This Post Is Not Mass-Produced In 800 Identical Locations

I see commercials or what not for restaurants that advertise this or that as "homemade." Am I wrong, or doesn't the very fact that you're getting something from a restaurant by definition mean that it is not homemade? Seriously, can anybody explain this to me and have it make sense?

Actually, Mack, Blame Me

In all the excitement I temporarily forgot about this, but in the interest of full disclosure I would like to use this forum to tell the world -- I'm the reason that OU is going to the Big 12 Championship Game over Texas and Texas Tech. No, I didn't hack into the computers to boost OU (their non-conference wins against TCU and Cincinnati did that). I didn't falsify votes in either of the pertinent polls. I didn't even text message voters reminding them of seemingly forgotten games, go on tv during major football games to argue for OU, or hire a plane to fly a banner bearing a point in OUr favor. It was far more subversive than any of those would have been.

Several weeks back, I was looking for a Christmas time outreach event for Life Pointe. The best event that I could find for a hand-out service type project was a thing called Bardstown Road Aglow on the evening of December 6th. I looked ahead a couple weeks on the college football schedule and my fears were confirmed -- that was the date of the Big 12 Championship game, and if I scheduled the event and OU was playing, I would have to miss (part, at least, of) the game. But there simply was no other remotely workable event that I could find. So I pulled the trigger on Bardstown Road Aglow. Knowing full well that surely the final improbable events would fall into place and that I -- the guy without tivo, by the way -- would take myself away from the epic dual.

So blame me, Mack Brown. Point your fingers, members of the media. I signed a deal with the devil (otherwise known as Murphy's Law) to make it happen, and it's only fair that I take the heat for it.

There's No Crying In Football

So after all the craziness, it's going to be OU going to the Big Twelve Championship game. As you might imagine, I'm alltogether very pleased with this to say the least. Do you know what I'm not alltogether pleased with, though? The whining and horrible logic of those who are less pleased with the resuls (ok, some of those who like the result have horrible logic, too). So, if we may, let's just take a moment to look at these things rationally. Of course I have my preferences, but I'll do my best to be unbiased, and if legitimately fail I welcome being called out for it.

Arguments for Texas

1) Texas and OU played head to head and Texas won, so there's no way that OU should be ranked ahead of Texas! (this is by far the most used argument, sometimes with the explicit addendum "that's all that should matter!")

If this was the only game that was played this season, then it would be pretty much air-tight. The problems? The rest of the season for one. For another, it's a circular argument since it's a three-way tie, and if OU can't be ranked ahead of Texas, then Texas can't be ranked ahead of Texas Tech, which is being completely ignored here. For what it's worth, if Tech had lost Saturday, Texas would (rightfully) be the South champ, and I can't imagine Coach Stoops or anybody else complaining. For that matter, if OU would have lost Saturday, Tech would have (again, rightfully) been the champ, and I have no earthly idea if Coach Brown would be happier or not.

2) Sure, it's a three-way tie, but since Tech is ranked lowest, they shouldn't count and then head-to-head should determine the winner from the remaining two.

Translation: the BCS is a great system to eliminate a lower-ranked team and should be used for that, but it's completely bogous to eliminate a different lower-ranked team. Is that really an argument? If you're reading this, Mack, I'll be interested to hear your logic. Further, it's not the rule that we've had in place the whole time. Don't complain about the rule at the end of the game, right? Like if you lost on a last-second field goal, don't say that field goals should really only be worth 1 point and that it's a bad rule. It was the rule by which you agreed to play and it's extremely weak sauce to start banging on it when it looks like it might work against you.

3) Texas lost their game with one second left on a miracle play, and if the db would have caught that potential interception on the last drive, it wouldn't have mattered even at that.

So it shouldn't count as a loss? Look, if we call the score after 3 quarters the final, then OU is undefeated (Wohoo! Let's go with this! Oh, does that not work?). Plus, although your comeback was inspired and noble, Texas was more-or-less pushed around all game long by Tech, and in the end Tech took it home. It's both a whole season and a whole game.

4) Texas also beat the North champion Missouri (and the addendum, "how can they watch 2 teams that they beat!")

Firstly, Missouri isn't such a trophy win. And if they are, then maybe they'll beat OU and Texas will play for the National Championship anyway (we'll see if Mack turns that down based on his philosophies). Secondly, Missouri and Nebraska both finished 5-3, and OU beat Nebraska, who Texas didn't play. They both beat Kansas, and Texas beat 2-6 Colorado while OU beat 2-6 Kansas St. So you can only make an argument that Texas played a tougher conference schedule since Missouri holds the tie-breaker over Nebraska (tie-breakers again, I love it!), and that's obviously extremely weak. Number one, their conference opponents have exactly the same conference records. Number two, you don't have any control over your conference opponents. Number three, OU had 4 conference road games and the best road win (at Pokie State), Texas only had 3. And number four, if we look at the entire schedule including out of conference (which there IS some control over), OU without question played the tougher overall schedule with TCU and Cincinnati both in the current top 15 (Texas's best out of conference victories? Rice and . . . Arkansas, probably?). Interestingly, this is probably what put OU over Texas in the computers, which pretty much made the final difference.

And while I'm admittedly not completely comfortable with out of conference schedule determining a conference champion, it's a tie and something has to, right? And it's the system that was in place all year, and if you have a demonstratively better idea, I've yet to hear it. Brent Musburger at least had a reasonable idea of using point differential among common opponents, but OU wins using that criteria, too.


Just in the interest of fair play, most arguments for OU over Texas are bogus, too. "They scored 60 in their last four games!" It's impressive, absolutley, but not a tie-breaking criteria. "They lost first!" Clearly this can make a difference in college football, but I've never liked it. It seems like the whole season should count. I mean, that's not a revolutionary thought, right? Actually, see above on that one.

Here's the bottom line -- using the rules and criteria that were agreed upon and in place from the beginning of the season, OU comes out on top of the three-way tie. And that, my friends, is inarguable.

It's Rhetorical

I'm not really looking for the answer, I'm just venting a little bit. I know the answer, and I just don't like it.

Why is it -- on message boards, in e-mails, text messages, etc. -- it's an unthinkable cardinal sin to use all caps, but completely acceptable to never capitalize anything?

Conventional Wisdom

tells us that there is no such thing as a "stupid question."

I sometimes like to question conventional wisdom. In this case, my question would be "If they carpeted Florida, how long would it take to vacuum?"

Greatest. Year. Ever.

Philadelphia isn't necessarily known as a "happy" town. On Friday, however, 2 million or so of my closest Philly fan friends (no, I'm NOT going to spell them with ph's) created the most euphoric atmosphere I've ever experienced. Just unbelievable. When I left my hotel and turned on the radio at 6 am (for the noon start!!!), there were already people there. When I got there at about 8, the party was on. And by noon?

Rather than try to tell you about it, here's a couple million words worth (click on them and they get really big):









And, for those who care, if you'd like to have ANY idea of the number of people who turned out, click

here, here, and/or here.

I Couldn't Be More Confused In High Heels and a Miniskirt

Last night, in what stood to be the greatest sports night of my life, my Phillies took a 2-2 tie into the bottom of the 6th with a chance to win the Series. That was about 15 hours ago. In 30 hours, the situation will be precisely the same. I know what you're thinking:

Wow, somebody's fouling off a LOT of pitches!

Nope, not exactly. A game that began in rain, and was being played in ridiculous rain, and then finally suspended in equally ridiculous rain is now going to be stopped for at least 2 days. I might be 3 innings away from a championship I never thought I'd see. Or maybe 3 1/2 innings away from blowing an incredible opportunity but having 2 chances left. And in the meantime, I'm. . . I don't know what I am, other than filled with emotional turmoil and not sure what to do or try to concentrate on.

So here, have a worthless blog. It's about as much as I can expect out of myself right now, in the 45 or so hours in between the top and bottom of the 6th of game 5. Wow.