December 19th update

Packers fall, Colts finally win

• If someone had told you Sunday morning that the vaunted 13-0 Green Bay Packers would lose while the listless 0-13 Indianapolis Colts, playing without franchise QB Peyton Manning would win, most people would think you were either crazy or joking, but you would have been right.
• The Packers and Aaron Rodgers were harrassed by a fearsome Kansas City Chiefs pass rush led by Tamba Hali and his 3 sacks (which leaves him 1 behind the AFC leader). The Packers never looked comfortable due to a great strategy by interim coach Romeo Crennel (he's taking over for Todd Haley who was fired this week) who had the Chiefs play 5+ speedy defensive backs to guard the Packers wide receivers on nearly every play. The Chiefs have lost most of their best players to injury this season but the one constant has been Hali who has certainly earned the 5 year, $60 million deal he signed this offseason.
• On the other side of the NFL landscape, the Indianapolis Colts were so bad that fans are ignoring the season and just wondering whether the team will keep Peyton Manning next year, trade him and start presumptive #1 pick Andrew Luck or keep both and have Manning mentor Luck. But despite playing a pretty good Tennessee Titans team, the Colts dominated in every aspect and won easily. Dan Orlovsky, the Colts QB in this game, won for the first time as a NFL starter and the Colts won for the first time with a QB other than Peyton Manning since this game (notice the date). The QB in that game was Jim Harbaugh, now the coach of the San Francisco 49ers, who play the Pittsburgh Steelers tonight in a matchup of 10-3 teams.
It was only the third time in NFL history that a team that was 10-0 or better lost and a team that was 0-10 or worse won on the same day.
• In other news, The Tebow train came to a screeching halt against the New England Patriots, the Baltimore Ravens (the first place team in the AFC) got crushed by the San Diego Chargers, and the Detroit Lions took a big step towards making the playoffs with another late comeback, this time beating the Oakland Raiders after being behind by 13 points with 5 minutes left.


Making it look Breesy

• The New Orleans Saints continue to win... again and Quarterback Drew Brees is currently on pace for a season never seen before in the NFL. While his Green Bay Packers counterpart Aaron Rodgers is getting a lot more publicity and more attention from car insurance agents, Brees is on the brink of breaking two of the most sacred quarterbacking records.
• From 1956-1960 Johnny Unitas had a streak of 47 consecutive games with a touchdown pass. Besides Brees the closest anybody has come to that streak in the last 50 years was Brett Favre’s streak of 36 straight games. Coming into this weekend, Brees’ streak stood at 40 straight games. Just to make sure there was no doubt about 41, Brees threw for 5 touchdowns on Sunday. Tom Brady also has a streak of note, with a TD in 29 straight games, the 5th longest in history.
• In 1984 Dan Marino of the Miami Dolphins threw for 5,084 yards setting a single-season record that still stands today. In 2008 Brees came tantalizingly close to eclipsing that record but fell just short, throwing for 5,069 yards. This season Brees has thrown for 4,780 yards, and has two games left to get the additional 305 yards he needs to break the record. The craziest part of this is that Brees could very easily set a record that has stood for more than 25 years with a game to spare!


Note - Keep looking this week as we will have a preview of the major bowl games and a preview of the NBA season for your enjoyment.

November 2nd update

College Football Preview: LSU at Alabama

• The game of the year. It’s not the actual National Championship game; it’s not even a conference championship game. However, this weekend’s matchup between #1 LSU and #2 Alabama has all the makings of the game of the year or as one writer on ESPN called it, the game of the century. Both the LSU Tigers and Alabama Crimson Tide feature top rated defenses and offenses that are efficient, if not explosive.
• The Tigers have undergone their share of off-the-field issues but have come out firing this football season, beating defending national runner-up Oregon and never looking back. They are undefeated and came into the season with high expectations after returning 18 of their 22 starters from the previous year. They have lived up to expectations winning every game they’ve played by at least 13 points. Their defense has only allowed more than 11 points twice in their eight games.
• The Crimson Tide returned 17 of their starters from last year and possibly have a better defense than LSU. They have not given up more than 14 points including 2 shutouts. Meanwhile their offense (that is replacing their Quarterback, Running Back and Left Tackle from last year) has been unstoppable.
• Alabama is a slight Vegas favorite due in large part to the game being in Tuscaloosa. The winner of this game would almost be a lock to play in the actual National Championship game on January 9th (which is coincidentally in New Orleans, Louisiana). Both of us here at Sportico would bet on Alabama if you're looking for a winner.


Rivers fumbles game away in Halloween Horror.

• Thirty three years ago, the Philadelphia Eagles won one of the most stunning games in NFL history over the New York Giants after a Giants player fumbled with only a few seconds left and an Eagles defender ran the fumble into the end zone the other way for a touchdown. The play was dubbed "The Miracle at the Meadowlands" (because that was the name of the stadium where it was played) and while it has been considered one of the single worst plays in NFL history, it may have met its equal on Monday in what I'd like to dub the "Halloween Horror."
• After completing a wild comeback that saw the San Diego Chargers tie the Kansas City Chiefs up at 20-20 with only a minute left, the Chargers simply had to kneel the ball a couple times and attempt a chip shot field goal to win and give them a two game lead in the AFC West. But then the unthinkable happened. Rivers failed to handle the snap from center Nick Hardwick and the Chiefs recovered the ensuing fumble, sending the game to overtime where they won with their own short field goal. Instead of a 2 game lead, the Chargers are now tied for first with both the Chiefs and the Oakland Raiders.
• There are actually a few connections to the Chiefs and the Miracle at the Meadowlands. The Eagle defender who returned the fumble was none other than Herm Edwards, who was the predecessor to current Chiefs coach Todd Haley. And the Chiefs coach before Edwards was Dick Vermeil, who coached the Eagles in the Meadowlands game. The Chiefs have won 4 in a row despite losing their star RB Jamaal Charles, star S Eric Berry and up and coming TE Tony Moeaki for the season, all by halftime of game #2.
• Rivers had two interceptions, and now leads the NFL with 11 and failed to get the Chargers into the end zone more than once despite 7-8 trips inside the Chiefs 40 yard line. Afterwards, TV cameras caught him mouthing "Worst. Game. Ever."


Wednesday spotlight: Tony LaRussa

• As mentioned in Monday’s post, The St Louis Cardinals won the World Series on Friday. Their manager, Tony LaRussa announced his retirement on Monday, going out on top. The 67 year old LaRussa, the third winningest manager in the history of baseball, capped off his final season with his third World Series Championship and was only the second manager to win a Series in both the American and National Leagues.
• LaRussa played 10 years in the MLB (though mostly as a backup and a end-of-the-roster player). After getting a JD from Florida State University, he began his managerial career in 1979 in the minor leagues for the Chicago White Sox. In less than a year, LaRussa worked his way from the manager of the Double-A affiliate of the White Sox to the Major League Manager. 7 years in Chicago followed by 9 years in Oakland (including a Championship in 1989) led him to St Louis.
• Since 1996 LaRussa has been the skipper of the Cardinals, where along with Albert Pujols, he has been the face of the franchise if not the city. He was fearless, publicly feuding with fan favorite Ozzie Smith and also bringing back disgraced legend Mark McGwire as the team's hitting coach. He led the Cardinals to two titles, the other being in 2006 and made the World Series in 2004 as well where they were beaten by the Boston Red Sox.