WHEN THE LIGHTS FINALLY GO ON, THE NINERS SHINE & OTHER MONDAY NIGHT NOTES
I know the Forty-Niners are desperate for a new stadium & the power outage(s) before & during tonight's game made it clear they need that stadium & they need it soon. The game was delayed nearly 20-minutes before it even began & later in the 2nd quarter they experienced another blackout for about 15-minutes. But when the power was restored, it became apparent Steeler QB Ben Roethlisberger should have stayed off his sprained ankle. He couldn't stride into his throws & the ball sailed on him because of it. He had difficulty side-stepping a furious pass rush led by rookie Aldon Smith who had 2.5 sacks & 7 quarterback knockdowns. I think the world of Mike Tomlin as a coach & there's no doubting Roethlisberger is one of the toughest guys playing in the NFL, but he was hurting his team tonight. Three picks & a lost fumble cost his team. Why he was still in the game with under 2-minutes left, down by 17-points is beyond my comprehension. Without Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh has zero chance in the playoffs & he was a sitting duck tonight, he could've been seriously injured to say nothing of making his ankle worse. I get what Tomlin & Big Ben were attempting to do, win tonight to move ahead of Baltimore & then sit him down Saturday against the Rams. That strategy failed as Frisco won 20-3.
Aldon Smith has been everything he was advertised to be. The 21-year old first round draft pick from Mizzou just wore out Pittsburgh left tackle Max Starks. With 13 sacks, he should be the favorite for NFL defensive rookie of the year. This young man has such a huge upside, he could become the league's most dominant defender within two years. The man who's sack records he broke at Mizzou, Justin Smith, also had a big game for the Niners. Seeing this pair playing next to each other is awesome for Tiger fans around the country. Steeler fans should hope they use their premium draft picks(rounds 1-3) for offensive linemen, they really need better blockers up front.
With all the great stories in sports this year the Associated Press has chosen it's sports story of the year & it's the Jerry Sandusky/Penn State horror story. I can't argue with this being the biggest story of the year but I find it really sad so many great, positive stories were topped by Sandusky's atrocities.
Oklahoma will be without one of their best pass rushers for it's Insight Bowl appearance against Iowa. He failed to make grades & was declared academically ineligible. Head coach Bob Stoops was really unhappy with defensive end Ronnell Lewis. He said "he might as well keep right on going to the NFL." I'm guessin' Bob doesn't want Lewis back next year for his senior season.
The Mizzou Tigers have been made 4 1/2 point favorites over North Carolina for their Independence Bowl game next Monday.
Tonight's bowl game is the Beef O'Brady's Bowl, whatever a Beef O'Brady is. It pits Florida International & Marshall. I'm going to pass. No really, I'm going to pass, I will not watch this game even tho I am curious as hell as to what a Beef O'Brady is.
St. Louis Rams offensive guard Harvey Dahl should expect a nasty-gram form the league office for his unfortunate quote during Sunday's loss to Cincinnati. After being told he was flagged for holding, Dahl screamed at game referee Jerome Boger just as he turned on his wireless microphone. His voice boomed out over the stadium sound system & CBS, "That's not f**king holding." Boger then penalized Dahl another 15-yards for unsportsmanlike conduct. Nice, very nice.
Tampa cornerback Aqib Talib was placed on I.R. Monday with a pulled hamstring. That's the least of Talib's worries, he faces prison time in Texas for assault with a deadly weapon. He's accused of firing a handgun at his sister's boyfriend as he fled the family home last spring. Talib's mother is also charged with firing at the boyfriend. Their trial is set for March. Head coach Raheem Morris persuaded Buccaneer ownership to keep Talib after his third arrest in less than 18-months. Several players questioned his decision & it could be another nail in his coffin when it comes time to decide if the Bucs want to keep Morris as their head coach.
Tonight's "Predict the Score" contest on the radio show was won by John L. from Stover Missouri. His prediction of S.F. 16 Pittsburgh 10 came closest to the 20-3 final. Congrats John, give me a call next Tuesday night & we'll get you set up for your two free rounds of golf at Old Kinderhook & $25 gift card for the Trophy Room. Because last week's winner, Janet L. from Independence, wasn't interested in the golf passes, I said we'd give them to tonight's runner-up which was Terry from Lake Ozark. She missed the final score by 17 with a prediction of 23-17. Terry will receive two free rounds of golf but no gift card. Congrats to you Terry, give me a call next Tuesday night.
Aldon Smith has been everything he was advertised to be. The 21-year old first round draft pick from Mizzou just wore out Pittsburgh left tackle Max Starks. With 13 sacks, he should be the favorite for NFL defensive rookie of the year. This young man has such a huge upside, he could become the league's most dominant defender within two years. The man who's sack records he broke at Mizzou, Justin Smith, also had a big game for the Niners. Seeing this pair playing next to each other is awesome for Tiger fans around the country. Steeler fans should hope they use their premium draft picks(rounds 1-3) for offensive linemen, they really need better blockers up front.
With all the great stories in sports this year the Associated Press has chosen it's sports story of the year & it's the Jerry Sandusky/Penn State horror story. I can't argue with this being the biggest story of the year but I find it really sad so many great, positive stories were topped by Sandusky's atrocities.
Oklahoma will be without one of their best pass rushers for it's Insight Bowl appearance against Iowa. He failed to make grades & was declared academically ineligible. Head coach Bob Stoops was really unhappy with defensive end Ronnell Lewis. He said "he might as well keep right on going to the NFL." I'm guessin' Bob doesn't want Lewis back next year for his senior season.
The Mizzou Tigers have been made 4 1/2 point favorites over North Carolina for their Independence Bowl game next Monday.
Tonight's bowl game is the Beef O'Brady's Bowl, whatever a Beef O'Brady is. It pits Florida International & Marshall. I'm going to pass. No really, I'm going to pass, I will not watch this game even tho I am curious as hell as to what a Beef O'Brady is.
St. Louis Rams offensive guard Harvey Dahl should expect a nasty-gram form the league office for his unfortunate quote during Sunday's loss to Cincinnati. After being told he was flagged for holding, Dahl screamed at game referee Jerome Boger just as he turned on his wireless microphone. His voice boomed out over the stadium sound system & CBS, "That's not f**king holding." Boger then penalized Dahl another 15-yards for unsportsmanlike conduct. Nice, very nice.
Tampa cornerback Aqib Talib was placed on I.R. Monday with a pulled hamstring. That's the least of Talib's worries, he faces prison time in Texas for assault with a deadly weapon. He's accused of firing a handgun at his sister's boyfriend as he fled the family home last spring. Talib's mother is also charged with firing at the boyfriend. Their trial is set for March. Head coach Raheem Morris persuaded Buccaneer ownership to keep Talib after his third arrest in less than 18-months. Several players questioned his decision & it could be another nail in his coffin when it comes time to decide if the Bucs want to keep Morris as their head coach.
Tonight's "Predict the Score" contest on the radio show was won by John L. from Stover Missouri. His prediction of S.F. 16 Pittsburgh 10 came closest to the 20-3 final. Congrats John, give me a call next Tuesday night & we'll get you set up for your two free rounds of golf at Old Kinderhook & $25 gift card for the Trophy Room. Because last week's winner, Janet L. from Independence, wasn't interested in the golf passes, I said we'd give them to tonight's runner-up which was Terry from Lake Ozark. She missed the final score by 17 with a prediction of 23-17. Terry will receive two free rounds of golf but no gift card. Congrats to you Terry, give me a call next Tuesday night.
Hey Rich, in case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm pretty sure I know what a Beef O'Brady is. It must be the sound that Tom Brady made when he was flattened at the Patriots' 44-yard line by beefed-up Elvis Dumervil in last Sunday's game. Dumervil isn't tall but at nearly 4 lbs/inch, he brings some beef. Oh!!!
Reply to this