Back from Mirror Lake

Well folks, I did it. I jumped into Mirror Lake at the OSU campus, nearly naked, for one second. Yeah, I didn't experience to its fullest, as I was completely sober. Of course, there were thousands of other OSU guys and gals doing it, much more drunk, and for a longer period of time, and much louder. It's all about the craziness of the "Beat Michigan Week," as a few hours earler, there was a pep rally underneath the Stadium south stands, with dancing, prizes, cheers, and the football captains, Kirk Barton, Vernon Gholston, and James Laurinaitis* All followed by some craziness and a whole bunch of O-H, "We Don't Give A Damn About The Whole State of Michigan"**, and F**k Michigan*** cheers and shirts. I hope to do this full force next year.


Not long before my going in, I shot some pictures videos of this annual tradition, which takes place the Thursday before the game against the Wolverines. The game's in Ann Arbor this time, but I'll be sure to get season tickets to get to see the rivalry in person in Columbs next year.

* "Tom Allen. I know him, he said hi to me once!" -J. Laurinaitis
** Compared to Kings Island, Cedar Point, Columbus, Cincinnati, and Cleveland, Michigan has some lousy cities and amusement parks.
*** I'll put this in the uncensored form in "The Locker Room." I try to keep this particular blog mainstream and work safe.

Post-Hiatus, yet again.

Sorry for the disappearance again, but I am here, alive and well.

First big announcement, I will be traveling to Chicago on Thursday, to see the sights, take a train tour, visit some architecture schools, see some great hockey, and, of course, hear people talk for hours about roller coasters and amusement parks. I'll be back Sunday evening, with a full report later on.

Also, I can say that I am a happy football fan. The Indianapolis Colts defeated the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship at RCA Dome on Sunday, and are off to Super Bowl XLI in Miami to face... the Chicago Bears. Peyton Manning gets his big chance, but big Brian Urlacher wants to make it hard... WOW!

Catching up.

I've been gone from the blog for a few days, so here's some updates:

- Louisville defeated Wake Forest in the Orange Bowl 24-13. At center is future All-American, and good friend of the website, Eric Wood.

- It has also proven to be Coach Bobby Petrino's last game with the Cardinals. Petrino will replace Jim L. Mora (the son of Jim "PLAYOFFS!!!" Mora) as head coach of the NFL Atlanta Falcons. This will also prove that the confusion at the U of L Athletic department switchboard regaring coaches' last names (Petrino, Pitino, Petrino, Pitino, let's call the whole thing off!).

- The UC Bearcats won the inaugural International Bowl in Toronto on Saturday, as they defeated Western Michigan, 27-24. The Broncos forgot (Bill) Poland.

- The NFL Wild Card: In the AFC, the Colts defense gets it done when it counts against the Chiefs, while the Patriots and coach Bill Belichick gets back at his old assistant Eric Mangini and that oach's NY Jets. The NFC matchups were more surprising: the Cowboys and Tony Romo fall in a hard-fought battle in Seattle, followed by another exciting game between Jeff Garcia and the Eagles, who got past the NY Giants, whose running back, Tiki Barber, has played his last game. It surely won't be the last time you see Tiki on Tivi. (TV)

- Apple is set to announce BIG THINGS on Tuesday for MacWorld Expo 2007 in San Francisco on Tuesday. When Steve Jobs says "One More Thing..." you'd better stick around this time.

- Oh, and Kings Island has announced that a major announcement is coming soon. Like you didn't know that.

Viral Video: Reporter Blows Bowl Proposal Surprise

The first video truly from the new year:

Orange Bowl Alert

Now on Fox, it's the FedEx Orange Bowl from Dolphins Stadium in Miami FL. The Big East powerhouse Louisville Cardinals vs. the surprising Wake Forest Demon Deacons are facing off tonight.
Oh, and watch for Louisville junior center Eric Wood, #77 - my old friend, who played HS ball at Elder on their state champion teams in 2002 and '03. GO CARDINALS!!!

Update: At halftime, Louisville leads Wake Forest 10-3.

Viral Video: Barack Obama on MNF

Tonight on ESPN Monday Night Football, it's a big game that just about everyone I know will be watching - Colts vs. Bengals at RCA Dome.

But last week, it was the Rams vs. Bears, and Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) had an important announcement prior to the broadcast. Let's say that some western Illinois constituents weren't too happy with his message...

Coombs leaves Colerain for UC

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061217/SPT0101/312170014

A great era in high school football has ended. Kerry Coombs, the quintessential high school football coach, is leaving his head coaching position after 16 years at Colerain. He won't be moving very far (or this case, probably not at all), as he will become an assistant of Brian Kelly at the University of Cincinnati.

Coombs, who has a record of 161-34, including a 15-0 championship season in 2004, will continue be a great asset as the Bearcats' defensive backs coach. The team travels to Toronto on January 6, 2007, as UC plays Western Michigan in the International Bowl. Can't travel to Canada? The game will be on ESPN2, even for suckers like me who have Time Warner.

700 WLW Fires Andy Furman

Today marked the end of an era in Cincinnati radio, with the termination of Sports Talk host Andy Furman from 700 WLW. About two weeks ago, Furman was suspended with pay after an argument with Bengals wide reciever T.J. Houshmandzadeh, and calling the player a racist, after failing to show up for a paid appearance on a radio show.

On Oct. 6, Furman said on the air that Houshmandzadeh had called him a “punk ass white boy.” Houshmandzadeh denied making the remark.

“I told him, ‘Andy Furman, you can f**k yourself.’ That’s the bottom line. And he twisted it into all whatever he wants to,” Houshmandzadeh said several days after the broadcast. “What he did was wrong…. This time he took it too far.”

As a frequent listener to 700 WLW, especially of the Bill Cunningham show, I am disturbed of Furman's firing. I know Furman has said many things that have angered fans, players, as well as team owners and officials, but isn't his role as a talk host to question others' descisions and behaviors? I've enjoyed Andy being critical of players who have gone above the law, owners who have been too thrifty, and fans who have been rude, nasty, apathetic, or tended to go bandwagon.

Does this also mean the end of "Randy Furman," Scott Sloan's orthodox Jewish character?

God Bless you, Andy Furman.


Enquirer article

Fox Sports writer ranks Bengals stadium 2nd worst.

http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/5941952

Some people I know that bleed orange and black are going to see red:

The Worst

2. Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati.
The fans were so vulgar and there were such displays of drunkenness (no, fans, inebriation is not a right) that the team — to its credit — has instituted a jerk line to call out idiots who cross the line. Fans can use their cell phones to rat out their neighbors. Will it help? I'm skeptical. I realize that Cincinnati fans aren't the only ones who exhibit boorish behavior (Philly fans practically wrote the book on it). Besides those issues, however, there are things to dislike about PBS. I found it difficult to navigate in a car to a suitable lot, and to find the entrance to the stadium. Fans screaming about disrespect ("Who dey! Who dey! Who dey think gonna beat dem Bengals?") is hardly worthy of great NFL chants.

Honestly, I think the stadium is an architectural landmark for Cincinnati - it's sleek and modern, like I like. If it weren't for Stark County's money and buddy ties, the OHSAA state football finals would be there by now. I also appreciate the restrooms: they're large, and the urinals have partitions between them! But Elliott Kalb got most of the article right - the fans have an attitude problem. And 'Who Dey!" should have been retired with the 1980s, the Sam Wyche area, and Riverfront Stadium. When you have your biggest rival clearly, undisputedly answering "We Dey!" because they not only beat you, but they have yet another Super Bowl ring, it's time to find anoter chant.

HS Football Update

The time of year is finally here. Today at Nippert Stadium at the UC campus is the Crosstown Showdown: Ryle playing Glen Este, then after 1pm, Lakota East will play LaSalle. The big game of the day is Covington Catholic vs. Elder at 4:30. Will the Panthers have a strong season after two weak ones, after two consecutive state titles, then last year going 4-6?
Because of the Huber Heights teacher strike, the St. Xavier vs. Wayne game originally scheduled for tonight was played Thursday at St. Xavier - the Bombers won 52-14. There will be no fourth game replacement. Tickets are $12 at the gate, so come on down to the beautiful Clifton campus, see the completed MainStreet and Varsity Village, and see some great high school football! Lots of parking available in the garages.

Bad fans at the Bengals game? Call 381-JERK

Bengals Offer "Jerk" Hotline (WCPO Channel 9)

For the first time, the Bengals are offering a tip line for fans to call to report unruly behavior.

The hotline number is 381-JERK.

It will be set up and ready to go at this Sunday's pre-season game.

The Bengals said they've started this new approach after seeing a rise in bad behavior last season.

There were more fights and beer bottles being thrown, so this year they decided to do something about it.

While the Bengals had a winning season last year, some fans walked away from Paul Brown Stadium with a bitter taste in their mouths after spending time with unruly fans.

It's about bleeping time. Why people would spend hundreds, even thousands to see a football, and then to get drunk and rude is beyond me. I see people cramming bars to get tanked, why don't the Bengals and the NFL put a disclaimer warning to people entering the stadium?

Also: Getting tough on boorish fans (Cincinnati Enquirer)

"You can get a lot of abuse with these things," (Bob) Bedinghaus said. "If you get 6,000 people calling this line - 'Hey, Ben Roethlisberger is a jerk' - then it becomes less effective. The thing to remember is we have caller ID on this line. So if you're crank calling, we are going to be able to ID who you are."

Who's the real jerk, the one with the Super Bowl ring, or the one with 2 Bud Lights in each hand?! Seriously though, sports needs to take a look at its relationship with alcohol: the balance between profit boosts and alcohol's potentially dangerous side effects.