Monday Morning Quarterback-ing

Hats

I love them, if for no other reason than they cover up my frequently terrifying haircut. And, with Brighton Beach looming on the horizon, my hair cut is particularly frightening. It's a 1930s comb-over cut that requires a lot of gel....but, since I'm not that type of guy, I just cover up the entire upper half of my head. But I digress.

Chris, Joe, and I went to Nashville this weekend (which, if you're a devoted reader, you already know!) And we decided to hit up the galleria before we left Nashville. They had a cool NFL shop, and I was hoping that in such a Bastion of sports paraphanelia, I might finally find what I was looking for: A St. Louis Rams hat!

Sadly, I was again denied. But on the bottom shelf, I did find my back-up team: The Cincinnati Bengals! It was a great deal, I payed around $10 for a $25 hat. Chris got himself a Tennessee Titans hat, so everyone was happy. Well, almost. I really REALLY wanted to buy one of the Vick jerseys....sadly, my political sways don't cover $80 investments that might get covered in red paint by angry members of PETA....

BOWL GAMES!!!

As much as I HATE the BCS and all that it stands for, championship-wise and economically (but I won't get into that), some great things happened regarding post season play: Notre Dame lost, finally putting the nail in the coffin of their chances to get into the BCS and re-earn the prestige they just don't deserve. Auburn won their 7th game of the season, all but guaranteeing that we will be in some sort of bowl game. It may be the papa john's bell south army-navy charles schwabb insurance bowl, but after last year, a winning record is great. Finally, Oregon lost of Stanford, weaking Boise State's case, as well as insuring that the Pac-10 will only get one representative and USC will be enjoying the holiday bowl or something. I'm not usually one to cheer for people losing, but when teams with two losses are getting conversation about going to a BCS game without any marquee wins, or a strong schedule, it makes me cringe.

Unbeaten, but not unblemished

This is the proper time of the year to talk about unbeaten teams. Take Iowa, for example. This is the part of the year where the schedule, injuries, and length of the season separate the champs from the chumps. (Well, except Boise State, who always seems to handle their tough late WAC schedule). Texas, Florida, and Alabama have all managed to push through some tough tests (with a little help, but the game is never won or lost on a single play), but so has Cincinnati. Not to mention the Saints and the Colts have also pushed through (But both teams have shown weaknesses). However, thanks to some Key losses...the championship conversation is narrowing by the week. All I can hope is that if 'Bama and Florida reach the championship undefeated, the loser gets a crack at the bearcats and has a chance to prevent another two-undefeated bowl season. And, as we all know, it is almost impossible to go through the NFL season undefeated, but it would be great to see New Orleans win a championship and finished unblemished as champions. The great thing about sports is how far they reach off the field. There, that was my deep, cheesy part of the blog.

In conclusion

I just have on thing to say....my second team, the Cincinnati Bengals, have beaten the Ravens twice and are leading the NFC north! WHO DEY!!!!!