Dead to Me

I am pumped for the game, but I know nothing about Directional Michigan, so I will not waste my breath on a preview. Instead here is your pickem from the great minds of Jesus and Marv. In case you didn't know Burgular is dead to me.

Jesus' Picks

Vandy 41 – E. Michigan 17
West Va. 35 – S. Fla 21
LSU 84 – Tulane 3
USC 17 – MSU 6
Kentucky 42 – Fla. Atlantic 41 (UK you are on upset alert)
Georgia 18 – Ole Miss 14
Fla. St. 28 – Bama 24
Arkansas 52 – N. Texas 10
Jean Shorts 38 – War Tigers 14
Oregon 42 – Cal 38
Ga. Tech 24 – Clemson 21

Marv's Picks

VU 35 -- E Mich 14
WVU 28 -- USF 35
LSU 56 -- TUL 3
USC 14 -- MSU 7
UK 38 -- FAU 10
UGA 28 -- UM 10
Bama 28 -- FSU 17
ARK 35 -- NT 7
UF 42 -- AU 14
CAL 38 -- ORE 24
CLEM 28 -- GT 21

Oh yeah, by the way if Dennis Franchione is still the coach of the Aggies next week I may consider becoming a Longhorn fan. Look at this post for his idiocracy. -- Jesus

http://www.everydayshouldbesaturday.com/?p=3916

Looking Forward

Well, Its been a long two weeks without much Vanderbilt news to report on, but now the Commodores are looking to get back in the action against the Eagles of Eastern Michigan. The Commodores are favored, at the moment, by 20.5, and the Harmon forecast on cbssports.com has the Commodores winning 40-14.

The Eagles and Commodores have not met before, but lets hope that the Commodores can cure their lack of success against teams from the state of Michigan. They are 0-11-1 against teams from Michigan. Against the Wolverines of Michigan, they are 0-10-1 (that tie coming in the first game of the newly built Dudley field. Michigan was the defending National Champion at the time. Glory Days), and they are 0-1 against Western Michigan. Lets hope that record changes this weekend.

I would like to see the offense click like it did against Ole Miss, and I certainly want to see the running game like it was. Jeff Jennings is due to return to the line-up, which Im sure the Burglar will be happy with. I would also like to see the defense continue its good show.

While I don't think the Commodores should overlook the Eagles at all, I would like to get some positive momentum moving into the game next week @ Auburn. The Tigers have been struggling this season, and you have to assume that they are going to get pounded in the Swamp this weekend. After that, you know they will be out for blood in front of a so-far disappointed home crowd next weekend. So, we need to stay healthy, and put on a good show this week.

The 'Dores are looking for consecutive wins for the first time in a year, and that always gets the Commodore Nation excited. Their previous occurrence was last year against TSU and Temple. Lets hope they do it.

Cha Ching – Tchiengang

The Dores score with a huge Rivals 4 star basketball recruit in Steve Tchiengang today. Beyond the fact that he is going to be an amazing player for us, I am most excited about his last name. This has so much more potential that Dawid Przybyszewski. I am not exactly sure how to pronounce his name, but the first thing I love is the fact that his first name is just Steve. Don't let this guy's last name fool you, he is as American as Apple Pie with a slice of American cheese melted on it.

But more importantly is how I envision his last name rhyming with Cha-Ching. Can't you just envision the entire Memorial crowd saying Cha-Ching after he rains down a three from 25th ave. Vandy should be more excited about this than when Dave Chappelle thought he impregnated Oprah. The Dores hit the early recruiting jackpot, lets make it a good week.

Crank that Soldier Boy...UUUUUUUUUUU

Hola!

I am back. Sorry that I haven't blahged in a while, I have been on sabbatical much like the Sports Guy, only my book is about how 90% of the American population could be sports writers.

My sabbatical included a trip to Miami to watch a little football on Thursday night as the Aggies of Texas A&M took it in the back door from a Miami team that was no more impressive as the Aggies were shitty. There are a few things I took away from this game that have nothing to do with football.

1) The Orange Bowl is without a doubt the shittiest, most dilapidated stadium in all of sports. This historic stadium hasn't had an update since the mid 70's. The scoreboard doesn’t even have a jumbotron. Are you fucking kidding me?!? Half the high schools in America have jumbotrons by now, I didn't even get to watch the replay of either (2) of Javorski Lane's carries.

2) I was scared shitless of the Miami fans. The only music that is played in the stadium is rap. And during every song, fifty thugs would turn around and flash gang signs at the opposing fans during the game. I was surprised there were not metal detectors at the gates.

3) They sell beer!!!!!!!!!!!! This makes up for the shithole stadium, but it makes so much sense. Why college stadiums don't sell beer at games is ludacris. Not only that, but I learned only two stadiums in NCAA football sell beer for all home games, The Orange Bowl and Notre Dame Stadium. What do you want to bet that beer consumption is higher through the first four games than at any other time in ND history?

4) There is a restaurant on Washington St. in Miami called Sum Yum Guy. No Bull Shit, I got my picture taken in front of it.

5) A&M was a 2.5 point underdog. Vegas knows their shit, and everyone looked at that line and bet big on the Ags. Typical, the Agros didn't show up and everyone lost money. This is interesting only because Alabama is a 2.5 point underdog vs. FSU this weekend. Could another Florida team surprise against a one dimensional running attack that will try and get to the corner? Probably not cause Nick Satan is a much better coach than Dennis "Plain Vanilla" Franchione.

6) O.J Simpson – Not a Jew, but guess who is Hall of Famer Rod Carew

The next post will be entirely about the Dores. The by-curious week left us without a lot of Vandy news to talk about, but expect it to ramp up soon.

Recap...

A little bit of a weekend recap, and a look forward to next week's meeting with the Eagles of Eastern Michigan. This weekend was full of solid college football. In the SEC, Ole Miss hung in there tight with Florida in Oxford. LSU, after a slow start, took care of the Head Ball Coach and the Gamecocks. The Bulldogs played strong in Tuscaloosa, and got out of there with a win. The dawgs looked better than the Tide that entire game. The only reason it was as close as it was, is Stafford's interceptions.

I'll tell you who I was really impressed with this weekend, was Kentucky. They went into Fayetteville, after a good win against Louisville, and won on the road. Andre Woodson is flat out good. Here's my question for the Hogs, how does Darren McFadden, just like against Bama, run for a ridiculous amount of yards, play incredibly, and you still lose. Luckily for him, he's not a quarterback, so he can still win the Heisman if they continue to lose.

This upcoming weekend should provide some entertainment with games such as Alabama vs. FSU, Auburn vs. Florida, and UGA vs. Ole Miss (assuming Coach O's team played like they did against UF). I will be headed to Athens to enjoy the weekend activities.

Also on the slate for this weekend, the Commodores take on the Eastern Michigan Eagles from the MAC. The Eagles are 2-2, and SI & CBS currently have them ranked somewhere around 105 in their power rankings. The 'Dores should be able to take care of business, and they should start to get in the groove, with the heart of SEC play starting in two weeks @ Auburn. A little tidbit I noticed this morning, Vanderbilt's defense is outplaying its offense. Not what I would have expected at the beginning of the year. The Commodores' defense is ranked 36th in the country in total yards allowed (314.3), and 32nd in total points allowed (19.3). While the offense is ranked 81st in total yards (353.7) and 65th in total points scored (27.3). We'll see how those numbers continue to develop.

More to come later this week...

Typical...

"Hello Vandy fans...i have been reading your blog for a few weeks now and just wanted to say that the comodores suck! the dawgs are gonna whip ya into shape this year. sick em."

Thanks for the comment, DawgFan, and good job spelling Commodore. A good show of sportsmanship from Athens. As TheFinch said in his rebuttal, someone must be a little bit bitter about the beating between the hedges last year. A glorious afternoon that I just happened to have been present for (I probably pelted DawgFan with a recently shotgunned beer can after the game). Here's the little known fact about being a commodore fan, while it is extremely painful, we have nothing to lose in those games. We lose to UGA, big fuckin' deal. We beat UGA, they suck ass. For the benefit of those who weren't there, and since the 'Dores have a bye week, let me recount the experiences:

9:15 am: Began playing Beer Pong at a buddies tailgate around 9:30am, and sat through an enormous amount of shit-talking from Georgia Fans saying that they were going to beat us by at least three touchdowns. I stood there silently with my Jay Cutler jersey on, and said nothing.

10:30 am: Went to another tailgate, and withstood even more verbal barrage from Georgia fans talking about how bad they were going to beat us, I said nothing.

12:30 am: Sat in the GEORGIA section, sporting my black and gold, and quietly watched the 'Dores silence 93,000 people.

3:30 pm: Wha Happen? Vandy just won? My vow of silence ends.

3:32 pm: Meet a huge Vandy crowd at a Georgia tailgate, and people begin to walk away and give us their beers (because in towns like Athens, if their team loses, they shut themselves in a closet for a day, and speak to no-one, don't go out, and generally piss people off). I could write a whole blog about this issue. I will say, that I never saw a loss slow down a party in Nashville. I thought Athens was supposed to be crazy?

3:45 pm: Behind some class building on Lumpkin shotgunning beers with kids 3 years younger, and 4 years older than me. Shotgunning really bridges the generational gap.

4:00 pm: Head downtown to Georgia Bar. My buddy who went to Notre Dame, and lives in Athens, puts on a Vanderbilt shirt. His girlfriend says if he doesn't take that off, she's leaving.

4:05 pm: His girlfriend leaves

4:15 pm: Shots of JD in Georgia Bar, which has no people from Georgia in it.

10:00 pm: Run into Ted Ferguson (The Bud Light Dare Devil), who happened to be a PDT at Vandy. Say two words to him, and realize he's weird as shit.

10:30 pm: All memories cease.

A final interesting tidbit about that night:

-A certain alumni of Vanderbilt, sometimes referred to as "Blue," had quite the story. After becoming seperated from his friends, and unable to coherently find his way home, he ended up at a Citgo gas station. He didn't know where he was, but the cashier was kind enough to give him a blanket and let him curl up behind the counter to sleep. Yes, he slept behind the counter at a Citgo.

So until we play UGA in Nashville this year, we are still the victors. Leave it on the field, DawgFan. Let me enjoy my once in 17 years victory. Don't bring your negativity to our site.

-We're not getting fucked down, We're getting fucked up.

Victory..

Folks, that was the Vanderbilt Football team that I have been waiting three weeks to see. Our offense looked like the unit that it was billed all summer to be, and our defense really stepped up. First of all, let me say that my 28-18 prediction was pretty close, but the Commodores had to out do me. A couple of notes and observations:

-Offense- Looked incredible. Like a totally different unit than the one who played abysmally against Alabama last week. Nickson was making good throws, CJG was running the ball well (much to the Burglars chagrin.) The Commodores, for the first time since the victory over the Rebs in 2005, had a 100 yd Rusher (Jackson-Garrison), and 100 yd Receiver (Bennett), and a 200 yd Passer (Nickson). In 2005, it was the trio of Jennings, E. Davis, and J. Cutler that accomplished the feat. If our ground game can take control of the tempo like that every week, we WILL be in every game. Also, Nickson was throwing the ball much better. He still made some throws that made me cringe, but all in all he had a great game. I also liked how we utilized short passes more than we did last week. If you're moving the chains every two plays, you don't need to take shots at the end zone every third down.

-Defense- Looked great. Held a great running back, who ran for 230 yds against a good Mizzou team, to less than 70 yds. We finally heard from Jon Goff this weekend (I Told you he was hungry), and our secondary played relatively well. However, the one thing I noticed is that if there is a quarterback who can throw the long ball in, we are screwed. We get beat on deep balls 7 out of 10 times, and that is something we will need to improve with teams like UGA, AU, and UF (who looked incredible against UcheaT this weekend) on the way. DJ Moore looked great in the backfield.

-Special Teams- Atrocious. I will say this, I have absolutely NO confidence in Vanderbilt's kicking ability. Whether that be punting, or place-kicking, no confidence. I do not understand how Vanderbilt could be so bad at this aspect of the game. I personally saw kids on the rec fields that could kick better than what I have seen this year. Obviously, CBJ doesn't have much confidence, because instead of kicking a 48 yarder from the 31, he went for it on fourth (great decision BTW). Anyways, why can't we throw some cocky, preppy soccer player from MBA or Brentwood in there, and problem solved.

Anyways, all in all, it was a fantastic game to watch, especially with a bunch of kids from Ole Miss. Sossy, I hope the lunch that you won tasted delicious.

I like the fact that the Dores have two weeks for some R&R, a solid warm-up against E Michigan, and then a trip to Jordan-Hare Stadium to face a vulnerable Auburn team, which after this weeks loss to MSU in Auburn, will be looking for blood against the Commodores.

The Greatest Website Ever...

www.mynameisearlbennett.com

-That is all

Redemption Song

Caption: Rararararararararar, Bloodsport......

This weekend is a major shot at redemption for the Commodores. They come off an embarrassing loss to Alabama, and their opponent is a mediocre Ole Miss. As of last night, the Commodores were a 5 point favorite to beat the Rebs in Nashville. We'll have to see what happens.

The Ole Miss game is a fund raiser for the not so new Vanderbilt Childrens Hospital, which was recently ranked in the Top 25 in the country. So, unless you hate sick kids, if you live in the Nashville

area, you SHOULD be at the game. That being said, here are what I believe Vanderbilt needs to work on in order to come out victorious this weekend (in no particular order):

- Special Teams coverage. It is imperative that our special teams, namely our punt squad, improves in this game. Evidently, Vanderbilt can't find a decent punter and are forced to rugby punt the ball every 4th down (how about it Yates?). So, if this is going to happen, we need to figure out how to spread out, and not allow running lanes like the ones against Alabama. Otherwise, we are going to lose the field position game ALL DAY LONG.

-Run Defense. Bad news for the Commodores. Last week they gave up close to 175 yards to a freshman tailback from Tuscaloosa. Guess what: Benjarvus Green-Ellis ran for over 200 yards last week in a loss to Mizzou. If the Commies can't control Mississippi's run offense, then Mississippi is going to control the tempo and clock for most of the game, not what we want. Supposedly, Vanderbilt's secondary is playing well by not allowing a passing touchdown yet. I think that can be mostly blamed on the opposing offense, not so much on Vandy's stellar play.

-Pressure. In addition to stopping the run, I would love to see the Commodores put more pressure on the opposing QB. I haven't heard much about J. Goff much this season: He's got to be hungry.

-Get the offense clicking. We need to have all aspects of the offense working. Run game, pass game, play action, it all needs to be clicking on all cylinders. This could be interesting, especially if Nickson doesn't get the start. I would love to see more running plays called, and a more balanced offensive spread. Perhaps that would help sell the Play Action?

Basically, the Commodores need to scrap every aspect of the Bama game, and start all over, which I think is completely possible. The last thing they want is to be playing Eastern Michigan in two weeks, and trying to even out at 2-2. They need to take advantage of weak SEC opponents, especially at home.

Cross your fingers...Prediction: Vandy 28 Ole Miss 18

We'll Pay More

Part of being a Commodore Fan is the willing acknowledgement that we are the traditional whipping boy of the SEC. Although we are without a doubt a top 50 team in the country this year, there is still the perception that we aren’t any good. This perception extends beyond the national media, all the way down to the SEC itself and their most visible employees every Saturday the referees. I am not saying that every call goes against us; in fact some go in our favor. It is just difficult to write something positive when the two biggest plays of the game last week were called back due to controversial laundry on the field.

Thanks to my daily blahg reading I have stumbled upon the best new way to combat this. Our friends over at Star and Stripe bring to our attention the suggestion of "cjdore" on the Vandy Mania message board. He suggests that after a bad call the Vanderbilt faithful begin chanting "WE'LL PAY MORE." Brilliant, absolutely fucking brilliant. What a great twist on the traditional "Bull Shit" chant that I myself was always slightly embarrassed about because of its complete low class nature. But "We'll pay more" immediately implies a we are better and more well off than you air and this is one of Vandy's greatest advantages. I also say we use this to replace the classic, "That's alright, that's okay, you'll work for us someday."

We'll pay more has the capability of becoming an instant classic. It is true as well. Vanderbilt's endowment was $2.5 billion in 2005. Meaning today it is well over $3 billion. In 2005 we had the 21st largest endowment in the country; no other SEC school was in the top 50. I say we use a smidgeon of the endowment, find the SEC version of Tim Donaghy and start getting some calls to go our way.

If we don't actually pay the refs, then "We'll pay more" still has great potential--with minimal downside. Just imagine if we could inspire the Jumbotron operator to flash "WE'LL PAY MORE" on the screen after a bad call. This coupled with the banging of the band's drums would cause the entire crowd to erupt in the chant at the same time. Sportscenter would eat that shit up. Anybody who knows how to make this happen, please do.

Changing gears now… As far as the game was concerned, I have to agree with most everyone that we looked like Britney Spears at the MTV Awards the other night. Actually that was the Bama fanbase. I have never, ever seen a more obese fanbase in my life. Seriously are there escalators all the way to the top of Bryan Denny or what. The most important thing that I took from the game was that we need Chris Nickson. He was hampered by the hamstring injury and anyone who has experienced this knows that it has a huge impact on your ability to plant and throw as well as elude blitzing linebackers. Sure he was off rhythm from the start, but there is a drop off when we go to McKenzie Adams. Adams played well in relief and that is extremely promising, but he does not give the dynamic ability to keep safeties close in fear of Nickson taking off out of the pocket. This has negative impact on Earl getting open and is something the Commodore faithful should be worried about.

I hope that Chris starts the Ole Miss game and looks like his old self. But hamstrings are tricky injuries. At any time during the game he could tweak it and trying to play through it will only exacerbate the injury. Thus it will be important for Adams to stay loose and ready. Also, it will be important for the coaching staff to develop a separate game plan for when Adams is in the game, because his strengths are different than Nickson's and we don't have the luxury of waiting 2 quarters for Adams to get in rhythm against Ole Miss.

I believe if we can keep the O on the field and give the D some rest against the Rebels we should have no trouble. But if we perform like last Saturday, it could be a long couple of months.

Also, here is perhaps the greatest piece about Ole Miss Football ever.

This is what should have occured to the officiating crew after the first half of the Bama game.

Ew.....

I was physically ill after that game on Saturday. I arrived at a per-game party, 2005 Cutler jersey on, with more excitement than I have had in a long time. I thought, finally the Commodores are going to compete in the SEC. How wrong I was.

First of all, there were several calls which I would describe as questionable, at best. I'll give them the offensive pass interference on the first play of the game. However, where the hell was that OFFENSIVE FACE MASK? You have to be joking me. What a momentum killer that was.
Other notes and observations:

-Our offense looked terrible. Nickson was making poor passes on plays that should have been automatic. Also, what was with the play calling? Note to Ted Cain, you can't just call play action every play without first establishing the run game. How is it that an offense with as many weapons as ours didn't score a touchdown in the first half. It was embarrasing. The only good thing I saw on offense, besides Adams' touchdown throw, was the protection that was there most of the time.

-Our special teams is Abysmal. Not to say that the punt, which was returned basically for a touchdown, was a great punt, but the coverage was terrible. There was absolutely no-one to protect the right side of the field. There is no way we can have even a mildly successful season in the SEC without a decent special teams.

-We gave up over 150 yds on the ground. With Ole Miss and Benjarvus Green-Ellis coming to Nashville next weekend, look for them to pound it down our throats until we prove we can stop it. Myron Lewis looked terrible as well. He was getting lit up by DJ Hall. They could have scored on a fly route every play of the game.

I'll tell you this right now, if we play like that next week, we WILL lose to a mediocre Ole Miss team. A team that we should, no doubt, be able to beat, especially at home.

Speaking of homefield, what the hell? Was that game in Nashville on Saturday, or did Bryant-Denny shrink and move to Nashville? I haven't seen that much opposing support, even on the VANDERBILT side in years?

All in all, it was a typically disappointing game. I hope to God that things shape up next week, because on Saturday we looked like a 2-10 team. I would hate to be in the same vicinity as CBJ this week.

Christmas Eve...

Tomorrow's the big day, and I can't wait. I am incredibly jealous of all that are headed to Nashville for the game tomorrow. I really hope that the 'Dores can pull it out. As many know, this could be a huge game for the Commodores that defines the rest of the season. There have been several games like this in the past few years. Namely, South Carolina in 2004 and Wake Forest in 2005. I would love to see the Commodores step into the SEC season with a win, and I think its quite possible. It relies on several things. First and foremost, our defense needs to shut down Alabama's ground game, and also prevent JP Wilson from carving up the secondary. Also, our ground game needs to step up in order to support the Nickson-Bennett connection.

There is a great article in the Dothan Eagle about how Vanderbilt is trying to turn the corner in the SEC. I suggest you read it.

I may try to do some sort of live-blahg on Saturday, but chances are that I'll have too much Jim Beam over at homo-ginger's place and forget to do it all together.

Everybody cross their fingers, here come the Commodores….

24

Oh Baby. Oh Baby. OH BABY. 24 hours til kick off. I am looking to pull a complete Jack Bauer of a day until kick off. Typically today is when you see a game preview, but our friends at Vanderbilt Sports Line and Star and Stripe have done such a fine job that I will resort to telling you about what to expect from me as a complete Vandy Football junkie.

Screen fades to black and the numbers 11:00:01, 11:00:02, 11:00:03 appear on the screen…
I am sitting at my desk fantasizing about the weekend. Making proposals for clients, I have just run to the binding machine for the fourth time today. My life kicks ass. In fact nothing of note will happen until…

2:00 – I leave the office, take off my Vanderbilt Chancellor Edition tie and get in the car on my way to change for the airport. Tickets and bag already packed, should I wear the obnoxious bright gold Vandy shirt on the plane? I think so…

2:35 – Arrive at the aeropuerto. No bags to check and I already have my boarding passes, but wait…I have liquids in my bag. I quickly grab the first TSA person I see (Is this agency the worst run in America? I think they may have FEMA beat.) and put my pistol to the back of his head. I am whispering loudly in his ear (because it is very important) "You let me pass or I will have to kill you." Typical, he pees his pants and his supervisor comes over and lets me through. They obviously know I mean business.

3:40 – I board my flight. Gin and Tonic #1. It is tooooo early to start drinking brown, I mean I am not in the South yet and its not game day.

7:00 – Arrive in the mother land. Oh my God there are mullets everywhere. How on earth did Bama fans afford to fly? My obnoxious yellow shirt matches my 4 G&T lifestyle as I begin shit talking about how His Name is will have 3,000 receiving yards against Simeon Castille. A Who Ya With? shout comes from down the hall, to the chorus of 100 fans screaming VU.

8:30 – Goten. Who else do I see but Cheng Zhi (The bastard who kidnapped me and took me to China) and I am greeted by him saying "Ahhhhhhhhh, Mista Bauwaaaaa. Let me take you to your table."

10:15 – The sorbet is out. Our table, which includes Tha Burglar begins its Who Ya With? chant. Shit's getting rowdy.

11:30 – At Robert's Western World. The Jesus aka Jack Bauer for the evening Blacks out…

7:00 – GAME DAY. I roll over in bed, why the fuck am I naked and how did I get home? I grab the bottle of brown next to me pound a swig and the scream "WHO YA WITH?" everyone else is grumbles VU. It game day Bitch.

7:30 – Showered and outfitted in a yellow Lacoste button down and white shorts, I stroll down to the continental breakfast. Grab a bite and fill up a large glass with OJ. This will be used to make the first of many screwdrivers of the day.

8:30 – Finally the DP is ready and we head to Fairfux to begin tailgating. The crowd is meager at this point, but all the die hards are there. The Burgular and myself begin making outrageous predictions for the game. We are both already hammered. Will we make it to McDougal's after the game. Outlook = doubtful.

9:47 – Oh that’s it. Tawd shows up in Bama gear (He was an HOD major, does that count as Vanderbilt?) Burgular and myself tie him up and begin torture, Jack Bauer style. That son of a bitch.

10:01 – Less than an hour til game time. There are quite a few BAMA fans at the tailgate. I have successfully alienated everyone of them. Who the fuck has a quarterback named John Parker Wilson? I can't decide if he should be a pop metro sexual country singer or the person who assassinated one of the Kennedy's.

11:02 – The treck to the Stadium begins. 72 Who Ya With's? are yelled. 68 get positive responses. I almost get in a fight with a dude in Crimson with a mullet. He is 80. Can 80 year olds grow mullets. He must have it surgically implanted like Joe Dirt.

11:21 – I make it to my seats. Student section. yeah I graduated, but it is way more fun up here. Plus I have a stiff brown and coke.

11:30 – Game Time. Bama is fucked I see 2 #10's on the field. That's right, Earl Bennett cloned himself overnight. Or am I just seeing double.

11:34-3:00 – I hear only one thing… FFMMMMMMAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH.
Touchdown Commodores.

3:05 – VU 23 – BAMA 17

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, Mr. Bauer...

Alright, the game of the season approaches. Many questions still linger:

-Will Earl be able to repeat his Richmond performance against a much better defense, and in particular, Simeon Castille.

-Can Vanderbilt's Defense shut down the run. Alabama's freshman tailback looked pretty good last week against Western Carolina, and if the 'Dores want to win, they must shut down the run.

-How will Nickson perform against a depleted Alabama secondary

-Will the other receivers step up if Earl is double teamed?

-Did DH3 father a red-headed British child?

All valid questions.

NEW WEEKLY FEATURE:
Weekly Pick 'Em: Give us your predicted winners and scores for the following:
UGA vs. South Carolina
Notre Dame vs. Penn State
TCU vs. Texas
Va Tech vs. LSU
Vandy vs. Bama

Marv's Picks:
UGA 28 USC 13
Notre Dame 7 Penn State 31
TCU 21 Texas 24
Va Tech 10 LSU 28
Vanderbilt 27 Alabama 24

Los Picks de Jesus:
UGA 34 - South Carolina 17
Notre Dame 10 - Penn State 38
TCU 14 - Texas 13
Va Tech 6 - LSU 24
Vandy 23 - Bama 17

Where's the Love?

One week of college football under our belt, the Dores are undefeated and life is good. Well that is unless you are Vanderbilt's promotional machine. Earl Bennett is the best player in a Vanderbilt uniform in a lifetime (Sorry Jay) and there is no Heisman hype, zero, zilch, nada, NONE. All over the country people are talking about the regulars and there is no doubt that if His Name is played for one of the top SEC programs he would be in the top 10 of everyone's list. But as it is, Vanderbilt is just not throwing any support behind him. I mean all it would take is a few billboards on the highway leading to Bristol, Conn and we would have his name mentioned in more than one list.

Lets look at a few heisman lists, just for the fun of it..
From the crappiest reporting on earth lets look at SI.coms list. First off, who the fuck is Gene Mendez? He looks like Dat Ngyun, but has a last name of a guy who just crossed the border. Typical SI reporter (Stu Mandel is a dumbass, but we will get the burgular to write on that one. He has Glenn Dorsey at #5 on his list. I am sorry, but there is a better chance of Britney Spears winning mother of the year than Dorsey getting the Heisman, that is unless he starts returning punts, then watch out.

ESPN.com has their own list. These guys are the most respected in the biz, and their list shows…until you see the jackass that voted for Armanti Edwards. This guy can't even win the fucking trophy, much less can he speak.

CBS sportsline another piss poor site, with no reporting except for Dodd, who I respect. Lets lake a looksie at what they have to say. Oh wait, look Jarett Dillard. He is still on the list. WHAT? 5 catches, 41 yards, 0 TDs against Nichols State…In a loss. I want that guy on my team.

Not everyone has their head completely up their ass and this is proven by the only good American broadcasting company in this country. Fox Sports has His Name is as the #12 guy, second in the section entitled "On the Radar Screen." His 13 catch, 223 yard, 3 TD game put him ahead of John David Booty, Colt McCoy and Mike Hart. These guys report the news and you decide. They don't get caught up in all the hype that is USC and Texas and give Earl some props.

Assuming Earl has a decent game next week, 8 catches 120 yards 1 TD, against an Alabama secondary that needs a little work, then he has to be on everyone's list. If not…I blame the bow tied one.

One Down, Eleven to Go...

What a fantastic start to a glorious football season. First of all, The Michigan Wolverines were upset by the Mountaineers of Appalachain State. My uncle teaches at App State, and said that the students tore down the goal post, and planted it in the front yard of the Presidents house. (Do you think the Vandy crowd could get the posts all the way out to the Chancellors Mansion in Belmeade this weekend?) Also, the Commodores had a satisfactory roll-over of the Richmond Spiders 41-17. Some things I noticed while listening to the game:

-The Commodores defense, after looking a little lack-luster in the first half, really stepped it up in the second half, especially DJ Moore and the ever-hungry J. Goff.

-Earl Bennett is a super hero. They should sell his uniform to kids for Halloween costumes. 13 catches, 223 Yards, 3 Touchdowns. Somehow, he's still not on anyone's Heisman Hopeful list.

-Nickson looked 10 times better with a year under his belt. I realize that the Spiders' defense was not a huge obstacle, but he had a great performance. He also showed that Earl is definitely his #1 target, as it should be.

-Jeff Jennings is a much better running back that CJG. Garrison just doesn't bring anything to the table (Speed or Strength wise). That being said, he could kick my ass.

-The Burglar gets frustrated very easily.

It was a great weekend in Dallas, and Saturday was an extremely long day (if you couldn't tell by the fact that the running commentary stopped 1.5 hours before kickoff. Our B.

-Next up, Saban.

The most wonderful time of the year

11:30 am - Trip to Central Market for supplies.

2:00 pm - App State upsets Michigan in the Big House. Nice.

Currently, Watching the GT - ND Game:

Burglar - I wish I had skipped more class in College

Marv - Id root for Al Qaeda if they were playing Tennessee.

Jesus - I don't know, it depends on what Al Qaeda's Jerseys looked like.

Burglar - Jesus, you're dog has Shane Battier ears.

Tech currently up 9-0.

Burglar- I kinda want a goat.

Burglar - You know what I can't believe hasnt taken in the US, a good fromage plate. Its delicious.

4:29 PM Halftime GT - ND 16-0 GT...Wii Break.

1 1/2 hours til kickoff.

Crackers

Marv and The Jesus checkin in. Things are wells. We are foggy rather groggy. The Burgular is donesky on the carpetski. Soon live blahg ing for the Tobey Maguire game.