Article:Armchair Weekend in Review (December 14-16, 2007)

by JB82

= NFL: More decisions made =


 * With the foul weather brought on by a nor'easter, some thought that it would be the New England Patriots' undoing in their matchup with the New York Jets. However, the Pats played it to their advantage as their special teams blocked two punts in a 20-10 advance to 14-0 and home field advantage throughout the playoffs.


 * Two weeks ago, I stated that we could see both the best and worst regular-season performances in NFL history. However, we will NOT see the Miami Dolphins knock the 1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers off of Misery Mountain. Greg Camarillo caught three passes in the game for 109 yards, the last of which was the game winner in a 22-16 overtime decision against the Baltimore Ravens.


 * Speaking of the Bucs, the 2007 edition had no trouble in spoiling Emmitt Thomas' debut as Atlanta Falcons head coach, clinching the NFC South title 37-3. Michael Spurlock supersized a kickoff return for 90 yards for the first of its kind in franchise history.


 * The third Florida team will be in the playoffs as well; the Jacksonville Jaguars handed the Pittsburgh Steelers their first Heinz Field loss this season, 29-22, behind 197 yards and three touchdowns from David Garrard and as many from the Jags' backfield combined.


 * The Cleveland Browns also punched their ticket to the playoffs, but had to beat both the Buffalo Bills and Mother Nature in order to do it. Jamal Lewis got 163 yards on the ground, but there wasn't anything big to write home about in a 8-0 win (yes, that was the score, for reals...)


 * The Indianapolis Colts got a first-round bye behind 276 yards from Peyton Manning in a 21-14 win over the Oakland Raiders. The Dallas Cowboys became the second despite a 10-6 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in which quarterback Tony Romo had his girlfriend (Jessica Simpson) in the stands.


 * The third team who won't play on the first weekend of the New Year did so with its quarterback making another entry into the record books: Brett Favre passed Dan Marino for the most passing yards in a career (61,405) in a 33-14 cruise over the St. Louis Rams.


 * What seemed improbable at the beginning of the season came to pass on Sunday, as the San Diego Chargers put away the AFC West with a 51-14 romp over the Detroit Lions.


 * Eli Manning has made so many comebacks as of late that when his New York Giants were down in the second half against the Washington Redskins, Giants fans thought that he'd have another one in him to rally the troops. But it wasn't to be as Big Blue wound up black and blue, 22-10. Even worse, tight end Jeremy Shockey was lost for the season with a broken leg.

= College championships =


 * Division I had its annual game on Friday; Appalachian State, who kicked off its season with an upset over Michigan, capped it with its third consecutive D1 Football Championship Subdivision in a 49-21 win over Delaware.


 * Valdosta State won its second Division II championship with a 25-21 win against Northwest Missouri State, who look as though they are the Buffalo Bills of D2 football.


 * Meanwhile, in a rematch of last year's Division III title tilt, the Wisconsin-Whitewater Eagles ended Mount Union's 37-game winning streak, 31-21.


 * There was also news from the big boy Division I, too: Rich Rodriguez, the highly-successful coach at West Virginia, got his name in the rumor mill to take the job at Michigan. On Sunday, two weeks after Les Miles said he wasn't going, Rodriguez decided to pack up and move out to Ann Arbor (i.e., he accepted the position). With John Beilein already there, expect a little bit of Morgantown in A-2 in 2008.

= Across the pond =


 * Over in England, this reporter's favorite Premiership club gave one of its US supporters a birthday present on Sunday: a 1-0 win over fellow FAPL powerhouse Liverpool. Carlos Tevez scored the lone goal of the match for Manchester United away at Anfield.


 * Onto the continent, Barcelona got three points on a 3-0 win over Valencia, but lost forward Lionel Messi during the game. Messi injured his thigh in the 42nd minute and will miss next week's Cl&aacute;sico against archrival Real Madrid, to whom they are two points behind in La Liga.


 * This reporter and AC Milan both share the same birthday: December 16. Before yours truly opened his present and ate cake and ice cream, the Rossoneri clinched the 2007 Club World Cup in Japan 4-2 over Argentinian side Boca Juniors. Filippo Inzaghi, the hero of last Spring's UEFA Final, scored two goals in the match.

= Driving the lane =


 * Rick Pitino will have to wait for another shot at his 500th career win; Purdue spoiled the fun in a 67-59 win at the Wooden Tradition in Indianapolis.


 * Speaking of Indiana, it was where Steve Alford and Bob Knight coexisted for four years before the two went their seperate ways. In an interview with the AP, Alford said that, as a coach, it has been "no fun" coaching against Knight's teams over the years. Well, the two coaches' paths crossed again on Saturday, this time at New Mexico. Whether or not Alford found joy in beating Knight's Texas Tech Red Raiders 80-63 remains to be determined, though...


 * It was a very successful weekend for the Boston Celtics. On Friday night, Paul Pierce led the way with 32 points in a 104-82 win over the Milwaukee Bucks to remain undefeated at the Gahden. Two days later, the C's went north of the border and spoiled Chris Bosh's double-double, 90-77, against the Toronto Raptors.

= Odds & Sods + Kudos = Crazy Delicious =


 * There was more fallout from the Mitchell Report over the weekend; on Saturday, New York Yankees pitcher Andy Pettite admitted to taking human growth hormone in 2002. However, Pettite said that he took it to treat an elbow injury he had at the time.


 * Kudos to Joe Namath; the Hall of Fame quarterback got his Bachelor's degree from his alma mater, the University of Alabama, on Saturday during mid-term Commencement. Broadway Joe would've gotten it a lot sooner, but he left school to go play in the pros.


 * ...to Wake Forest's men's soccer team, who won their first NCAA championship 2-1 over Ohio State.


 * Shaun Hill and Todd Collins: Two virtual no-names led their respective teams to wins over the weekend. Hill, who was last seen taking a knee with the Minnesota Vikings as 2006 began, got his first career start on Saturday night. Hill led the way in a 20-13 win over the Cincinnati Bengals. Collins, on the other hand, made his first NFL start in 10 years and while his numbers paled in comparison, he played a small role in the Skins' win in the Meadowlands.


 * Detroit Lions quarterback Jon Kitna: Last year, it was the Giants. In 2007, the Lions are in freefall mode in the second half of the year. Throwing five interceptions doesn't help, either...

= That's all for this week =

We'll spread some holiday cheer as the AWIR celebrates Christmas for the first time ever! Until then, as always, let's all be good sports...