the seat, so don't delay. Well, here is my advice that has worked for me: act like a four year-old boy and pull your pants all the way down to your ankles before getting the lining from the back wall, then as soon as you have the lining placed, it is easy to spin around with your hiney to sit quickly enough that just in case the detector is especially sensitive, you will already be sitting on the liner to secure it from flushing down. Then you may proceed. If you don't outsmart the toilet quickly, the thing could flush about three to four times by the time you have safely sat on a liner-covered toilet seat. How does that conserve water? At least the toilet is not getting clogged, I suppose. No matter the outcome with the liner, you will always feel relieved and good that it's over.

So, the feelings of slight awkwardness, frustration, and ultimate relief describe my recent trip to Pullman, WA, for the Washington State Cougars football game against Montana State. First, I must clarify that I traveled with and kept company among three upstanding, wonderful gentlemen who are alums and huge supporters of the university. This is where part of the slight awkward feelings initiate, for I am not a huge supporter of the Cougars of the Palouse but a huge fan of Pac-10 football. These three, kind men took me under their wings (especially one in particular who had the extra ticket for me to go) and had me join them for the luncheon before the game, which is only for those who financially give back to the school (no small sum, I assume). This luncheon is put on by the president of the university. So, the second part of slight awkwardness was felt walking into a large room filled with crimson covered tables and delightful food in the back awaiting the elite members of this particular society. A huge honor it was, not only to be in the presence of these three fine gentlemen, but to join them in this banquet to show support of the university and its athletics. I was ever so humbled of the environment in which I found myself, then more so shaking hands with President Floyd, who knew the people in my party. Like trying to perfect the toilet liner in a public bathroom, I almost felt like I didn't belong in the crowd and would have felt more comfortable in my own living room watching the game on television.

President Elson Floyd spoke for a few moments recognizing certain people in the audience (including one person in my company), finally leading up to the introduction of the new athletic director, Bill Moos. I understand that certain people at the University of Oregon are glad to be done with Bill Moos for dumping the wrestling program while other academically gifted people may not enjoy the effects of what Bill brought to the university with the influx of financial resources; however, he helped bring the Oregon football and basketball programs to the national stage in recognition with the football program becoming one of the most consistent and successful teams in the nation with recruitment seen from all corners of the country. Mr. Moos, a fellow alum of WSU, began by admitting that he thought that he was going to retire from Oregon when President Floyd offered him his dream job, AD at Washington State University. He continued talking about the area he lived in years ago and how he has come back home. His words of hope and a bright future were articulated in a way that made me feel like I was an alum, too, and knew that the football team was well on its way to 10-win seasons again. Once he was done, part of the marching band and the mascot and the cheerleaders all came into the large room and played and danced to a few songs - including the fight song, of course. Shortly after they were finished, my good friend wanted to introduce me to Bill Moos. I met him and shook his hand and was humbled again because of my great love of college football and seeing "behind the scenes" of where it all starts - with a man that has ideas. My slight awkwardness was gone after getting so pumped up and I was ready to get to the game.

The game itself didn't go as well as the luncheon because the thoughts of grandeur were left behind when the players had to go out and bring the ideas of success to fruition on the field. They were getting outplayed in most aspects of the game. All in attendance were getting frustrated with the lack of execution of the plays offensively and defensively. I noticed Cougar fans getting frustrated with each other yelling and fights almost breaking out. Frustration was expressed toward the coaching staff and of course, the refs. The first three quarters were so long. I wasn't sure if the game was ever going to end. Like the automatic flushing toilet dragging liner after liner into the sewer, the Cougars seemed destined to lose this game. WSU trailed 22-7 starting the 4th and final quarter. With time slowly taking the Cougars out of the game, the defense came up big a couple times to help the offense get some needed points, making it 23-22 to take the lead. The defense needed one more stop to maintain the lead for good. They did it by getting another turn-over with just over a minute remaining in the game. The Cougar offense got in victory formation and downed the ball - but Montana State still had two timeouts left and ended up using them. Because WSU took a knee in three consecutive plays, they did not get a first down and the clock did not run out, so they had to punt and put the defense back on the field. Ugh! Who managed that clock? Yet, more frustration. So, Montana State had 20-some seconds left to take the ball 70-plus yards for the touchdown and much fewer yards to get close enough for a field goal. Finally, with one, maybe two plays remaining, on their own 30 yard line, Montana State looked as though they were done; however, the look of the defense may have give them hope with the defensive backs all the way back to the goal line and 10-yard line for a "Hail Mary" pass. I guess they must have thought that the freshman quarterback for Montana State could toss the ball 80 yards. Luckily for the Cougars, a timeout was called and Coach Wulff had a teaching moment with the defense to get the defensive backs marched up to the 40-yard line instead. The defense was able to hold on and time expired and the Cougars won the game. As the final seconds ticked away from the game clock, a huge, overwhelming sigh of relief came across the majority of the crowd; like the good feeling and relief you get after leaving the anxious trip to the restroom. Phew!

Overall, the experience I had traveling into Palouse country to go to a Washington State football game in the early fall, was amazing! I had a great day with a great friend, who treated me like a king and spoiled me rotten. I came home with a feeling of great humility and a intriguing feeling of whether to attend a football game again because everything else will never compare to the wonderful time I had that day on the Palouse!

Tailgating Is So....

Week 1 in NCAA college football is behind us with so many questions still unanswered regarding the 120 teams in Division 1. Now, if you've read any of my prior posts, you know that I can't always get straight into football talk. Something on my mind lately is how old I'm getting. To some, I'm still a young pup; however, to most, I'll be entering mid-life crisis shortly. The other day, I went to the eye doctor (very young, attractive woman without glasses) and she mentioned something like, "you're getting to the age..." and that's all I heard. It was a blow to the ego (that was never there to begin with) after noticing a cute smirk on her face with hopes of her thinking I looked young for my age. That's okay because I took my astigmatism in my right eye straight to the outdoor gear store to get some shoe strings for my boots that I haven't been able to wear for about a year to prove to myself that a guy "getting to the age" can still be active - even though I don't look it. Well, the young thing that helped me there is lucky to be legal to drink, but was very willing to help me find the proper laces for my boots. She actually suggested to get small, round climbing rope for better strength, better knots, and better price. She was a genius! So, I decided to take advantage of the opportunity and put her to the test on purchasing the proper backpacking pack. Again, she impressed and wasn't too proud to get close enough to measure my back for frame size - even someone "getting to the age" with a astigmatism. I might have to go back in there to show her my new look with her laces to show my appreciation (I'd like to get that pack, too).

Then, a few days ago, I went to the library to see if they had this fairly popular book. I looked for a bit and realized that I didn't know the title nor the name of the author. Instead of leaving immediately, I stayed and looked around thinking that something I saw would jar my memory and remember the name of the book. Well, I'm still puzzled to this day and can't figure out how I'm going to get the name of that blasted book. I wasted an hour, I think. So, I'm getting astigmatisms AND I'm losing my mind. I guess my steel trap mind is no longer letting things back in or something. Am I really getting that old?

This age thing has gotten me thinking of tailgating of all things. Strange, huh? Maybe that's an age thing, too. So, my best friend from high school is having his 40th birthday this fall. Each year he goes to Corvallis to tailgate before the Oregon State game at Reeser Stadium. Fortunately for him, there have been three years straight that the Beavers have had a home game the weekend of his birthday. I have tailgated only a time or two with other non-drinkers, so I don't know what to expect when I get to Corvallis to surprise my buddy at the game around lots of people drinking. Am I too old and boring to feel like I might not enjoy it? I'm sure it all depends on where you are tailgating, so the atmosphere may be more pleasant than imagined. I have all these thoughts of tailgating and what it must be like for someone much younger than myself and how it may be a different experience entirely. I'm sure that tailgating in the Southeast would be spectacular with tons of fans to chat football and the co-eds everywhere, like; LSU, Tennessee, Florida, Georgia, or Ol' Miss. Plus, I would love to experience the game atmosphere at places like those in the Southeast, or storied programs like Michigan, Texas, Ohio State, Miami, Notre Dame, Nebraska, or USC.

So, when I head to Corvallis this fall, I will have to go with an open mind and minimal expectations of "how to" tailgate. I will be positive because there will be the love of the game all around me which will drown any concerns. Maybe I will need to be careful not to get carried away by enjoying myself too much. I suppose that could happen. I mean, it is an OSU game, so any school that is a State University would provide fun for any young guy trying to hang out with some pretty girls. It would be easy to approach a said pretty girl and say, "I need U!" Obviously, there would be a puzzled look on the young girl's face, "You need me?!?" Judging by how she says the word "YOU", the quick fix would be, "Yes! I have the 'O' on my chest, my buddy over there has the 'S' on his, so we're looking for someone to put on the 'U'." Innocent enough, right? Why not? Then if things seem to progress some, you could play a bit and say something like, "Ya know, I think your 'S' is better than my buddy's - he should be the 'U'." I'm sure you would need to be careful saying "S" to keep it "innocent", still. I guess if I were younger, I would want to tailgate every week. Whoever invented it is amazing! The keys seem to be bringing your spirit and don't be a jerk to the fans of the opponent. That's another cool thing about tailgating - mingling with the "enemy". When I went to a Huskies game in Seattle a couple years ago, they were playing Ohio State and the majority of the fans were really great and cordial. I loved that! I don't think anybody should make a butt of themselves at a cool place like a football game.

Pending that I'm not getting too old to tailgate, I am really looking forward to the game in Corvallis (even though Oregon State is not the preferred team to travel to). Time seems to be at a stand-still, but now that the games have actually begun, it will pass a little more rapidly. So, if anyone has any advice for me regarding tailgating or how to act in enemy territories or how to age more gracefully, please, I invite you to respond and I would welcome your advice.

Boise State Versus the Nation

This is the title of a post that I was thinking about back in May of this year and forgot that I had wanted to start it - and now I find it in the "draft" phase of my list of posts.

An adventure I recommend all should take, is one that my wife and I took with a good friend in search of hidden treasures and trinkets, which is world-wide known as "geocaching". If you've never heard of the term, it is where you need a GPS (Global Positioning System) to help you find the exact latitude and longitude coordinates of where a small container has been hidden that may contain many little obscure things or just a piece of paper to write down your geocaching "code" name. Once discovered, you check the contents of the container and may "swap" an item for something left behind and write your name on the log, and then place the container back to its exact location in the same manner as you found it. There are people who actually maintain these containers that could be located anywhere in the world in cities, parks, rural sites, and many public areas of towns that are common place where most non-geocaching people would not even know of the existence of such things. All the information can be found online at geocaching.com for a free membership, so it is available as you travel for work or vacation or for sporting events.

A few things I learned from my friend while geocaching that may help you in your first time at going: 1) you never know what kind of container you will find and how it will be hidden, 2) you can never assume the type of booty that will be left behind in larger containers, 3) you have to have actual positional sense when finding your location and shifting positions, 4) an accurate GPS is the most valuable tool you could have with you for accuracy, and 5) nothing appears as it seems until you look closely to the details of the overall picture. I hope that you either have fun continuing in your cache hunting, or finally go out and try it with these helpful hints, or have learned something new to try and plan an outing. It's fun!

Something I speculated back in May, months before the 2010 season began, regarding Boise State and their uphill climb for perfection and a BCS (Bowl Championship Series) National Championship bowl game bid was confirmed by a recent article written by the well known, ex-Sports Illustrated writer, Rick Reilly titled, "Broncos Can't Buck This Trend". It all started at the end of the '08 season when Boise State lost a tight game to TCU (Texas Christian University) in the Poinsettia Bowl by 1 point. This would be, as of today and for a few more days (at least), the last time that the Broncos would lose. They began their '09 campaign beating an Oregon Ducks team that would end up winning the Pacific-10 (Pac-10) Conference and earning a berth to the Rose Bowl. Boise State would go on the rest of the season undefeated and deserving a shot for the national title, but was left out because two automatic qualifying teams went undefeated, as well (Alabama and Texas). So as a consolation prize and getting to play in a BCS bowl, they were paired up with TCU, again. To me, that was a huge slap in the face - not to downplay the strength of a very good TCU squad (who got the slap too), but in reference to these two non-automatic qualifying teams that went undefeated to earn a BCS bowl bid never got the shot at playing one of the "big boys" in the nation. It's like the BCS didn't want any problems, so they simply "swept" these two teams under the rug by pinning them together for the second time in one year. Lame! The BCS is lame! So, Boise beats TCU by seven to end a perfect season.

Before the start of the 2010 season, media writers gave Boise State a lot of love and had them ranked in the top 10, all the way up to #3 by some. Given huge expectations and the SI curse by being on the cover and tons of national attention and scrutiny, the Broncos have done nothing but prove to the country who they are and where they want to be - they are undefeated and want to play for the national title. Boise is #2 in all the polls except the BCS - which, unfortunately, is the one that counts at the end of the season - where they find themselves at #3, currently. In order to get to #1 or #2, they need some help from other teams while they dominate and win out the rest of the year. Currently, it is Auburn and Oregon at #1 and #2, respectively, and there is no guarantee that either of those two will win out (especially Oregon with the toughest stretch of their schedule ahead of them starting with their visit to USC). Auburn is favored by the computers while being #3 in all the other polls. The good thing about the computers for Boise State is that they love the Broncos more than Oregon. Unless the computers begin to like Oregon some time soon, Boise may maintain this particular lead and hope that Oregon and Auburn lose a game or two apiece, along with Missouri, TCU, and Michigan State in order to keep them from sneaking up from behind on BSU. If those teams lose and Boise State wins out, that might bring them up to the #2 ranking in the BCS, which is good enough to play for the title in Glendale, AZ, on January 10th.

So, Rick Reilly brings up some really good points on the legitimacy of the Boise State program and the consistency it plays with week in and week out with its 21 game win streak (longest in the nation). Mr. Reilly mentions that the head coach, Chris Peterson, is 56-4 at Boise. His program, under his direction, has lost only FOUR games! Are you kidding me? However, we have this wonderful system called the BCS that tells Boise that they are at the zenith of their BCS progression and can't go any further and will not play for the national championship until they join the Southeastern Conference (SEC) and go undefeated there - then, and only then, will Boise get their day in the sun to prove to the whole country that they belong. Well, Boise should never try to join the Pac-10 because they never get the respect they deserve and wouldn't change Boise's predicament, so they may consider making a run to the Big XII Conference and continue beating Oklahoma each year... then maybe... Anyway, some comparisons with opponents of Boise State this year that Mr. Reilly states in his article were: 1) the Broncos smashed San Jose State 48-0, and the Spartans have lost a lot of games, but one was to Wisconsin, in Madison, where the Badgers beat them by only 13 points - the same Wisconsin that beat #1 Ohio State and #15 Iowa; 2) the Broncos pounded Wyoming 51-6, and Wyoming nearly beat Air Force who nearly beat Oklahoma who we know Boise State CAN beat; and 3) the Broncos beat Virginia Tech on the road, who is currently undefeated in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), so why wouldn't Boise State perform just as well in that conference? Interesting, no? Rick Reilly, who writes for ESPN.com now, says that "the BCS computers TKO Boise State. Why keep punching when it's not a fair fight?"

Preseason Football Predictions

Way back in time, during those crazy years in college in Southern Oregon, there was a time of year that many students longed for and got so excited about and made huge plans to celebrate the Memorial Day weekend. It's nearing us as I write, so it has brought to mind some of the mysteries and energy that the mere thought would bring to me long, long ago. Along the Interstate 5 (I-5), about 10 miles north of the California border lays a small college in Ashland, Oregon, named Southern Oregon University. In my days of attendance, it was Southern Oregon State College, known for the Shakespearean Festival, liberally-minded free spirits, the rugby club, criminal justice program, the Mt. Ashland ski swap, and many parties. For Memorial Day weekends, it was a time to go out in the nice weather and pack up for a road trip to Lake Shasta, California. For many, large groups got together and rented house boats for the weekend to float around the lake during the day and dock on the banks at night. For others, in smaller, more intimate groups, people would get a hotel or maybe use a tent and camp somewhere along the lake's shores. No matter how you stayed there, there would always be more skin and alcohol anyone would ever need to see in a whole lifetime. I recall getting so excited each year after that initial visit to Lake Shasta with most universities within 2-3 states away were represented. It was an opportunity to meet so many people from all over, and I do recommend carrying a small puppy, if you like girls stopping you to pet your dog - (borrow one if you have to).

One particular year, I was depressed thinking about how I wouldn't be able to make it to Shasta. However, a friend of mine from the rugby team, Kai, decided to just go and not really plan - and fly by the seat of our pants (shorts). So, we did. I got so excited to think about Lake Shasta and meeting new people and spending time with a good friend along the way. We didn't have a tent or arrangements for a house boat, so we decided to just sleep in the car the three nights. Great plan! (Just kidding.) To make a long story short, we happened upon other "car travelers" from our school that we knew and decided to try to find out together where all the house boats were going to dock for the night so we could hang out with tons of people and listen to the band that usually plays on top of one of the boats. Then we met up with "the car". It was a small car full of three California girls. Kai and I didn't get to talk to them initially, but the other guy from our school stopped them to convince them to look for boats with us. We couldn't find the boats, so we decided to take a break and cool off in the water a bit. I'm so glad we did because I was able to witness the most amazing sight of my life - to that point. One of those three girls was a blonde-haired, blue-eyed, indescribable thing that I couldn't even find in my dreams. Everything about her was perfect! I was never very outgoing or confident with the ladies, so this one was so intimidating that I couldn't look at her while she was appearing to look in my direction at all. I'm sure I seemed like a shy, bashful school boy surrounded by teasing girls. While I was out in the water and she was sunbathing on the sand, I could get a glimpse of her elegant form when she was talking with one of her friends (looking away, of course). Then, she noticed my badly burned back from the day before and kindly offered to put lotion on my skin. Oh my! She spoke to me! Sigh! And sigh again! What a sweet, sweet angel! Then I got even more nervous because all I could think about was whether or not the red skin would hide the zits on my back. I panicked! Would she talk to me again if she sees my zits? Will she stop rubbing the lotion? I can't bare the thought of the embarrassment! So, I clumsily declined the offer and almost immediately began kicking myself in the head and haven't stopped since for blatantly denying myself the simple pleasure of the most beautiful girl rubbing lotion on MY back. Later, when we were all parting and saying goodbye, I tried to muster up the courage to look at her and ask if I could call on her, even though we lived so far apart. I failed again. I watched that little car drive off as the most dejected, lonely person on earth. I was a loser! My excitement for Lake Shasta would never be the same. The kinks in my neck after sleeping across the front seats of Kai's car were that much worse than they would have been with a small bit of lotion absorbing into my back. The extremes of feelings about those few hours left such an impression that till this day, I am still affected by those emotions. I was too consumed with my vanity of a few zits rather than being confident and taking a chance of a really hot girl actually liking me. I'll never know because I didn't seize the opportunity. Ah, Memorial Day weekends!

So, my enthusiasm for Memorial Day is about the same these days as it was when I was a young buck. Being married and with small children doesn't get me excited about house boats and meeting interesting sorority girls; however, it is that time of year that allows college football sports writers ample time, after spring practices have wrapped up, to put down some predictions of the fall and the upcoming college football season and blessing us with those wonderful preseason annuals. I get so giddy and anxious! May seems to be the longest month of the whole year. Once the bowl games are finished in January, the next day is Cinco de Mayo and spring is blooming in the air, then the next day is... May 6th! Then the 7th! Then the 8th! Does it really have to go by so slowly? How can I buy a preseason college football annual if it is still May? C'mon!

The magazines are a bit expensive, but I feel I get my money's worth by how much I go through them before the first ball is kicked off in August. I've been buying the Athlon college football annual since 1997 and love it every year! It is usually the first one in the stores. Now days with the Internet, I get a little glimpse of what the annuals are going to talk about and what the top 25 looks like. It's like eating one Salt and Vinegar potato chip (my favorite) - that tangy vinegar hits the taste buds and it's all over trying to resist additional chips. That's where I find myself on the Athlon web site, waiting one day at a time to count down the top 25. I read the current day's team and need to read more. Today it is Oregon at #9. Well, who rounds off the rest of the top 10? Is Alabama going to be anything other than #1? How many Pac-10 teams will be in the top 10? I just gotta know! I get so excited wanting to know! But I have to wait until June. Sigh! And sigh again!

As of today, with 10 more days left in the month of May, I was able to scrounge up three websites that give me a little bit of information before I buy their annuals. I mentioned Athlon Sports with their daily countdown (not weekends) to the top 25, having 25 to 9 now. The Sporting News has their preseason annual on sale now with the many regional covers being offered online, with a small little part giving their top five. Phil Steele has a great website, but he likes his daily top 33 and has only the first four or so teams, so hasn't even touched the top 25 yet. Then there is Lindy's who just put out the entire list of their preseason top 25. I love it! Most of them will predict the top 5 teams or so nearly the same; for instance, Lindy's and Sporting News have Alabama at number one, then they each have Boise State and Ohio State at 2 and 3, 3 and 2, respectively. Then they each have Florida placed at #5, while #4 for each is completely different. Lindy's has Texas at #4 and Sporting News has Miami at the four position. Miami at number four seems pretty generous right now because Lindy's has that same team ranked at 20 and Athlon has the 'Canes at 14.

I can't stand the anticipation of having those magazines in my hands, and writing this piece on it makes it worse for me! I'm thrilled about the thought of placing each magazine in its own plastic cover, like the ones you see at a doctor's office. The protective cover makes them last so much longer because they would get pretty wrinkled up in my back pack, otherwise. I use the annuals to gather information and collect my own thoughts to derive my own top 25 theories for the season. Some magazines tend to put more emphasis on a particular conference or two and a lot less on the others, which is where some of the bias of strength of schedule begins to factor in the whole season. I'm looking at the Athlon preseason rankings, for instance. We don't know who they will put in from 1-8 yet, but they already have four teams from the Southeastern Conference (LSU (24), Auburn (22), Arkansas (17), and Georgia (15)). Nobody in their right mind and knows even a little bit of current college football will not have Florida and Alabama on their top 10 list, so that will make a whopping 6 teams from the SEC in a preseason ranking from Athlon. Half of the conference makes the list! Wow! That must mean that it is an excellent conference! (Sarcasm!) They haven't even played a game yet and the computers will look at those rankings and say that all the teams within that conference must all play really tough schedules because half of the conference is found within the top twenty-five. On the other hand, the computers will notice that the Pac-10 is not represented in the top 25 very well, unless USC and another school can sneak in the top eight teams together, and those computers will say that any team in the Pac-10 has a weak schedule due to this list of rankings.

What if I were one of those infamous writers and decided to put all the Big East teams at the top and nobody from the SEC in my top 25 teams? Then it would appear that if Pitt loses only one game during the season, they would be playing for the national title. I'm not saying that Pitt would be far off this year if they qualified to play for the title, but because their whole conference would be ranked boosting the strength of schedule. How would that role reversal affect the nation? A question from my thoughts: Do the writers rank so many SEC schools in the preseason purposely to boost the strength of schedule because they know that the non-conference strength of schedule for nearly all the teams in the SEC are ridiculously terrible? Yes, you have Florida vs. Florida State or Georgia vs. Georgia Tech or South Carolina vs. Clemson every year, but in the Pac-10 they would call that a conference game - every year.

Memorial Day is approaching - slowly - and my excitement can hardly be contained. I feel like I'm anticipating a Lake Shasta visit that can't get here fast enough. So, I leave with a bit of advice: 1) Formulate your own top 25 by combining all the information available from the preseason annuals that will come out soon, and 2) Be confident and don't lose out on your moments in life, but don't get carried away because either extreme will cause regrets.

Notre Dame: Is it just a name?

There is a good time and a bad time to leave your job. The beginning of December would arguably be the worst time for anyone to leave a current job, especially if you didn't have another one to replace it. Some employers give out Christmas or holiday bonuses for the end of the year and quarter. Some employers give out a profit sharing bonus and deposit it into the employees' retirement accounts in January. Some actually do both. So, with the end of the year bonus near Christmas and/or the profit sharing deposit in January or February, a December leave of employment would make the least amount of sense, right? Plus, your replacement won't be able to get those perks while witnessing everyone around them talking about how much they got that year. If you have to leave your job, try to do it in the middle of January or a little later to avoid the hassles of losing out on some good things. With that said, some people will ignore the advice and get too hasty because the next job is just too good to pass up right now.

Knowing the title, and reading the first paragraph, most college football fans and lovers of the wildly popular Notre Dame Fighting Irish will know exactly who and what I'm talking about. Brian Kelly is the newest head coach of the Notre Dame football program. He is the next in line to restore the amazing glory days and history of this tradition-rich program. Great players from so long ago to the legends of the late 20th century to the most current superstar athletes that have fought the battles on the grid iron in South Bend, Indiana. To follow the likes of Knute Rockne, Frank Leahy, Ara Parseghian, and Lou Holtz, is a thrill and an honor that Brian Kelly probably hasn't quite grasped yet with the overwhelming expectations that immediately fall upon you in that position. Many have not had or maintained the desired success to find themselves outside wondering what else they could have done to make the football program great again. The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have not had a championship since 1988 under Lou Holtz, and Brian Kelly and the Notre Dame alumni and entire Notre Dame family hope that he is the next to bring a championship to the university.

Brian Kelly didn't come out of nowhere to Notre Dame overnight. He started small, like most head coaches. His first head coaching job was at Grand Valley State where he coached from 1991-2003. In 2003 is when he took over for Central Michigan until 2006. He then took over at Cincinnati in 2006 to lead them to new heights of success winning 10 games, in his first full season, for the second time in school history and first since 1949. The following year they won 11 games in 2008. Then in 2009, starting the season unranked, Coach Kelly led the Bearcats to an undefeated season and nearly a shot for the national title. However, Brian Kelly agreed to take over for Notre Dame in late November and announced it on December 10th, 2009. He was heard saying that he was concerned about recruiting and needed to get started at Notre Dame right away and left the undefeated Bearcats to fend for themselves against a dangerous Florida Gators team in the Sugar Bowl. Cincinnati lost that game and it makes me wonder whether it was because they felt betrayed and lost - emotionally. Did they not have the heart or confidence to do it without their coach? Or there is the possibility that Florida would have beaten them no matter where Coach Kelly was. Did Brian Kelly leave his job too soon? Speaking of Florida, was Urban Meyer trying to even the playing field by announcing his retirement from football, then restating it as a temporary departure? Was he trying to avoid the Bearcats' excuse of "we were emotionally off because of our coach" because he "caused" his players to be emotionally off, too? Anyway....

The coaching confusion brings me to the main point I want to get at, should universities interrupt other schools during the post season before all the bowl games have been played? I understand schools wanting to discard their ineffective coaches as soon as possible to save money and wondering how long it will take for them to find an adequate replacement. It is a legitimate concern. However, the part that bothers me, is the interruption of a successful program and the current infrastructure of coaches and plays and players and trust and momentum and psyche of a whole team and sticking together until the season has ended. There should be an NCAA mandated rule that states that the universities should not attempt to "shop" for a new coach until that coach's team is completely done with its season and post season (bowl game). These coaches should not be approached or feel like they might get approached by any other university and its representatives until after the final whistle is blown in their bowl game, then they are free game.

I hated the whole Rich Rodriguez thing and this Brian Kelly thing. They left before Christmas and didn't stick through the good stuff of the end of season bonuses. Something else that bothers me is Brian Kelly using the recruiting concern as an excuse to depart so early. There are some schools that need that extra month or so to solidify a good recruiting class as the new head coach, but with Notre Dame? C'mon! Really? It's Notre Dame! The name does the recruiting for you. If you're a new coach? It's still Notre Dame! Notre Dame will not, I repeat, will not even interview a potential head coach unless they have had recent success in their current job. There is way too much pressure to succeed in football to think otherwise. As the first year head coach, you and your name are insignificant to the recruiting process. The high school athletes pay attention and know that the old coach is gone. They find out who the new coach is. They do their own research of where they were previously and how well they did. If they don't do those things then they are not good enough of a player to be recruited in the first place. The athletes are informed. If the kids are at a football proud high school, the coaches may be the ones informing the athletes of changes. It won't matter if you leave in early January, which is the better time to leave a job, right?

If anything, I believe that Brian Kelly made a mistake by leaving Cincinnati before the season was up. He bolted to concentrate on Notre Dame, but he may have affected the decision of a few top athletes that may look at Coach Kelly and saw a lack of dedication to his team, a lack of devotion and loyalty to his players that worked so hard for him all season long, just to leave them at their most important part of their year. These are your year-end bonuses and profit sharing bonuses because the kids will see you stick with your team until the end and they will want to do that for you, when the time comes. I'm not saying that the high caliber athletes will change their mind with those thoughts, but it may sway them a bit if someone more reliable and stable at another university is pursuing them. Coach Kelly may leave Notre Dame high and dry some day to seek more riches in the NFL. Coach Kelly should have stayed to finish the season at Cincinnati because HE is not the recruiter this year, Notre Dame is the recruiter this year. Most of all, schools should leave coaches alone while they are still performing their duties to prepare for a game. This should be addressed and changed. Coach Kelly, next time, stay until the profit sharing is in your retirement account; and, Notre Dame? is it just a name?

What Makes the BCS Function?

There is a particular location that I work at occasionally, where there seems to be one common bathroom for many of the employees in that building that is located very close to the break room. This specific bathroom has had an upgrade of the light switch to conserve energy. Large companies try to do what they can to save pennies here and there to see the large sums accumulate in their pockets at year's end. This upgrade has been installed for about 2 years now giving us a glimpse of advanced technology in the form of a motion detector. So, when you walk into the dark room, the sensor recognizes the change to the room and the light automatically turns on. Wow! This is amazing! The lights don't immediately shut off as soon as you leave, but there is about a five minute delay if there is no motion detected before the lights go out. Cool! Now, there is still a button just below the detector where you can manually turn the light on or off by pressing this button, but why would you do that? The automatic thing is really great! This is technology that can save time and electricity and it's nice to not have to touch one more button in the medical field with potential of spreading unnecessary germs. Therefore, I feel it should never be touched by anyone, unless they have sterile gloves on, or something. So, it won't surprise you that it bothers me when I walk into this dark bathroom and the light doesn't automatically turn on so I can continue to my original plan of destination without any further interruptions. It drives me crazy when I have to actually, physically, push a button to turn the light on. Doesn't it seem quite superfluous with the technology we have? Why do I have to push something? It's automatic! Why wouldn't you prefer this? It drives me crazy to have to turn it on! Or is there someone out there that hasn't figured out the automatic thing during the two years? We have the idea and capability of it working like it is intended; however, some of us are just flabbergasted that some people out there screw it up so that it won't function properly.

The invention of the motion-detecting, automatic light is a great idea if everybody used it the correct way; which is much like the BCS invention of the number one and number two teams playing for a national championship with the capability of it working like it is intended, but there are some people and teams out there that screw it up so that it won't function properly. It drives me crazy just as much, if not much more, than the automatic light being turned off manually by some knucklehead.

So, the dream of having a number one and number two team playing every year in the biggest game of the season is so wonderful and heart-warming that it sends chills down my backside just thinking about it. This is the cause and purpose of the Bowl Championship Series (BCS). The BCS has devised a complicated mathematical equation with computer rankings, strength of schedule calculations, and human-based polls, to acquire the most amazing list of the top 25 college programs in the country. This list of the 25 most successful universities will send the first and second names on the list to a championship bowl game to determine which one, single team deserves the national recognition to be hailed the best team in the country. -Hold on while I wipe the tears from my cheeks- A long time ago (about 13 years or so) there used to be some major bowl games throughout the country that housed the top teams nationwide. Once in a while (nearly always), there would be a couple teams that would be at the top of the polls (AP and Coaches' polls) and not get to play each other in those bowls and those two or three teams would win their final games and the national champion would be determined by vote, not by beating any of the other top teams. This would leave at least one team wondering, "What if we played that #1 team? I know we could beat that team." They never got the chance. It's sad. That's the way it was... until... the BCS came along. Now, everything is better and perfect! (Whoa! Way too much sarcasm there - sorry.)

The BCS is far from perfect (check out my other blog entries - especially "Pac-10 Gets the Shaft"); however, it does seem slightly better than what there used to be. At least there is an attempt and means of getting the two top teams to play in the final bowl game of the season to determine the national champion. The BCS takes five or six computer ranking systems to show an "unbiased" means of accumulating important data for the final calculations. I do wonder about the computer rankings because some of them seem heavy on strength of schedule, and who plugs in the information for the computer to manipulate? Then the BCS had to develop a human-based poll called the Harris Poll due to the AP Poll not wanting to have anything to do with the BCS after a horrible fiasco with bowl match ups (I'm sure it wasn't a year that effected the Pac-10 at all - right!). In my opinion, the BCS lost some credibility again that year. However, the Harris Poll was brought about to bring in human voters into the equation to establish the teams to play in the most lucrative and popular game, after the Super Bowl for the NFL. The Harris Poll was set up to improve the BCS and current standings because the BCS standings would not start until well into the college football season. As well as the Harris Poll trying to ignore all the preseason hype about most teams by not voting until a good month into the season to show that the voters are unbiased. I have found biased flaws in the Harris Poll since its inception (see my other blog, "Harris Poll Bias") as recently as this last season of 2009 when Oklahoma was a mere 2-2 and voted in the top 20 in the poll. I'm sorry, but if you are voting to avoid preseason hype, which Oklahoma gets every year since Bob Stoops' second year at the helm, then a 2 and 2 team is NOT a top 20 team, but merely a mediocre .500 ball club. Two losses for anyone after only four games is clearly not living up to expectations and does not deserve to be recognized until they win their last 8 games - then yes.

The BCS has erred so badly a few years that it's calculations were so off that it ignored the number 1 team in the nation to send the 2 and 3 numbered teams to the championship game, sent a team to the national championship game after failing to appear at its conference championship game, sent a team to the national championship game after that team lost its conference championship game, neglected to send the number two team to the title game, etc., etc. It's like the light is on and instead of waiting for the five minute delay, someone manually turns it off. It's not natural. It should be predictable and less complicated. It was developed to clear all doubts about the teams and how well they match up. It's like we've gone back to the old days of random bowl games that don't play the two top teams together. It feels like having a motion detector to turn your light on and off, but you insist on using the button each time, instead. Plus, I haven't even mentioned the money factor yet.

The bowl games are going to make a ton of money, no matter what, but the BCS is sucking it out of the whole history and tradition of college football. Since the BCS has stuck in that extra fifth BCS bowl game after the 2006 season, the TV ratings have seen at least two games each year at 8.4 or lower when the prior BCS years before had only one game (ever) with a TV rating of 8.4 (as the very lowest rating). The large amount of bowl games are watering down the excitement and reward of a successful season. There are too many. A team with a record of 6 and 6 does not qualify for a successful season. Six losses shows more failure than success, no matter who you play. Teams being rewarded should have at least seven or eight wins on the season which would reduce the bowl amount significantly to allow the fans to rejoice in their team. So, how I see it, as long as the BCS is still in charge and hasn't succumbed to a playoff system, it will continue to water down the boring bowl games and any sense of achievement in a successful season playing 6-6 teams. As the automatic light system being a great idea and should theoretically work, the BCS, too, has fallen short due to the human factor that always messes things up. It drives me crazy!

Does Conference Comparisons Equal Individual Performance?

I was in the middle of those Saturday "Honey-Do's" when I came across an old article from my local paper's sports page from over a year ago. Don't ask me how putting away food in the hallway got me into my shop, cleaning up a few things there. So, I read this article again, and it makes just as little sense this time around as it did last time. I don't know who wrote it because it doesn't say; however, it is short enough that I can just type the whole thing here so you understand what I'm talking about:

It just doesn't add up
"College bowl game results suggest the Big Ten has inferior talent. NFL teams say differently.
"A Chicago Tribune study revealed the talent in the Big Ten, in NFL terms, is superior to the talent in the Pac-10 and Big 12. The only conferences with advantages over the Big Ten are the Southeastern Conference and the Atlantic Coast Conference.
"In the last five drafts, 166 Big Ten players were chosen, third highest among conferences. The SEC led the way with 192 players, followed by the ACC with 176. The Pac-10 had 157 while the Big 12 had 143.
"If you break it down to first rounders, the Big Ten also fared well. The conference has had 28 such players in the last five drafts.
"That makes it difficult to explain a 1-6 Big Ten record in bowl games this year (losses to three teams from the Big 12, and one each from the SEC, Pac-10 and ACC), and a 9-20 mark over the last five years."

That was in the Spokesman Review on January 11, 2009 when I cut it out of my paper in Spokane, WA. I'm wondering where the real connection between how awful the Big Ten did in bowl games after the 2008 season involving 7 teams versus the amount of individuals selected in the NFL draft. Sounds like a stretch that I would attempt, if I haven't already. However, I had to pick out the flaw in the Chicago Tribune's "study" by recognizing the different amount of teams that are in each of the aforementioned conferences in football. According to the numbers (straight up), they are absolutely accurate; however, with the author of this article neglecting other factual points that should be made, I will oblige by tweaking it myself.

So, if we are to base the strength of conferences on the amount of players selected in the last five years (when the article was written 1/09), the only consistency I found was that the SEC was still the top (barely), the Big Ten was still in the middle, and the Big 12 was still the bottom (by a lot). Instead of using only the amount of individuals being drafted, to be accurate on accounts of "as a conference", one must use and average system to find the true order of how strong or good a conference as a whole looks. With that said, I have the SEC with 192 players drafted and divided by the 12 teams within the conference, you get an average of 16 players per team over the five year span that the author is referencing. According to the article, the ACC had 176 players with 12 teams in its conference, meaning an average of 14.67 players per team over five years. Now, the Big Ten was mistakenly proclaimed that it was inferior to the ACC, but with my statistics it is not. The Big Ten had 166 players but only 11 teams, beating the ACC with an average of 15.09 players per team over the five years. Of course, those who know me will know exactly what I'm going to say because of my love of the Pac-10. So, the article says that the Pac-10 had drafted 157 players over that same five year span, however, the Pac-10 has only a mere 10 teams, meaning that the average is just under the super powers of the SEC (sorry about the sarcasm) with an average score of 15.7 players per team. Oh, and the Big 12 ended up with the lowly average of 11.92 players per team.

I think it a little sad that the Chicago Tribune can't even make their conference look better than that if they are going to actually call it a "study" and actually publish the results and can't even say that it is better than the ACC when it should. So, is it just me, or is the article a little bazaar? I like the article a bit because it shows me that people all over try to make the Pac-10 out to be an inferior conference in whatever way they can, but if someone looks through all the mumbo-jumbo, they actually see that the Pac-10 is, indeed, at least, second best in the nation. I can take that - if the facts prove so - which they obviously did.