Acantha

This must have been garbage time.

I remember the last time this happened. We crushed the Pats on opening day, beat the Jags the next week. Bad times after that.

I replied to his last post, didn't necessarily only have to do with that one post. Though his insistence on answering every post with sarcastic questions would be enough alone. On a side note, kicking the ball through the uprights is very often referred to as a field goal, no matter what the situation. Hearing "an extra point field goal" is not uncommon.

You do realize you're being an obstinate ass, right? Relax man.

There's a difference. In this case, the guy broke the rule, period. Was it stupid? Yes. But the rule is right there in black and white; DO NOT THROW THE BALL IN THE AIR. In this case, he screwed himself. If it's strictly up to the ref, then he wouldn't have known what he did was wrong. Did the ball get thrown 20 ft in the air instead of the an okay 10ft? Did the celebration go on for 20 seconds instead of 15? When you make it subjective, that's when someone gets screwed.

I think it's important to try and keep a bit of control over the celebrating. If they don't, football will turn into what basketball has become. It's already tough to tell these kids not to show off while they are trying to draw attention to themselves to get into the NFL. Meanwhile, they see players like TO and Chad Johnson getting all the press and extra attention due to their celebration antics. Asking the refs to make the judgment call is a tough thing to do. If they do that, a win or loss is set squarely on the shoulders of one person based on nothing more than his opinion. Granted, if it's a blatantly obvious situation, there won't be much argument. But what happens when it's a borderline call, and a team that is competing for a BCS game ends up losing because one ref judges it was too much? While it sucks how the call went down in this game, and I do think there should be some adjustments to the rule, I understand where the NCAA is coming from.

This is exactly what I've been thinking. It's not like the refs said, "You celebrated, you lose!" All Washington had to do was kick a mid-range field goal to win the game. And it wasn't blocked due to a low angle, it was smothered. That was a block from any point on the field. And while I do agree it was the correct call based on the rules, I think the rule needs to be looked at. It should state that it's up to the refs to decide whether the act is done to draw attention to ones self. In this case it clearly wasn't. He threw the ball up without giving it a second thought and celebrated with his team, which is allowed by rule. Bad, or at least incomplete, rule imo, but I think it was called correctly by the refs.

While I agree that some take it too far, that is what college football is all about! The conference rivalry/superiority competition has taken over college ball....to the point that fans are cheering for their most hated rivals in other games because they want their conference to win. And as everyone is so fond of saying, conferences go through highs and lows; you take your opportunity to brag on your conference/team while you have the chance. Of course I brag on the SEC, if the Big East, ACC or Big 10 had the same level of play they would be doing the same thing. But for now...boo F'n hoo for them. As far as the opponents go, I answered this in another thread. If you are a team like Ohio St, and only have 1, maybe 2 other elite teams in your conference, you have to travel to get the competition. The SEC has no reason to do this. Any given year they have 4-6 top teams, why on earth would they go out of their way and TRAVEL to get more competition? It doesn't make sense...UNLESS, they are doing so for the sake of recruiting. THAT is why Tenn. has decided to play out of conference games across the country. The same reason Texas went to UCF last year (or so said the coach). If a team thinks the benefits outweigh the risks, it makes sense. Outside of that, there is no reason for the SEC and Big 12 to travel. 10 years from now, when the landscape has most likely changed, it will be other conferences doing the same thing.

The difference would be between a 3 hour plane ride and an 18 hour one. And it wouldn't be close to as expensive. Quite a big difference actually.

1. Never said it was "real analysis". Said "random thoughts". And I'll have whatever random thoughts I damn well please. 2. I don't believe FSU is headed in the right direction. I do not think holding on to a coach past his prime, not pulling in very great recruiting classes (especially compared to UF and Miami), and probably having scholarships taken away, is heading in the right direction. Sue me. 3. I could honestly not care less about FSU outside of one week per year. I just don't care. I have enough teams in the SEC to hate, like Georgia and Tennessee, without worrying about a team that can't even get out of it's own way. I didn't mention FSU because I don't consider them worth mentioning, not because of some seeded hatred I have for them. If I cared at all, I would have brought them up negatively, like I did some other schools. So the clue is yours for the taking man. If you want to read into what I'm saying as a personal shot against your school, so be it.

What a great friggin game! That 4th quarter is what college ball is all about! How about the difference in that UCLA QB from the 1st half to the 2nd? And those WR's were laying it all out there in the 4th quarter! Best game of the week.

I could have sworn this said Kelly Kapowski.

The issue with LJ is his health. If he's 100%, he's a much better fantasy back than MJD, but I just don't have a lot of faith in him holding up the whole year. That puts them on basically even ground to me.

- Didn't see the game, but Turner Gill is a godsend for Buffalo. That said, I can't see him sticking around too long - Syracuse is downright horrible. Robinson should not have a job coaching college football - I think if Cuse could get Gill, they could slowly regain a place among the top of the Big East. Not sure it's a job he'd want, but continuing in a familiar recruiting area, in a school that still has some lingering prestige (barely), in the smallest major conference....might be a good stepping stone. - I think the ACC is all alone at the bottom of the major conferences...and it's not even close. Outside of Miami, who has a solid coach and incredible recruiting, nobody is even heading in the right direction (I'm willing to give BC a big ?, but I'm not optimistic). - We'll see how they do this season, but I think Spurrier lost his touch during his vacation from college football. They've recruited too much talent over the past few years to be playing such sloppy football. - I realize how deep my hatred for Miami (dolphins) goes when I get a kick out of Pitt losing for no apparent reason other than Wannstedt being the coach. Great quote: "It would have been nice to get a touchdown but, you know, we follow the leader," McCoy said of Wannstedt. - I think for the first time in a couple years the SEC has competition for top conference. The Big 12 looks GOOD. It's still like comparing Usain Bolt to the reset of the field, but hey, at least there's a field. - I am impressed with what Harbaugh is doing at Stanford. Still a ways away, but that team is disciplined, well coached, and has some talented guys playing very well together. They are the anti-Syracuse. - USC looks great again, but I think they lose at least 1 game this year. I don't think there is another team out there that gets more fear out of opponents based on pure reputation. You can see opposing players practically shaking in their cleats as they line up on the field. - Michigan looked a lot better than I thought they would given the circumstances. Obviously they need to get a running game going, but given damn near every bit of their top talent is gone on top of the whole coach and scheme change thing, they looked decent. I figure it'll take RR about 4 or 5 years to be consistent threat to Ohio St. to win the Big 10, but in the mean time I don't think they will be quite so down and out as I thought they would.(BTW, did anyone else see that play where the whole O-line didn't move? Very weird.) - Holy crap Mizz, how many times do you have to be kicked in the nuts before you keep your safeties deep! - Coffman, it's fun to watch, but you're not going to make it through the season if hurdling defenders is a consistent part of your game. - One more note on Coffman, I think he's losing draft stock every game by not lining up as a TE. The NFL doesn't often draft big, slow slot receivers early in the draft, no matter how tough they are. He needs to show that he can block. (Not that all this should matter to Mizz, they need to do whatever gets them the win, just an observation) - Despite the score, I thought Michigan State's defense, in particular the front 7, looked pretty good. They were well prepared and technically sound group who got worn down by a superior offense, but I think they are on a good track. - Congrats to JoPa for tying the games won record. Now, lets not hear about this again until at least one of these guys retires. - I'm looking forward to the Tenn/UCLA game tomorrow night. - Based on week one, it's going to be a hell of a finish. There are some awesome teams this year; it's going to be fun watching them sort themselves out.

Yeah, he turned down the trade. Think I"m going to take my chances on the bye. Trades in FF aggravate the hell out of me. Dude put MJD on the trading block, so I offer him a solid trade, and he turns it down. What does he expect to get? Oh well....I'll deal with it.

I'd rather all 22 of NE starters come down with various illnesses and injuries prior to our game with them. Who the hell cares what players are on the field when we beat them!!??!!

I screwed up in my draft and took Marshawn Lynch and Larry Johnson with my first two picks....and they are both off week 6. Both of my backup WR's, are also off week 6 (so no WR available for my flex position). I have to start 2 RB's, 2 WR's, and 1 WR/RB. So basically in Week 6 I'd be starting Reggie Bush, Chris Perry, and Ray Rice. So I just sent in a trade request to trade Larry Johnson for MJD. I had them ranked fairly evenly, so I'm not too concerned about that trade. My question is, since FF doesn't tend to be the land of even trades, I"m expecting him to want me to throw something else in. Even if it's a backup, does anyone think MJD is worth having all season over Johnson and a backup, or should I just take the hit on week 6?

A little early to say for this year, but there is no reason to think they aren't on the right track. Saban is a more than competent coach, and an awesome recruiter (as much as I hate him). It's only a matter of time. On the other hand, I thought the same thing about SC and Spurrier, but they can't seem to make the jump, so who knows.

Anyone else notice A LOT of helmets and shoes flying off?? What's up with that?

I was expecting Alabama to be better this year, given Saban's impact. I always expect the ACC to be crap. It will take a few weeks to figure out the scale.

The correct answer is: IT DOESN'T MATTER! And Davis IS moron for passing on Dorsey for yet another flashy player.

That team is one of the worst prepared teams I've watched in a while. They look like they practice using two hand touch rules. The offense (both play calling and execution) is timid and scared, not to mention lacking much natural talent. Most of the defense looks lost and scared to make a hit. I can't count the number of times I saw a guy just NOT tackle. Not miss a tackle, or slip, or get faked out, but be right there to make the tackle, and just not do so. The secondary looked better than the rest of team, but still they were out of position quite a bit....though I think a lot of that had to do with being exhausted from chasing down running plays all game. I'm not a Cuse football fan and they aren't on TV much so I don't follow them, but if that's the norm....Robinson needs to be exiled.

Thanks, I hadn't checked that out yet. It's tough looking online cause everything is very commercial, but from what I can tell everything around that area seems pretty high. Saw a couple articles that said you'd want about 3000 a month to live comfortable. Supposedly the exchange has dropped a lot, 50:1 to 28:1, and the local rates are adjusting.

I wouldn't be doing any of this for about 10 years, in the event that I did decide to go that route. I'm just looking around at options right now. I'm deciding between two options: 1. Work until I"m 59: retire with a pension of about $3300 a month (based on current rates), house paid off, with an IRA ready to cash in. 2. Work until I'm 39: retire with a pension of about $1600 a month, save as much as possible between now and then, sell my house, move somewhere out of country and use the saved money/house money to put down on a nice place, live out the rest of my life relaxing. Pro's and con's with both approaches. I think my focus is on central america due to the similarities to the US (directv so I can still have my football!), and the proximity to the US so I wouldn't be leaving my family so far behind. But I'll definitely look into the places you suggested.