March Madness: the Sweet 16 is set...

...and my bracket is toast!

It took four days and two rounds before we finally got our first major, MAJOR upset, and coincidentally it took four days and two rounds before I made my unofficial exit from the office pool.

With a 74-68 loss to the 7th seeded UNLV Runnin' Rebels, #2 seed Wisconsin earned the dubious distinction of being the highest seed to be eliminated from the 2007 tournament, and the Texas Longhorns' uninspired flogging at the hands of the USC Trojans ensured my early exit from the Big Dance as well.

I love the smell of March Madness in the morning- top seeds' title hopes being doused on the first weekend and getting eliminated from your lucrative & prestigious office pool is what it's all about. It's a tradition unlike any other...oh wait, that's a couple of weeks from now.

Unlike yesterday, when all but one of the games were decided by less than 10 points, today's results were exactly opposite; of the 8 contests only 3 saw final margins in single digits, and the average margin of victory for the 8 games was 11.5.

In ESPN-speak, yesterday was Don't Change the Channel Saturday and today would have been Catch Up on Yardwork Sunday.

So now the 16 finalists are set to begin CBS' version of a dance-off starting Thursday night. Before I get to the next round, let's put a wrap on the final day of the first weekend of MM.

-1Florida holds off 9Purdue, 74-67, but suffers from another shaky 1st half
For the second straight game the top-seeded Gators had a rocky first half that made the team expend extra energy in order to mount a game-winning comeback. Top teams can sometimes get away with that kind of behavior in the early rounds, but if Florida wants to become the first repeat champion since the 1991-92 Blue Devils, that's a surefire way to have its dreams come back and chomp them in the ass.

Trailing by as many as 5 points, the Gators went into the break facing a deficit for the first time since Feb. 27th. Just as it did the other night against Jackson State, howeva, Florida used a big (18-9) run to jump in front, 47-40, with 10:35 left to play. The game was nip/tuck the rest of the way, but consecutive treys by Taurean Green (14 pts) and late contributions by Al Horford (17 pts, 9 rebs) and Corey Brewer (17 pts, 8 rebs) helped the Gators advanced to the round of 16, its chance of repeating still intact.

They'll take on upstart Butler on Friday night in St. Louis, and I would love to see the Bulldogs test the Gators all the way to the end of the game, not just for one half.

-USC avenges 2006 Rose Bowl loss by dismantling the Longhorns, 87-68

Kevin Durant may be the best player in college basketball and one of the finest freshmen to come along in the last 20 years, but come tourney time a team usually cannot revolve around one player, especially a frosh, and hope to advance. Unless that player was named Carr, Robertson or Magic.

Never was this adage ever more obvious than in #4 Texas' disheartening loss at the hands of a solid Trojans team. Durant had his customary night- 30 points and 9 boards-but the disciplined Trojans clamped down on the rest of the Longhorns players, holding scintillating frosh point guard DJ Augustin to just 6 points and allowing only one other Longhorn, sophomore guard AJ Abrahms, to reach double figures.

Meanwhile USC had all five starters reach double digits, led by junior swingman Nick Young's 22 points, and got a double-double (17 pts & 14 rebs) from its freshman sensation, forward Taj Gibson. After enjoying a comfortable lead for most of the first half, USC allowed Texas to climb back to within six, 36-30, just minutes into the second. But a devastating 16-3 run, capped by a fast break one-handed jam by Young, pretty much slammed the door on any thoughts of a comeback.

I'm not sure if the Longhorns underestimated the Trojans in this one or if it's just a case of the talented but young team taking its press clippings too seriously, but either way it was a disappointing and lackluster effort for a team that I, along with many other, thought had a chance to do something special.

That's what happens when you pin your hopes and dreams on the back of one talented, young kid. Hopefully the Celts will be finding that out a few months from now, unless Danny Ainge f**ks it up.

-Father's Day in Vegas: Krueger's son helps dad get back to the Sweet 16
Not since the days of Tark the Shark, Richard "The Fixer" Perry and The Great Hot Tub Incident of 1990 have the Runnin' Rebs of UNLV enjoyed such tournament success.

Lon Krueger, the former Gator and Illinois coach, became just the 5th coach to take three different teams to the Sweet 16, and the Rebs rode the sharpshooting of Krueger's son Kevin to a huge upset of #2 seed Wisconsin. Kevin, who followed his dad to the desert after transferring from Arizona State, scored 17 points, shaking off a 1-17 shooting slump to nail three straight treys in the second half that swung the game in the Reb's favor.

Although stud teammates Alando Tucker (17 pts) and Kammron Taylor (24) did their part to keep Wisconsin in the game, once again a lack of firepower doomed the offensively deficient Badgers. Tucker finished his career in Madison as the Badgers all-time leading scorer, but the pain of being so close to ending with a championship team will last a long time-0 at least until June, when those NBA millions start rolling in.

Other results from today's snoozers:

-The Volunteers slacked off quite a bit from their 121-point effort in the opening game, but the 77 it scored today was just enough to fend off pesky Virginia by three. J.R. Reynolds kept the Cavs in it in the first half, when he scored 22 of his 28 points, but after twisting an ankle he was ineffective in the second half and the Vols advanced to the round of 16 for the first time since 2000.

-Oregon slapped Winthrop back to reality with a 75-61 victory that wasn't even that close. The loss by the Eagles ensured there will be no double-digit seed in the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1995. It also ensured for me another game of witnessing those putrid Ducks unis in stunning HD-not a pretty sight, I can assure you.

-Memphis extended its winning streak to a staggering 24 games, longest in the nation, by wiping out the Nevada Wolf Pack, 78-62. Much like USC, Memphis led the way with a balanced attack; 4 players scored in double figures and eight Tigers in all scored at least 2 points. Up next for the relatively untested Tigers is battle-tested Texas A&M, but Memphis better hope leading scorer Chris Douglas-Roberts recovers from a twisted ankle to play on Thursday, or the streak may end at 24.

-The Virginia Tech Hokies couldn't rally from 13 down for a second straight game and fell to postseason veteran Southern Illinois Salukis, 63-48 in a battle of the oddest nicknames in the tourney. Despite averaging over 72 PPG in the rugged ACC, Seth Greenberg's squad could only manage to average 50 in its two tourney games, and that is why he is headed back to Blacksburg to figure out how to replace top players Zabian Dowdell, Coleman Collins and Jamon Gordon. Good luck, Seth.

-The battle between storied programs Kansas & Kentucky didn't exactly pan out the way college hoop purists would have liked it to; the more talented & athletic Jayhawks crushed Tubby Smith's Wildcats- don't let the final fool you, UK was down by 17 with 2:00 to play-a loss that could put an end to Smith's career in Lexington as fans & boosters have been calling for his dismissal most of the season. Meanwhile the 'Hawks move on to face the Saluki's next week.

So there it is- the day in a nutshell. Although there wasn't much to cheer about as far as close games go, the end results did produce what should be some great match ups for the round of 16.

Here's a quick look at those games until I give a full preview sometime before Thursday rolls around.

Thursday-

• 4 So. Illinois vs. 1 Kansas: SIU is a nice little story, but there is no way they knock off the rock chalks, is there?
• 3Texas A&M vs. 2 Memphis: this one has the potential to be the game of the round
• 3 Pitt vs. 2 UCLA: this one has a storyline that writers & analysts cream over- UCLA head coach Ben Howland used to be the main man at Pitt, and current Pitt boss Jamie Dixon was his protege; wonder if they'll play that up at all?
• 5Tennessee vs. 1 Ohio State: the Vols play high-flying, spirited ball for Bruce Pearl, while the Buckeyes like to slow it down and run the offense through the big man, Greg Oden; which style will prevail?

Friday-

• 1Florida vs. 9Butler: the Kings of the Heap vs. the Party Crashers, David vs. Goliath, Spartans vs. Persians...
• 6Vandy vs. 2 Georgetown: The Beasts of the East shouldn't have much of a problem with the Commodores, unless Lionel Richie continues his comeback on the hardwood
• 7UNLV vs. 3Oregon: An old fashioned Wild West shootout, only with the defense these two teams play there won't be a hell of a lot of ammo flying around
• 5USC vs. 1 Carolina: the Tarheels may be locked & loaded for another title run but these Trojans will cause a lot of protection problems for UNC (sorry, weak attempt at one there)

I think that's enough words for this post. It's gonna be tough to have no action to watch until Thursday, well unless you count the new season of Dancing with The Scantily Clad Celebs. Good thing I have the HD now to catch any potential wardrobe malfunctions this year!

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March Madness, St. Paddy's Day edition

To all my Irish friends back home and elsewhere I want to say Happy St. Patrick's Day and I wish all you safe travel home from wherever you are swilling, errr, celebrating tonight.

St. Patrick's Day on a Saturday- boy, hope the Boston cops are prepared for this nightmare.

I want to wish my good buddy Swilly McDrunk and his wife Jamie a happy 1-year anniversary and hope you guys are enjoying it with that young Irish stud, Finn

Also, to my late, great friend Chicago Bob I just want you to know that although I didn't consume 15+ green beers like we did a few years ago at O'Keefe's with the Czar, I thought about it, and I am sipping an amber-colored beverage out of that monster mug as I type this. Cheers, Bubba.

How did I spend the holiday, being a non-Irish lad? I took my son to a spring training game and watched the Blue Jays and Tigers in their green unis bash the ball around Knology Park. Couple of quick notes about the game:

- Toronto's scheduled starter Gustavo Chacin wasn't able to take the hill today against Detroit because he was nabbed by Tampa cops for DUI last night; looks like Gustavo had too many green beers in Ybor.

- I found out firsthand why Frank Thomas has two nicknames that both incorporate the word 'big'- Dude. Is. Large. I was also surprised at how generous he was with the fans, signing for a large group of kids & autograph sleazebags even as the PA announcer was announcing his name in the starting lineup. Classy.

Anyway, this year the Gaelic Christmas can be enjoyed by non-Irish folks, too, and not just because green beer knows no cultural or ethnic boundaries. No, this year the annual drunkfest lands on a day that the NCAA Tournament is being played, which by my calculations happens about 4 times every 7 years, minus leap year, or something like that. That means fans can go out and celebrate the holiday, watch the tourney, and when their brackets go up in smoke they can drown their sorrows with nine Harp's and 4-6 Irish Car Bombs.

My own bracket took a severe beating with losses by Louisville and BC. But sometimes the agony of knowing you lost the office pool gets forgotten in the midst of a daylong extravaganza of quality games, and there were plenty of them played today. Of the eight games played, seven were decided by 7 points or less and they included 2 overtime games and one double-OT thriller; plus Butler, another 'little school that could', muscled its way into the Sweet 16 to compete with the big boys.

Let's review the results from a wild day on the road to the Final 4.

-1Ohio State 78, 9Xavier 71 (OT)

I got back from the game just in time to catch the fantastic finish in this one. The Buckeyes were tested, as predicted by yours truly, by its interstate rivals from the Queen City, trailing for much of the game and headed for a huge upset. In fact if it weren't for a bogus, 'Jordan Rules'-esque non call on Buckeye freshman phenom Greg Oden in the waning seconds of regulation, the Musketeers may be the ones headed to San Antonio next week for the round of 16.

Oden (14 pts, 12 rebs) fouled out with :10 left and Xavier leading 61-59, and the obvious intentional nature of the shove to Xavier's Justin Cage should have earned him a flagrant as well. If the ref had called it, Xavier would have had two free throws plus the possession with hardly any time left. Instead Cage made just one of two frees, which set up Ron Lewis' "they'll be replaying this shot forever" 3-pointer that tied it with less than a second to play in regulation.

In the overtime OSU's other freshman sensation, stat sheet-stuffer extraordinaire Mike Conley, Jr.(21 pts, 4 ass, 5 rebs, 3 blcks, 2 stls), scored the first 7 points for the Buckeyes and 11 in the extra frame as Ohio State escaped with a controversial, thrilling win that defined the famous tourney catchphrase "survive & advance".

-6Vandy 78, 3Wash St. 74 (2OT)

The game of the day had to be this back & forth affair between the Commodores and Cougars in Sacramento-too bad most of the country didn't get to see it.

Wazzou led for most of the second half and enjoyed an 8 point lead with just over 10:00 to play, but a 12-0 spurt by Vandy from that point on made it a barn burner. Senior Derrick Byers had a monster game for Vandy, chipping in 27 points including 5 treys and one huge blocked shot in the first OT that kept Vandy's Sweet 16 hopes alive.

-3Pitt 84, 11VCU 79 (OT)

The giant killers of the first round weren't able to duplicate the feat again as VCU fell victim to a tough Pitt squad, but the Rams showed some grit & determination of their own by sending the game to overtime despite trailing by as many as 19 points in the contest.

The Rams had knocked off Duke to hand the Devils its first 1st round loss in over a decade, and the scrappy team from the CAA nearly repeated that act after overcoming a late 12-point deficit. After the hero of the Duke game Eric Maynor helped his team get back into it, the toll of playing two emotionally & physically exhausting games in three days caught up with them, and when Lavance Fields missed two free throws with 2 seconds left, Pitt put it away in OT. Still, VCU showed a lot of heart and made for many exciting tourney moments.

-2Georgetown 62, 7BC 55

This game was an old fashioned Big East slugfest as these two former conference rivals battled it out for the right to move on to the Sweet 16.

After jumping out to a 39-31 lead with 15:00 to play in the second half, Georgetown came roaring back behind center Roy Hibbert (17 of his 19 points in the 2nd half) and Big East Player of the Year Jeff Green, who converted two big 3-point plays down the stretch and finished with 11 points and 12 rebs. The biggest problem for BC? Jared Dudley (19) and Tyrese Rice (22) combined for 41 of the Eagles' 55 points. 'Nuff said.

I don't have the time or the space to go in depth on each of the other games: Louisville got upended by Texas A&M, 72-69; Butler advanced to the Sweet 16 for the second time in 4 years by knocking off Maryland, 62-59, with help from an offensive foul call on the Terps' DJ Strawberry in the waning seconds; UCLA nearly blew a 13 point lead with just over 5:00 left but held on to defeat Indiana, 54-49; and the Tarheels got a small scare from Mich St. but used a 14-4 late surge and a huge game from Tyler Hansbrough (33 pts, 12 rebs) to win going away, 81-67.

Whew. Quite a day. And as I predicted my cruise to the top of the office pool heap came to a crashing halt as I lost a FF team (Louisville) and a Final 8 pick (BC) within hours of each other.

But like I said it's a small price to pay for action like that.

Plenty more to come tomorrow, including Purdue/Florida, Kansas/Kentucky, Nevada/Memphis and Texas/USC.

BTW, if Texas loses I might not be posting for a while.

Enjoy the holiday and the tourney, and please drink responsibly (i.e. no less than 20 brewskis, Gleason!)

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March Madness: 64 to 32

The first round of the NCAA Tournament is in the books and it was anything but "mad"; the only upsets belonged to 11th seed VCU over the #6 Blue Devils last night, and 11th seeded Winthrop over the unlucky Irish earlier today.

In fact, out of the 32 games played Thursday and Friday, the lower (better) seed won only 5
times. Is this the year that sanity reigns and we see all four No.1 seeds make it to the Final Four?

That may be going a bit too far, but so far the only real surprise of the tourney is that there have been so few surprises.

Let's take a look at some of the bigger developments from Round 1.

-The four No. 1 seeds (Florida, Kansas, Ohio State, North Carolina) won their games by an average of 31.5 points-no shocker there. But Florida, the number one overall seed, actually had a scare for a half from tiny Jackson State; the Tigers battled the Gators the entire first half, trailing by just 6 at the break before an 8-0 run by Florida to start the second half paved the way for blowout city.

-#2 Wisconsin proved to be a fortunate winner when it overcame an 18-point deficit against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi today. Somehow the scoring-impaired Badgers dug deep and managed to score 57 points in the second half-more than it normally tallies for an entire game- and held off the Islanders, 76-63.

-5th seeded Va Tech and 12 Illinois played the game of the day as the Hokies overcame poor shooting (38%), missed frees (10) and a 13-point second half hole before climbing out and knocking off the Illini, 54-52. What was interesting about that game was Illinois was having its way with the Hokies until about midway thru the second half, when Seth Greenberg went to the full-court trap to stifle Illinois' flow; the Illini managed only 3 baskets after the 10:00 mark.

-The Tennessee Volunteers, led by that nutty, orange-jacketed, orange-chested coach Bruce Pearl, set a new first round record for points scored in its 121-86 win over Long Beach State. Of all the teams in the Big dance, I don't think anyone would have predicted that the Vols would be the team to set such a mark.

-Texas got a scare from New Mexico St. before pulling away for a 79-67 victory. That meant I could breathe again, because the Longhorns are my pick to win it all.

Speaking of my bracket, I am a respectable 27-5 after the first round and just off the pace in the office pool (for a change), but I know full well that good fortune in the tourney can be as fleeting as an album sale for Kevin Federline, meaning that with two more full days of games starting at 1:00 today, I could go from the top of the board to the bottom of the pile in a hurry.

Here's some of the more interesting matchups of the second round for Saturday:

-Boston College/Georgetown
Two former Big east foes square off in what should be a fun, physical and emotional contest. Plenty of star power on hand in this one as each team has 3 quality scorers, including the Players of the Year for the ACC (BC's Jared Dudley) and the Big east (the Hoyas Jeff Green)

-Indiana/UCLA
These storied programs have a rich tradition of hardwood history behind them and each will be fired up and ready to protect their reputations. The Bruins are the 2 seed in the West region and have a lot more riding on the line than Kelvin Sampson's upstart Hoosiers, which could be a dangerous thing for the Bruins and their backers (did I mention I have them playing Texas?)

-Louisville/Texas A&M
This one has the makings of a classic: the high-flying, three-point gunning Cardinals are riding a month-long hot streak and show no signs of slowing down. But the Aggies have one of the most explosive, exciting, and clutch players in all of college ball- Acie Law IV- and if the game is close and the Aggies can get him the ball, the Birds might be exiting this dance a bit prematurely

-Xavier/Ohio State
The battle of Ohio will not be an easy one for the top-seeded Buckeyes. These cross-state rivals (Xavier is in Cincy) have played some classics against each other, and the Musketeers will be eager to knock their neighbors to the north off their lofty perch

That's all I got tonight. Back at some point tomorrow to recap and possible detail the first major upset of the tourney.

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March Madness: Duke haters are rejoicing

11VCU 79, 6Duke 77

The jersey pop is played out, but these guys earned the right to be tired

The 2007 edition of the Duke Blue Devils concluded its season-long tribute to the 1995-96 team by bowing out in the opening round for the first time since...wait for it...1996.

Despite career-high performances from Josh McRoberts (22 pts, 12 rebs) and Greg Paulus (25 points) the Devils folded under late-game pressure once again to end Coach K's run of 9 consecutive Sweet 16's reached.

Duke appeared motivated early and got off to a scorching start, jumping out to a 22-9 lead over CAA champion VCU midway through the first half and clicking on all cylinders for one of the few times this season. McRoberts had a pair of monster dunks and blocks and Paulus, perhaps energized by playing in front of 40+ friends & family from his nearby hometown, Syracuse, was providing the scoring & leadership this team has lacked most of the year.

But the Devils suddenly reverted to the same group of talented-yet-confounding youngsters who lost a number of close games in the final month of the season before exiting in the first round of the ACC tourney last week. By halftime the Rams had cut the deficit to two, 40-38, and everyone who took VCU in the office pool knew the mentally-shaky Devils were on the ropes.

Duke started the second half much like it did the first-hot-and when it grabbed a 10-point lead with just over 10:00 to play some people believed (i.e. me) that being in so many close losses might work in Duke's favor in this one.

Not the case.

The Rams rode the play of diminutive guard Eric Maynor, who scored 22 points including 8 in the final four minutes, right back into the game, and by the time Duke knew what hit 'em VCU had taken a 72-70 lead with 2:07 to play. As Duke was busy missing free throws (Paulus & McRoberts missed 3 apiece down the stretch) and turning the ball over, Maynor was hitting clutch shots and playing great defense and ultimately winning the game for his team; it was his jumper from the top of the key with 1.8 seconds left that ended up being the game winning basket.

Ironically, with Buffalo-native and Duke tourney god Christian Laettner in the stands, the Devils had a chance to hit a game-winning shot when it got the ball back after Maynor's basket, one last chance for another miraclulous March finish.

But in this season of 'almosts' and 'not quites' for the Devils, the season finished just like it should have- with a thud.

By the way, will someone put out an APB on Jon Scheyer? Nobody's seen him in weeks.

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Happy March Madness!

The 2007 NCAA Tournament has officially began and, not coincidentally, so has my love affair with my new TV.

There really is nothing quite like watching the beginning of March Madness (of course I'm not counting that foolish "opening round game") in glorious high definition, with the surround sound blaring the familiar CBS "Road to the Final Four" tune at neighbor-annoying decibels, my brackets in one hand, beverage of choice in the other. It nearly brought a tear of joy down my cheek.

(Quick note about the new set: now I hate to leave the HD channel range- the upper 600s-700s- and venture down into the nether lands of basic & digital cable. It's like owning a Ferrari and only driving it in first gear; sure it looks great and can still outperform nearly all of its competitors, but it's not until you air it out in the higher gears that the beautiful machine realises its full potential. I'll stop now.)

Anyway the thrill off the set didn't wear off although the early games left a lot to be desired as far as excitement goes. The Maryland/Davidson contest, which I received in my market, was actually a decent game until the last few minutes, but other than that the first round of games went pretty much according to form. Here's a quick recap:

- Maryland 82, Davidson 70
Don't be fooled by the score- Davidson was close, late (71-68 w/ 3:33 to go) and gave the Terps fits all day, mainly sharpshooter Stephen Son of Dell Curry; he finished with 30, including 16 in the first half, 10 straight to close the half. But he went ice cold in the second half and so did Davidson's chance at an upset.

BTW, Straw Jr. is a damn good ball player

-BC 84, Tex Tech 75
Bobby Knight's streak of futility in Lubbock continues as the Eagles dispatched the Red Raiders
behind the tri-namic trio of Sean Marshall (21 pts), Tyrese Rice (26 pts) and Jared Dudley (19 pts). Tech stayed close for most of the game, but with star guard and leading scorer Jarrius Jackson gagging (10 pts, 4-14 FGs), you knew it would be another disappointing end for a Knight-coached team.

On the other bright side I have BC advancing pretty far in my bracket, so this was a win-win for me.

-Louisville 78, Stanford 58
The Cardinal vs. Cardinals turned out to be as interesting as the reason why Stanford's nickname doesn't have an "s" at the end of it (the name is for the school color, not the bird)- in other words, not very. Louisville was one of the hottest teams in the land coming in to the tourney, and playing an overmatched 12-loss team did nothing to prevent that hot streak from continuing.

Pitino's return to Rupp Arena may have brought mixed feelings, but his team has won 12 of its last 15 and is poised for a potential long tourney run. Then again, I picked them to go to the Final 4, so maybe not.

Vandy is taking on GW right now and handling them pretty well.

I'm heading back into high def land; not sure when I'll be back.

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3/14/07, HD-Day: a day that will live in infamy (for me)

The question has been lingering for days now: Where the hell is he?

Only 1 post since Friday (not counting the one I deleted) from a blog that normally cranks out 1-3 posts per day has had many friends, family members & loyal readers (what do you mean they are all one in the same?) frantically pondering the fate of the TBBostonian.

Fear not, my trusty followers, I am back to dispel the myths surrounding my disappearance and assure you that all is well here at the worldwide headquarters, although I was quite troubled to learn what some of my readers believed happened to me; some of the theories floating around included:

• I ditched my "normal" life to become a member of Sergio Garcia's globe-trotting mantourage
• I got nabbed, along with Gary Matthews, Evan(der) (Holy) Field(s) and John Rockhead in that Orlando/HGH bust
• I was secretly called to Los Angeles by Simon Cowell to take replace one of those tone-deaf, beat-boxin' lounge lizards on American Karoake

...or the best one I've heard yet...

• I had already jumped of the Skyway in anticipation of my bracket going up in a ball of flames by midnight Friday

Those were all very good guesses and I greatly appreciate your proposals of support, words of encouragement and generous offers of bail money, but there is a simple, glorious, crystal-clear reason for my extended absence:

I have joined the world of HIGH DEFINITION TELEVISION! (cue the trumpets)

That's right, all those nights kneeling beside my giant, mid-'90s-chic entertainment center and praying that my 36" CRT Sharp behemoth would be replaced by a sleek, slim HD-equipped beauty finally paid off as the TV fairy (a.k.a. my mom) heard my prayers and answered them in a big way. As in 40" Samsung LCD Widescreen monitor big.

Before I go forward into the fairy tale land that is high def television viewing, a.k.a. Man's Garden of Eden, let me backtrack to the events of the past four days and get everyone brought up to speed on what has transpired.

Sunday I attended the PODS Championship and watched world-class golfers like Sergio, Vijay Singh and Chris DiMarco get eaten alive by Innisbrook's unforgiving Copperhead course. Mark Calcavecchia was leading comfortably (3 strokes) late (3 holes to play), but he tried to choke the tourney away on the impossible-to-birdie Par 4 18th; he ended up winning despite bogeying 18 when Heath Slocum's 4-ft par putt hopped out of the cup. We promptly left the course, semi-staggering from a combo of too many Michelob Cool Cans and hours of walking the monstrous course in the warm Florida sunshine, and headed home to watch the selection special.

On the way back I received a call from my wife telling me I needed to drive about 30 minutes in the opposite direction to pick up the HD TV my mom had got us. I know my wife has never smoked crack so I just assumed I was hallucinating and told her I was almost home, we'd talk about it then.

Upon arriving at the homestead I realized that indeed my mother had been generous enough to reward all my years of juvenile delinquency and adult idiocy with a gift from above, as in the set was located in distant Port Richey, about an hour north of my area. Needless to say the next day I hopped in the ride and hightailed it up to the land of rebel flags and monster trucks to claim my new best friend. I then spent the next two days/nights disassembling my ginourmous cabinet and swapping TVs, a task that may have been a bit, shall we say ball-busting, but the end result made all the back-breaking work well worth it.

By 2:00 PM today the installer from Bright House had hooked up my HD DVR cable box and I was instantly transformed from a "has not" to a "has", from a "has-been" to "has been watching anything & everything in high def ever since."

So that's the reason why the gap in my postings. My computer has finished a distant second to my new TV set in the war of affection electronic devices wage with their testosterone-laced owners. But I promise I will get back on my schedule right away.

After I watch stuff like "Comet Collisions" on Discovery HD, "Into the Blue" on Showtime HD, and a gazillion hours of March Madness on CBS HD.

Can I get an amen?!

Thanks, mom!

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Spring forward with a great sports weekend

The Tampa Bay area is the hub of the sports universe as 3 major sports converge on the Gulf Coast

If there was a worse time to put the new & "improved" Daylight Savings Time plan in to effect I can't think of one.

What a weekend to lose an hour of sleep; there are so many events & games taking place in the wide world of sports that odds are a handful of marriages will not make it thru the NCAA Selection Special on Sunday evening.

And for those of lucky enough to be visiting Florida's Gulf Coast this weekend, there is an awesome array of events to attend in a variety of sports, all within driving distance of Tampa and the Gulf beaches.

Let's take a tour inside the sports universe, Tampa Bay edition.


ACC Tournament, Semi Finals & Finals
Ice Palace (i.e. the St. Pete Times Forum)
Downtown Tampa (take the Ashley St. exit off of I-275)

The arena on Channelside Drive has been hailed as an outstanding site for the tourney by everyone from commentators to league officials (well, everyone except Bomani Jones, that is), and the building has already seen some great action this week, namely three overtime games, including a 114-112 2 OT thriller won by Wake over Georgia Tech last night.

That kind of excitement will be tough to top, but the weekend could be even better.

In what could be called the de facto Championship game, #4 seed Boston College will face #1 seed North Carolina in one semifinal game Saturday at 1:30. BC held off a pesky 12th-seeded Miami squad today, 74-71 in OT, while the Heels easily dispatched the Seminoles, 73-58.

Plenty of good seats should be available, as scalpers are trying to unload scads of tix for well below face value now that the travelling parties of schools such as Duke and Maryland have decided to spend the rest of the weekend trolling for shells around Caladesi Island and the Noles & Canes contingents have high-tailed it back to Tally & Dade County.

The winner of that game will take on either the Wolfpack, which knocked off Virginia today, or the winner of tonight's Va Tech/Wake matchup. Either way it looks like there should be some more great hoops being played at the Forum this weekend.

(BTW, in reference to that Bomani Jones link, the reason the ACC Tourney is so much more important in Greensboro is because IT'S IN FREAKING GREENSBORO! What the hell else are people gonna do there besides get immersed in the tourney and go catfishing? Here the fans can enjoy the hoops while also enjoying spectacular sunsets on spectacular beaches drinking spectacular, watered down drinks. Get a clue, Bomani.)


PGA Tour PODS Championship
Innisbrook Golf Resort, Copperhead Course
Palm Harbor (take US 19 N just past Alderman Road on the left)

The event formerly known as the Chrysler Championship gets a new sponsor (local portable storage container company PODS), new date (the Chrysler was played in late October) and new found prestige as a jewel in the PGA's newfangled Fed Ex Cup.

Although the tour's main draw, Lord Tiger, has yet to grace the event in any of its incarnations (before the Chrysler the event was known as the Tampa Bay Classic), top pros such as Ernie Els, Vijay Singh, Retief Goosen and Phil Mickelson have made appearances on the famed Copperhead course.

This year Lefty, Big Easy and the Goose have decided to skip the notoriously tough Innisbrook rough, but big names such as Sergio Garcia, Vijay, Charles Howell III and local favorite Chris Gator DiMarco have made the cut and will be in the hunt this weekend.

The wife already scored some passes to this event so I will be checking out the action firsthand on Sunday as the leaders come down to 18. Not sure if I am going to try to bring my Canon because John Daly had to withdraw this weekend after suffering a camera-related injury last weekend. But if I do grow a pair and sneak it in you can look forward to some quality shots, like this one I took three years ago as Retief was on his way to accept the trophy.

If you go remember to change out of your flip flops, gob on the sunscreen, and bring enough cash to satisfy a healthy thirst for those $7.00 Michelobs in the frosty aluminum bottles.

Grapefruit League BaseballDunedin, Clearwater, Tampa, St. Pete and surrounding towns

If half price tickets to the ACC tourney are still too expensive for your liking and you're afraid that watching golf live might actually render you comatose then what better way to spend a lazy weekend afternoon than catching a spring training game? Well, other than checking for T-backs and sucking down cold ones on loosely-restricted Mad Beach?

The Bay area is home to four major league franchises in the spring, the Evil Empire (Tampa's Legend's Field); the Philles (Clearwater's Bright House Networks Field); Toronto Blue Jays (Dunedin's Knology Park); and of course the rays (St. Pete's Progress Energy Park at Al Lang Stadium.)

I know, I know, the first thing you're thinking is "what quaint ballpark names, especially the dueling cable company ones." But despite the tacky monikers these intimate fields of dreams are among THE best places to catch open-air hardball. Cheap prices, scenic settings, autograph-friendly environments and players close enough to hear you scream "Ann Coulter thinks you're a faggot, A-Rod" all make for terrific springtime fun.

Only the Rays are home on Saturday, facing the Phils in a split squad game. But Sunday, all four local teams are in action on their home fields. If you head to any of these venues, keep these things in mind:

• In Dunedin they only serve Canadian beer, so don't get all pissy because they don't have a Sam Adams or even a Bud- it's strictly LaBatt's or Molson, take it or leave it (of course in 80 degree weather everyone learns to love Canadian beer for 3 hours)
• The Phillies stadium presents the best option for families; the kids can play either in the nice playground area or on the large outfield berm, and the parents can keep an eye on the little ones while chugging rum runners at the Tiki Bar in leftfield. Good times.
• Al Lang is one of the best places anywhere to watch a baseball game. The leftfield berm of the historic stadium offers a spectacular view of the Pier, tiny Albert Whitted Airport and numerous sailing vessels dotting the Bay, while players routinely launch homers over the scoreboard in left center, sometimes landing on the roof of the Mahaffey Theater next door.
• Despite my distaste for anything & everything Stankee, I have to admit their friggin' park is sweet. It looks more like a major league stadium than Tropicana Field (not tough) and is nicer than most every other park in the Grapefruit League. But the view sucks (oh boy, Dale Mabry Highway!) and the clientele is even worse. I try to avoid this stadium at all costs, unless the wife gets freebies like she did for a game in 2 weeks.

There are other teams that train nearby, like the Tigers (Lakeland), Reds (Sarasota), Braves (Orlando) and Pirates (Bradenton), but with all this action going on here, why leave the area? Just do what I do: go to whatever events you can, watch the other stuff on TV, and try to mix in some beach time or hit Ybor City.

Your tour of the weekend sports scene in the Tampa Bay area is now officially over. Please exit the vehilcle to the right and watch your step disembarking.

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Shorthanded Blue Devils can enjoy the Bay area beaches

NC State 85, Duke 80 (OT)

File this one under "you could see this coming a mile away."


The Duke Blue Devils came to Tampa for this years ACC Tournament low-ranked (#21), high-seeded (7th) and coming off four days and five nights of intense scrutiny after Gerald Henderson's perceived cheap shot on North Carolina's Tyler Hansbrough on Sunday.

Apparently the country did not agree with Hansbrough's view of the hit.

Thanks to that dubious, season-ending play by Henderson, intentional or not, the reeling Devils would be forced to face a scrappy NC State team without the freshman forward, who had been on a hot streak of late, scoring 31 points off the bench in losses to Maryland and UNC.

That lack of scoring punch didn't really hurt the Devils, as it scored 80 or more points for just the third time this season (mull that one over) and 5 Devils scored 14 or more, but the psychological & emotional disadvantage suffered by the Devils from the Henderson/Hansbrough fallout was apparent.

Duke took a slim lead at the half, 34-29, thanks to a three-point barrage (6-11) led by Jon Scheyer (3-3) and Henderson's replacement Martynas Pocious (2-2), but sharpshooting senior guard Engin Atsur scored 21 of his 23 points after halftime, when the Wolfpack outscored the Devils 56-46, and freshman forward Brandon Costner outplayed underachiever Josh McRoberts by adding a career-high 30 points and 7 boards to overpower the undermanned Devils.

By the time overtime rolled around Duke was even more shorthanded thanks to foul disqualifications by DeMarcus Nelson and David McClure, and the Devils were ready to roll over, which they did. The team that had won the last 2 conference tourneys had gone done to defeat in the tourney for just the second time in the last eight years, and it had no one to blame but itself. Erratic play, lackluster efforts and disappointing season from players expected to be ACC Player of the Year contenders left this edition of the Duke Blue Devils an embarrassing shell of its former great self.

Maybe a few days on Sand Key will help them get through the sting of being a 10+ seed in the NCAA tourney next week.

Other tourney developments:

-3nd ranked UCLA lost in the opening round of the Pac-10 tournament to a mediocre Cal team, 76-69 in OT. All-Name Team candidate Ayinde Ubaka poured in a career high 29-points as the .500 Bears (16-16) dealt a severe blow to the Bruins' (26-5) chances of getting a #1 seed in next weeks tourney.

-#15 Louisville survived against a pesky West Virginia team, 82-71 in 2 OTs, after blowing a 17-point 2nd half lead. Freshman guard Edgar Sosa drove the length of the court and hit a layup at the buzzer to force overtime,and after matching 8 points each in the first OT, the Birds ripped off 16 in the 2nd extra frame to run its win streak to 7 games.

- Unranked and horrible (12-19) Miami knocked off the ACC's hottest team, #20Maryland, 67-62 in another first round upset. The Terps looked unprepared and were consistently out- hustled by the shorthanded Canes, who dressed only 8 players due to injuries & suspensions. Maryland had won 7 straight and 9 of 11 coming in.

The 'Canes get to take on ACC player of the Year Jared Dudley and the 4th seeded BC Eagles tomorrow afternoon in Tampa.

Early Games to watch tomorrow:

-ACC: Florida State vs. #8No. Carolina
Most experts say FSU needs to win this one to get in the Big Dance; ain't gonna happen

-Big 10: Michigan vs. #1 Ohio State
Greg Oden's first- and last- collegiate postseason career begins. Catch him as an amateur while you can.

-Big 12: Oklahoma vs. #2 Kansas
With UCLA's loss the Jayhawks have a lock on a #1 seed if it wins this tourney

*Photo courtesy of AP

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Set the DVR to Hyperdrive, Mr. Sulu!

Q- What's worse than having your right-handed son break his right hand?
A- Having your son break his hand when he is the star pitcher & hitter for his AAA Little League team.

Q-What's a good way to combat the disappointment over the injury?
A- Make the 4th grade Principal's list with straight A's

Yes my 10-year-old boy broke the bone between his pinky & ring fingers a couple of days ago and will be off the diamond for 3 weeks, leaving a major void in the lineup, rotation and our lives. Because I still have to coach the team, and it's just not the same when your own kid isn't playing. Kind of makes you feel like a perv, like "why I am here and I don't have a kid playing?"

Anyway the fact that he made all A's definitely took some of the sting off not being able to play ball (or write, do chores, bathe and just about everything else), but who we kidding- I am a dad. Of course I'm thrilled he's getting good grades, but it's 4th grade! I would rather see him fanning 10-year-olds, hitting line-drive triples and scoring a ton of runs than anything else at this age. Make Principal's list as a sophomore in high school, then I'm impressed.

Does that make me a bad parent?

Get well soon, son, and keep up the great schoolwork.

(awkward segue) There are plenty of delicious choices for your viewing pleasure tonight, whether you are a man or woman, sports fan or comedy lover. Let's take a look at what to watch (and DVR) on a night made for couch potatoes.

7:00PM- ACC Tourney: NC St. vs. Duke, ESPN2
The ACC Tourney invaded the Bay Area today, with Florida State knocking off Clemson by 1 point, 67-66, and Georgetown handling the Villanova Wildcats, 62-57. Tonight the Blue Devils take the court at the Ice Palace (I refuse to call the arena on the Hillsborough River the St. Pete Times Forum) for the first time since Gerald Henderson cold cocked, errrr, accidentally hit North Carolina forward Tyler Hansbrough with an inadvertent elbow in the regular season finale on Sunday. Duke has had a hard time winning games with all its offensive weapons, so this game will be a challenge for the 7th (!) seeded Devils.

Also at 7:00: Big East Tourney(ESPN); Pac-10 Tourney (FSN); SEC Tourney (SUN)

8:00- American Karaoke, FOX
Keeps the wife out of your hair while us men dine on a steady diet of conference tourney action; hubbies can pop in during commercials to see if Antonella Barba gets kicked off so she can answer her true calling- "hosting" soft core porn.

9:00- Scrubs, NBC
The medical comedy hasn't been at the top of its game all season, but with terrific episodes like the musical and the off-beat presentation of the comedy it's still worth checking out, especially for the awesomely acidic Dr. Cox (John C. McGinley).

9:00 Tourney games- ACC (ESPN); Big 12(ESPN2); Pac-10 (FSN); SEC (SUN)

9:30- 30 Rock, NBC
If you haven't watched this show yet, please, I implore you- CHECK IT OUT. The inside look at the goings on at a fictional NBC TV show is consistently funny, often hilarious, and seems to be gaining speed as the season progresses. Alec Baldwin is the core of the show, and his Emmy-winning portrayal as NBC honcho Jack Donagy is a treat for viewers every week. When he utters lines like this one, in reference to his mother "what the hell does she know, she's a Murphy; bunch of mud farmers and sheep rapists", well you let me know if the quality beverage you're drinking doesn't come out of your nose!

If you want to catch up on past shows, click here. Be sure to check out The Source Awards, the funniest ep of the season.

11:00- Late night tourney games
After the kiddies have gone to bed and the wife has sung herself to sleep humming the latest Idol tune we can get down to some late night conference tourney viewing. Catch the end of the last SEC game of the night (LSU v Tennessee,starts @ 9:45ish) and the Pac-10's Wash/Wash St rivalry game that kicks off at 11:00.

* My Name is Earl and The Office are repeats; you also have other shows to choose from like Survivor: Wherever the Hell We Are Now, Overrated Betty, CSI and Grey's Infighting, if you're a follower of any of those front-runners.

So crack open a bottle of your finest Donagy Vineyards and enjoy a full night of televison pleasure.

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Breaking News: I've got a new blog

After my first 6 months as an active member of the blogosphere I have come to realize two things about my style:

1.) I tend to be wordy, as one reader was kind enough to point out after my 6000 word opus on the Academy Awards

2.) Unlike most blogs/sites, I cover a lot of topics. From awards shows to golf tournaments, and from movie reviews to football picks, I pretty much cover a lot of ground.

I'm still not sure if that's a bad thing, but one thing I did discover as I head into my first full baseball season as a blogger is that there is no way I could devote enough time, words and attention to my beloved Red Sox on this site and adequately cover my other interests as well.

My solution was either to trim the excess stories, and the excess verbiage in said stories, during baseball season and concentrate on the Sox, OR start a whole new blog dedicated to the Red Sox.

I think by the title of this post you have already guessed which option I chose.

My new, strictly Red Sox site is located called Curt's Bloody Sock, and it will feature game recaps, team notes, and plenty of Beantown-bred vitriol towards both the home team and its opponents. This way I can channel my diverse interests into separate entities instead of trying to shoehorn 10-lbs of crap into this 5-lb blog.

I am open to any suggestions and please feel free to comment on my columns. Or else how am I going to find out that my posts are putting readers to sleep?

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NFL Hot Stove: What are the Bucs Doing? Edition

It's now a foregone conclusion that the NFL is the most popular sport on the planet (excluding that silly soccer of course) because this year the league's winter signing period has overshadowed spring training baseball, stretch-run NHL hockey & NBA basketball and so far even March Madness as far as headline-grabbing fan interest goes.

Of the many teams making multiple, roster-altering moves (New England, Denver, San Fran...) none have made as many mind-boggling alterations than the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The sheer ridiculousness (word?) of the deals would make it appear as if the comedy act known as Chucky & Brucie is actually trying to get themselves fired so they can sit back for a year, get paid, and eye their next cushy head coach/GM gig. Because they way the Bucs braintrust have botched this free agency period has many in the Bay Area questioning not only the football business acumen of the duo, but their sanity as well.


How has Chuckie and Brucie (mis)managed to debilitate an already disastrously constructed team in just four days time? Let me count the ways:

1.) Traded for a quarterback who didn't want to play here
When word leaked out that the Bucs were trading for Jake Plummer, many in the Bay Area screamed "why? He's old, unpredictable, and has never been able to win a big game (no, I'm not counting the 2006 playoff game against New England- the Pats lost that one.) Then when Plummer announced he would retire rather than play anywhere other than Denver, everyone exhaled, thinking Tampa Bay had avoided making a big mistake.

But wait. A day later the teams announced the trade had been revised to make it a deal for Plummer's rights for a conditional draft pick, the condition being Denver would get a pick if Plummer suits up with the Bucs. Say what? Why would they even bother to trade for a guy who doesn't want to play? To trade his rights later, perhaps. But is it really worth the gamesmanship when you consider the pressing needs the team has right now, quarterback NOT being one of them?

Then, to make matters worse...

2.)...they signed a 37-year-old midget QB to compete with Chris Simms
Nothing like a little healthy QB competition, right Chucky? Way to stick with one direction, dude. I thought Simms was the man for the near future and beyond that Gradkowski was your boy, but you just dropped him for your old West Coast buddy Jeff Garcia, huh? Ah these romances never, last do they?

3.) Let defensive end Dewayne White leave
Saddled with high expectations ever since the sack king left Louisville a year early and was selected 64th by Tampa Bay in the 2003 draft, DE Dewayne White never realized his potential with the Bucs. In four seasons the speedy pass rusher amassed 111 tackles, 14 sacks and 5 forced fumbles; not exactly eye-popping stats, yet White was always stuck behind guys like Simeon Rice and Greg Spires on the depth chart, Pro Bowlers who weren't ready to cede their position to the new kid.

So when former Tampa D-line coach and current Detroit head man Rod Marinelli saw the opportunity to grab White, he did so. Now White is reunited with two of his earliest mentors, Marinelli and former Bucs linebackers coach Joe Barry, who is now Detroit's defensive coordinator, and the fit looks like a match made in heaven. White should blossom in Marinelli & Barry's defense, and Barry is thrilled to be getting a young, hungry defensive stud:

“We needed a guy – a speed guy,” said Barry. “We needed to upgrade the speed; the edge of our defense. Quite frankly, we put a premium on pass rush. To run this system, to run this scheme, we’ve got to be able to rush the passer – bottom line. We put a premium on that and Dewayne White – he brings an element of speed and pass rush to us.”

Translated: White is ready to explode with a double-digit sack season, and the Bucs will rue the day they let him slip away for monetary reasons, especially when...

4.)...they answer by signing aging veteran Kevin Carter to a 4-year deal
Don't get me wrong, Carter is one of the greatest, most durable pass rushers of the last 20 years, as his 97.5 career sacks (4th among active players) can attest to. But the 12-year vet is definitely on the downside of his career; of his 4 double-digit sack seasons, 3 of them came in a row (1998-2000) and he hasn't had one since 2002, when he had exactly 10.

But I thought the Bucs were trying to go younger, especially on the lines? Why let White go only to sign the 34-year-old Carter for nearly the same money you could've paid the 27-year-old?

That's almost as messed up as...

5.)...signing 30-year-old Luke Petitgout coming off an injury-marred season
If the 9-year vet out of Notre Dame can stay healthy then his versatility (he can play both guard and/or tackle) and leadership will be great assets to a team that is very young along the O-line. But if the injuries start to pile up following the stress-fracture in his leg last season that caused him to miss 7 games, then this signing could go down as another Derrick Deese/Todd Steussie-type debacle.

There's a few things off the top of my head that are causing local talk show callers to flip out and giving the local media fodder to speculate how a man who was perceived to be a "football genius" when he arrived can resemble a colossal clueless clown right now.

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NFL Hot Stove

There has been so much action over these first few days of free agency it reminds me of the NBA All Star Game, minus the strip club shooting and ready availability of hookers. As soon as you go to do a story on the latest deals, a whole new wave of signings & trades washes over the sportscape and litters the shore with myriad new agreements between overrated, overpaid players and overmonied teams.

Yes folks, the NFL is "making it rain" for its entire stable of, ahem, free agents.

In fact the action has been so fast & furious in my last NFL Hot Stove post I forgot to mention one deal that went down on Saturday. It was an easy oversight on my part; there was so much going on that day that you can understand how I could miss what just happened to be the biggest deal of all time involving a defensive player: Bills CB Nate Clements' 8-year, $80 million mega-deal from the San Franciso 49ers.

"I'm rich, beeyotch!"

Let's step back a second and examine what's going on here. The NFL has a surplus of cash due to the enormous popularity of its product, which is reflected in record merchandise, ticket and advertisement sales, not to mention the revenue generated by numerous 10-figure television contracts. All of this excess wealth has gone directly into the pockets of owners, with the intention being the owners will spend the extra cache on improving their teams.

In order to ensure the teams did spend more on improving their teams and not just their country club memberships the powers-that-be raised teams' salary cap figure to a record-high $109 million for next season. It doesn't take Mel Kiper to figure out that a surplus of cash plus a sky-high spending ceiling= a multitude of players who happen to be in the right place (free agency) at the right time (when the league is wallowing money.)

Thus the end result is you get a decent player (Clements had 2 tackles, 3 INTs and 20 passes defensed in 2006), who's not even the best at his own position receiving the biggest contract ever for a defender. Clements even pinpointed this year on his personal calendar, signing a one-year deal last season with Buffalo in hopes of breaking fellow cornerback Champ Bailey's 7-year, $63 million pact he inked with the Broncos in 2004. BTW, Bailey had 86 tackles, a league-leading 10 INTs and 21 passes defensed. And Clements just got $20 mil more than him (on paper.) Crazy.

You also get crazy situations where a boatload of guards, formerly the lunch ladies of the league (i.e. doing the slop work for minimal pay), signing deals that promise running back money. It started last year when Steve Hutchinson agreed to a then-mammoth 7-year, $49 million deal with the Vikings, and that ripple effect hit hard this season as Eric Steinbach (Cleveland, 7 years), Derrick Dockery (Buffalo, 7 years), and Kris Dielman (San Diego, 6 years) all reaped the benefits of Hutchinson's breakthrough contract.

Other signings that have taken place in the last 48 hours include:

-Green Bay running back Ahman Green signed a 5-year, $25 million deal with the Texans.

-The Cowboys signed massive offensive lineman Leonard Davis a massive contract- -years, $49.6 mil with $18 mil guaranteed to lure the 6-year vet away from Arizona.

-Denver quickly recovered from trading away leading rusher Tatum Bell by signing former Titan tailback Travis Henry to a 5-year, $22.5 million deal, making him the next in line at Running Back U- to be let go. (Denver has allowed its past 4 rushing leaders leave the following season: Mike Anderson, Clinton Portis, Rueben Droughns, and Bell.)

-Former Falcons DE Patrick Kearney agreed to a 6-year, $39 million deal ($19 mil guaranteed) to rush the passer for the sack-lacking Seahawks.

-The NFC Champion Bears alleviated their crowded backfield problem by dealing away disgruntled starter Thomas Jones to the Jets, paving the way for Cedric Just Gimme the Nights Benson to take over carrying the rock in Chi-Town. The deal also involved a swap of draft picks in April, with New York obtaining Chicago's #63rd pick in exchange for its #37. The move also allows New York to move past the Curtis Martin era by replacing the Hall of Fame-bound workhorse with another tough-nosed, hard runner.

-38-year-old Super Bowl-winning quarterback Brad Johnson signed a 3-year deal with Dallas to become Tony Romo's backup after Johnson was unceremoniously dumped one year after making Duante Culpepper expendable in Minnesota. Fitting that one immobile, overage former starter turned clipboard holder replaces another in Big D.

-Wide receiver Wes Welker became a member of the Patriots when the Pats and Dolphins decided to forgo the offer sheet and just trade the 3-year vet. New England surrendered a 2nd & 7th round pick this year to Miami in order to obtain the promising receiver's services.

Miami was busy shedding players Monday; including Welker the Fins let RB Sammie Morris flee to New England, too, and released QB Joey Harrington and TE Randy McMichael. New coach, new players, same results for Miami in 2007?

I think that about covers everything, but I'm sure I missed something or another deal went down in the time it took me to type this outro. If so I'll cover that in tomorrows installment.

Perhaps a good way to sum up the wacky, wild world of the NFL off season, 2007, is to end on this rumor: New England is reportedly interested in bringing WR Randy Moss to Foxborough.

When it rains it pours.

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Duke & Carolina end the regular season on a sour note

North Carolina 86, Duke 72

A vicious foul led to a bloodied Tarheel & ejected Dukie as the 223rd installment of the Tobacco Road rivalry nearly turned into a real backyard brawl.

AP photo

There have been many miraculous moments and incredible plays in this long & storied cross-town rivalry, but not since the early '60s, when Carolina's Larry Brown and Duke's Art Heyman squared off in an on-court brawl that resulted in suspensions for both players, has an edition of the classic contest come to such a pugnacious conclusion.

The game was a disjointed affair all along, pretty much dominated by Carolina save for a few scoring spurts that kept Duke close enough to let them think they had a chance of pulling the upset. But by the last 4:00 of the game, with Carolina up big and garbage time setting in, things started to get a little chippy. It might have had to do with the fact that Deputy Dawg had most of his starters in the game despite the fact that his team was enjoying a comfortable margin (80-65) with little time left (1:04) for a Duke comeback.

With the game well in hand and less than a minute to play the Tarheels scintillating sophomore (Dickie-ism) Tyler Hansbrough went up an grabbed an offensive rebound, then attempted to put the ball back up towards the rim. As he tried to make a move he was hit with a forearm shiver from an airborne Gerald Henderson Jr., resulting in Hansbrough hitting the deck like a ton of bricks. Hansbrough lay prone on the court for a minute, blood trickling down his nose onto the hardwood before he jumped up looking like Jake LaMotta after his St. Valentine's Day Massacre.

After regaining his composure and clearing the blood from his vision, Hansbrough became enraged and looked to take on the entire Duke team. As his teammates held him back, Hansbrough immediately left the court and headed to the locker room as the referees went to the scores table to review the incident and determine what, if any, penalty needed to be meted out.

Upon further review the stripes decided that Henderson's flying elbow smash was a flagrant foul, therefore he was ejected from the game and, according to ACC rules, will be suspended for one game. Thanks to Duke's loss, that game will be Thursday night here in Tampa in the first round of the ACC tourney, in which the Devils are the #7 seed.

After the game there was a lot of talk about whether the play was intentional or not. That notable bastion of superior knowledge Billy Packer thought it was a hard, but unintentional, foul, although other analysts believe Henderson's intent was to do damage to whoever got in the way of his wayward elbow. Either way the play will go down as a black mark in the history of the series, and will also certainly taint the normally saintly Blue Devils, who were not only swept by the 'Heels and have now lost 4 of 5 between the two, but lost some of their respect also. Not to mention the fact that Henderson, an improving freshman who has shown flashes of brilliance this season, will not be remembered for his Vinnie Johnson-like 16 points off the bench, but for one foolish play that will live with him forever.

Especially in Chapel Hill.

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