Dec 18 2007
Monday Night Stream of Consciousness
So, a whole bunch of stuff happened over the weekend. Here are a few random takes on it all…
1.) As I mentioned on FanHouse, it just had to be a Brazilian to tear apart an Argentine defense in the FIFA Club World Cup title. Kaká — or as I like to call him, Preacherman — made short work of Boca Juniors to give AC Milan what will probably be its last hardware of the year. I don’t care what anyone says, either; I like this Club World Cup idea, and I hope it grows in stature.
2.) I’ve enjoyed watching Fred Taylor this year, but man, did he have to run over my Steelers like that yesterday? And why the hell can’t Pittsburgh’s offensive line pass block? Are they trying to get Ben Roethlisberger killed out there?
3.) Back in June, I wondered what American football might be like if the Canadians had brought soccer to Harvard rather than rugby. Now try to imagine for a minute how that Buffalo Bills-Cleveland Browns game yesterday might have looked in that scenario.
4.) For as choppy as the game was, Liverpool v. Man U was kind of fun to watch. It felt appropriately big, too. You don’t want your overhyped games to be too ugly.
5.) I like that kid Matt Moore, who started at QB for the Panthers yesterday and won. I wish they had started him a few weeks sooner. But man, he made me do something stupid tonight. (Kids, don’t ever let your mouth write a check that your ass can’t cash. Trust me on that one.)
6.) Am I the only one who knows that John Rambo died at the end of the original First Blood novel? How does an anti-war book turn into four violence-happy propaganda flicks?
7.) Wake Forest won the NCAA soccer title over the weekend. Unlike American college football, this title was decided by a playoff. Also unlike American college football, very few people are filling newshole discussing why the postseason is the way it is. Does that ultimately hurt the competition?
8.) When Brian Westbrook took a knee one yard from a touchdown yesterday, he gave up an easy score to seal the victory for his team. The Eagles ran out the clock from there to win the game. It’s all part of the chess match that is American football. When I suggested DeShaun Foster should have done this against New Orleans last year, people laughed at me. Who’s laughing now?
9.) In case you hadn’t noticed, there’s are two new sections at FanHouse for the Premier League and Major League Soccer. I’m hoping to get one or two more soccer-specific sections added here in the coming weeks.
10.) None of these sections will be about the England national team. I’m tired of hearing about the England national team. I know this is where the Association game was born, but the sheer volume of words written about this team in recent weeks could fill all the hard drives at the nearest Seagate warehouse, and really, it’s not my team. I’m American. Let’s talk about Bob Bradley a little. He’s doing a pretty good job, don’t you think?
11.) I’d really like to watch Real Madrid v. Barcelona on Sunday, even with Lionel Messi on ice for a month. Unfortunately, I have to recap the Jaguars-Raiders game for AOL on Sunday, and in order to do that, I have to head out to a sports bar that probably won’t have GOLTV. Trying to keep up with all these football codes is hard.
That ought to hold you for now. More to come…
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I can’t stand watching NCAA soccer. Unlimited substitutions? Countdown clocks? No thanks. Get with the rest of the world, NCAA. This is the world’s game, we all play by the same rules.
NCAA Soccer reminds me of 1996 MLS, played with League 1 tactics. Not very aesthetically pleasing.
Though I’d love to have Nyarko (Virginia Tech) playing for DC United.
Ahhh, I remember when we landed Fred Taylor with a first-round pick obtained from Buffalo for Rob freaking Johnson! I still chuckle about it.
The sheer idiocy of NCAA soccer rules is a testament to (A)the messed-up status of college sports in the US, which are neither truly professional nor genuinely amateur, and thus become beholden to very awkward rules that don’t fit well [see also: aluminum bats in college baseball]; (B)the VERY messed up nature of youth soccer in this country, which probably involves some parents spending more on private coaches, club & tournament fees, and travel costs than they would have to just send Bratley and Snotley to a state school to begin with; and (C)the continuing sad state of this country’s [lack of] respect for a game which has always featured a certain universal consistency and universality of play.
Will: Which was more one-sided — Fred Taylor for Rob Johnson, or LaDainian Tomlinson and Drew Brees for Ron Mexico?
I’ve gotta go with the 2-for-1 aspect of the San Diego-Atlanta deal. Ayway, Rob MIGHT have been serviceable if not for Flutie the magical midget winning over the Buffalo’s hearts and minds. Johnson had a good arm and wasn’t stupid but most certainly was not a born leader of men.