A bit of BCS (and a good yarn)
So, first of all, as I'm sure everybody knows by now, there will be NO Ohio State-Michigan rematch. Woo hoo! As for the rant I was going to post, some guy at slate.com pretty much captured what I wanted to say. The main thing for me is that the way college football is right now, the whole regular season amounts to a playoff. (Well, not quite, but bear with me here.) EVERY weekend matters. That patsy you scheduled for Homecoming? Have a letdown game against them (or what people like to call an UPSET) and you're DONE. (Usually.) Look past any opponent and there's a good chance it will bite you in the ass. Okay, so it's not quite a playoff system since it's not exactly single elimination. But it's not like introducing a playoff system wouldn't have its problems, too.
Also, what's with all this lack of respect for tradition? You want to know something? Ohio State-Michigan wouldn't have been the huge game it was if it weren't for, you guessed it, tradition. I, for one, am glad that the Rose Bowl will be USC vs. Michigan. Well, whaddaya know? It's the Pac-10 vs. the Big 10! In the Rose Bowl! Why does that sound so familiar?! Damn straight, man. That's the way things ought to be.
You know all those sports cliches that athletes like to go to when answering those vapid sports writer questions after a game? Stuff like, "We gave 110% out there today." Did you know a player once put a bunch of them on a piece of paper, taped the paper to his locker, and told sports writers to just pull answers to their questions from it? Did you know this list of his includes some of the best sports cliches of all time?
The player's name was Don Carman, and he was a relief pitcher for the Phillies, Indians, and Rangers. He was actually known for the quips and quotes he would deliver in post-game interviews. But it's kind of sad that this list of his and some of the items on it are better known today than he himself is.
Sort of like this quote:
"The difference between involvement and commitment is like ham and eggs. The chicken is involved; the pig is committed."
Did you know that quote came from Martina Navratilova?
Anyways, on to the list.
From www.baseball-almanac.com:
1. I'm just glad to be here. I just want to help the club any way I can.
2. Baseball's a funny game.
3. I'd rather be lucky than good.
4. We're going to take the season one game at a time.
5. You're only as good as your last game (last at-bat).
6. This game has really changed.
7. If we stay healthy we should be right there.
8. It takes 24 (25) players.
9. We need two more players to take us over the top: Babe Ruth & Lou Gehrig.
10. We have a different hero every day.
11. We'll get 'em tomorrow.
12. This team seems ready to gel.
13. With a couple breaks, we win that game.
14. That All-Star voting is a joke.
15. The catcher and I were on the same wavelength.
16. I just went right at 'em.
17. I did my best and that's all I can do.
18. You just can't pitch behind.
19. That's the name of the game.
20. We've got to have fun.
21. I didn't have my good stuff, but I battled 'em.
22. Give the guy some credit; he hit a good pitch.
23. Hey, we were due to catch a break or two.
24. Yes.
25. No.
26. That's why they pay him _____ million dollars.
27. Even I could have hit that pitch.
28. I know you are but what am I?
29. I was getting my off-speed stuff over so they couldn't sit on the fastball.
30. I have my at 'em ball going today.
31. I have some great plays made behind me tonight.
32. I couldn't have done it without my teammates.
33. You saw it... write it.
34. I just wanted to go as hard as I could as long as I could.
35. I'm seeing the ball real good.
36. I hit that ball good.
37. I don't get paid to hit.
As a bonus, here's a story about Don Carman from slate.com about how, during a move while he was still in the big leagues, Don misplaced a bunch of fan mail. He later recovered the fan mail and actually went and took the time to send responses, albeit 15 years late.
* 1st Mix *
I decided to go back and highlight the cliches that I was familiar with.
Also, what's with all this lack of respect for tradition? You want to know something? Ohio State-Michigan wouldn't have been the huge game it was if it weren't for, you guessed it, tradition. I, for one, am glad that the Rose Bowl will be USC vs. Michigan. Well, whaddaya know? It's the Pac-10 vs. the Big 10! In the Rose Bowl! Why does that sound so familiar?! Damn straight, man. That's the way things ought to be.
You know all those sports cliches that athletes like to go to when answering those vapid sports writer questions after a game? Stuff like, "We gave 110% out there today." Did you know a player once put a bunch of them on a piece of paper, taped the paper to his locker, and told sports writers to just pull answers to their questions from it? Did you know this list of his includes some of the best sports cliches of all time?
The player's name was Don Carman, and he was a relief pitcher for the Phillies, Indians, and Rangers. He was actually known for the quips and quotes he would deliver in post-game interviews. But it's kind of sad that this list of his and some of the items on it are better known today than he himself is.
Sort of like this quote:
"The difference between involvement and commitment is like ham and eggs. The chicken is involved; the pig is committed."
Did you know that quote came from Martina Navratilova?
Anyways, on to the list.
From www.baseball-almanac.com:
1. I'm just glad to be here. I just want to help the club any way I can.
2. Baseball's a funny game.
3. I'd rather be lucky than good.
4. We're going to take the season one game at a time.
5. You're only as good as your last game (last at-bat).
6. This game has really changed.
7. If we stay healthy we should be right there.
8. It takes 24 (25) players.
9. We need two more players to take us over the top: Babe Ruth & Lou Gehrig.
10. We have a different hero every day.
11. We'll get 'em tomorrow.
12. This team seems ready to gel.
13. With a couple breaks, we win that game.
14. That All-Star voting is a joke.
15. The catcher and I were on the same wavelength.
16. I just went right at 'em.
17. I did my best and that's all I can do.
18. You just can't pitch behind.
19. That's the name of the game.
20. We've got to have fun.
21. I didn't have my good stuff, but I battled 'em.
22. Give the guy some credit; he hit a good pitch.
23. Hey, we were due to catch a break or two.
24. Yes.
25. No.
26. That's why they pay him _____ million dollars.
27. Even I could have hit that pitch.
28. I know you are but what am I?
29. I was getting my off-speed stuff over so they couldn't sit on the fastball.
30. I have my at 'em ball going today.
31. I have some great plays made behind me tonight.
32. I couldn't have done it without my teammates.
33. You saw it... write it.
34. I just wanted to go as hard as I could as long as I could.
35. I'm seeing the ball real good.
36. I hit that ball good.
37. I don't get paid to hit.
As a bonus, here's a story about Don Carman from slate.com about how, during a move while he was still in the big leagues, Don misplaced a bunch of fan mail. He later recovered the fan mail and actually went and took the time to send responses, albeit 15 years late.
* 1st Mix *
I decided to go back and highlight the cliches that I was familiar with.