The 2008 Thanksgiving Edition
November 28, 2008
Feeling Rotund and Having Opinions
How I am feeling: Slightly rotund. I love Thanksgiving, folks. It is, without question, the greatest holiday of the year. But I have consumed much in the past 24 hours. And now I am feeling the effects. Suffice to say, I will be taking a nice long run tomorrow morning (before eating a lot later in the day, of course).
What I am drinking: Victory Hop Devil. It's a comfort-food time of year. Comfort beer, too.
What I am listening to: The Rolling Stones, Exile On Main Street. It is the single greatest album in the history of rock n' rolll. I defy any of you to claim otherwise. Take, for instance, the opening track, "Rocks Off." In just one song, you have all of the elements of rock n' roll in the late 20th century: a brilliant guitar riff played on a Fender Telecaster; American blues themes; rock-solid drumming; nearly indecipherable lyrics (I have listened to this song roughly 1,215 times and I still have no idea what Mick Jagger is saying in half of the song); honky-tonk piano; a Memphis-themed horn section; a great lyric ("The sunshine bores the daylights out of me ..."); and slightly (or more?) inibriated British guys trying to sound like Mississippi bluesmen. There you go, folks. Rock 'n roll. Oh, and by the way, there has never been a better song than "Tumbling Dice." Listen and be amazed.
My thoughts on the weekend: As you longtime readers know, typically I do not write on Thanksgiving weekend.
Given that I am such a Thanksgiving fan, I have typically reserved this four-day weekend as a work-free zone. But this year, sitting here and doing nothing actually started to make me feel guilty. Plus, there have been a few developments over the last couple days that I feel need to be explored a bit.
And so, that's what I'll do here, in the first-ever TCFA Day-After-Thanksgiving-Feeling-Rotund Special Edition.
Enjoy, folks.
Happy Thanksgiving, and thanks, as always, for reading.
You'll never know how much I appreciate it.
Three Yards and a Cloud of Dust
Three: So word arrived today that the University of Tennessee—one of the proudest programs in all of college football—has hired freaking Lane Kiffin as its new coach. Lane Kiffin! And my immediate reaction is this: Why? Hey, maybe the guy is a strategic genius like Charlie Weis (ha!). Maybe he has a great rapport with players. Maybe he's a lights-out recruiter. But there's one thing he's certainly not: He's not qualifed to be the coach at Tennessee. Would you like to see Kiffin's resume, folks? Well, here it is (in its entirety): Assistant coach, Fresno State, 1997-98; Assistant coach, USC, 2001-2004; Offensive coordinator, USC, 2005-06; Head coach, Oakland Raiders of the NFL, 2007-2008. End of resume. You know what the least impressive part of that resume is? Easy: Head coach of the Raiders. Mark my words: This is a disastrous hire for the Vols.
Two ...: No lie, folks. If Notre Dame gets blown out on Saturday night in Los Angeles (snore), Charlie Weis is as good as gone. Sources say Weis has (cliche on the way) "worn out his welcome" in South Bend.
One ...: I have heard an awful lot in recent weeks about the alleged contenders for the (mythical) national championship. Those alleged contenders are the following: Alabama, Texas, Oklahoma, Florida, Texas Tech, USC. You will note that I did not include Big Ten champion Penn State in that group. But that's only because nobody else does. And yet, folks, I defy you to give me a reason why Penn State is so easily discarded. Here are a few fun quick facts that ESPN Progagandist Pat Forde would never tell you: 1. While Penn State has beaten three teams currently ranked in the top 25 (Ohio State, Oregon State, Michgian State), USC has beaten two (Ohio State, Oregon), and Alabama has beaten just one (Georgia); 2. USC lost to the same Oregon State team that Penn State beat by 31; 3. The Big Ten, which Pat Forde and other intellectually incurious people have labeled "down" this year, currently has four teams ranked in the Top 25, while the allegedy mighty SEC has three teams ranked in the Top 25; 4. Penn State finished the season ranked No. 1 in the Big Ten in each of the following categories: scoring offense (40 points a game), total offense (452 yards per game), scoring defense (12 points a game), total defense (263 yards per game), kickoff returns, passing efficiency, passing defense efficiency, first downs, opponent first downs, fewest penalties, third-down conversions, third-down defense, fewest allowed sacks, and time of possession. But no question, Pat Forde, Penn State could never hang with a team that lost to Ole Miss. At home.
Touchdown ...: A post-Thanksgiving prediction: Alabama 30, Florida 17. Saban > Meyer.