Vince Dooley - Pat Dye

Prolate Spheroid does a great job with this classic SEC rivalry. Go here to check it out. Awesome summaries and highlights of both legendary coaching careers, not to mention dueling All-American tailbacks.

Weekly Picks

8 games - here we go; The first week of FTS blog picks, accuracy not included:

Jean Short Jesus

Thursday:

(14) GA Tech at (20) Miami - No clue. Fuck it, pass.

Friday:

(10) Boise St. 41, Fresno St.13 - The Broncos roll. I almost picked them to pitch another shut out, because, caliber of competition aside, BSU looks like they're playing inspired football in '09. But, I figured why get greedy and spotted the left coast bulldogs a score or three.

(14) GA Tech at (20) Miami - Still Pass.

Saturday:

(8) Cal 34, Minnesota 26 - Jahvid Best and the Golden Bears will rack up yards and score points, but they better not snooze on the Golden Gophers. While Minnesota has not looked impressive against their less than quality opponents, a team like them can really do some damage when overlooked. Watch for the double G's to score early and often before Cal adjusts and pulls away.

Tennessee 19 at (1) Florida 49 - Do I take the points, or speculate on the wrath of Jean short Jesus dropping triple digits? Either way UF is winning...and in the end, I went out on a limb and picked Florida to cover...

(3) USC 37 at Washington 24 - Closer than the experts think. Remember, Sarkasian used to live in the belly of the beast. And, his Huskies took LSU to the wire (kinda, anyway). Look for some early upstart U-Dub scoring...and then the Trojan onslaught slamming the door shut.

(13) VA Tech 19, (19) Nebraska 17 - I like this being low scoring, close, and the home team winning. This is purely a gut reaction and no thought went into this, so, yeah, I'm probably way fucking off.

Oregon St. 27, (17) Cincy 23 - Will the Beavers end the Offensive Behemoth that is early '09 BearCat Ball? I'm saying yes...but I'm not sure why. Pike and Co. have looked great, and lord knows they'll score points. Not only that, but I think the Beavs are a bit untested and soft. But, I'm banking on a Big East team with a big head imploding in the face a BCS competition and a truly hostile crowd.

FSU 31, (7) BYU 20 - The 'Noles were looking ahead to this game last weekend and almost paid dearly to FCS Jax St. Not only that, but the Cougs looked unscathed by big-win hangovers, handling their business against Tulane. That could add up to big trouble in Provo for State. That said, I'm putting my faith in the bigger, better program to put the little guy back in his place. And god help us if the 'Noles fail...

(14) GA Tech at (20) Miami - Alright, FINE! I'll pick it. I'm holding out hope that this will continue the trend of exciting ACC games, and picking the 'Canes to pull it out, 31 - 27.

Those of you looking for me to pick UGA at Arkansas...look elsewhere. I have no educated guess and I'm scared to type what my gut's telling me. Let's leave it at that...

Top-25, and Other Such Concerns

I have not posted an in-season top-25 yet. But, fear not, loyal readers, I will officially begin the FTS Top 25 after week 4. I figure, by then I'll know enough about who's playing at what caliber, injuries, surprises and disappointments to create a true top-25; one that's not just a rearranging of my preseason poll. Yes, some of my fearless preseason picks are laughable now, but some others still have an entire season to pan out. I'll be dissecting some of my questionable calls a bit later this week as well as bringing back the Weekly Picks.

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly - Septmeber 13

The Good: POWER POLL

1. Rennie Curran - Batted down pass on 4th down to save the game. Well done, sir.

2. Tailgating - Home opener - finaly! - and a new tailgating spot. I think we broke it in nicely, and I managed to control myself, for the most part. BL Lime + OJ, the Gameday staple, broke us in early, Stealler1 busted out an omelet bar and Weezy, as usual, served as the Grillmaster. Good times were had by all.

3. Tate Forcier/Michigan - This year's edition of Michigan-ND was one of the best in the series, and Big Blue won thanks to the impressive play of true freshman, Tate Forcier. He looked impressive and RichROd's offense looks like it might be finally finding its way in Ann Arbor.

4. Mike Peterson - He had 7 tackles, a forceds fumble and an INT to lead the Falcons to a win today over Miami. The Dolphins didn't find the endzone until late, and Petrson's pick set up Gonzales' first TD as a Falcon.

5. These State Patrol Officers.

6. The ACC - While admittedly questionable with teams like Duke and Virginia, I think this conference is vastly underrated. Not only that, but they've provided some great, off-Saturday, entertainment in the first two weeks. Miami-FSU was exciting and GA Tech-Clemson was maybe even better. If they continue to appetize us with weeknight thrillers, we'll all owe this conference something by November...like maybe a little respect.

7. Memphis, Karma, Bella and Addie. These 4 dogs were at the tailgate next to us and just lived it all day, going Dawgs, getting out of the kitchen, and dragging chairs across the parking lot at light speed. Friendly and well-behaved, they made my day and tricked most of us into falling for them by noon.

8. Inappropriate Humor - Those of you lucky enough o enjoy a little of this with me this weekend, you know who you are.

9. Sunday Afternoon Naps - There's nothing better.

10. Like Santa Claus, he has many names. But whether you call him Grillmaster or Father Tailgate, you know that tailgating doesn't run without H.Weezy. Here's your official FTS Thank You.

The Aaron Giachetti "Not My First Choice" Honorable Mention:
Brandon Boykin's Kickoff return TD, Chick-Fil-A on a Saturday Morning to open up tailgating, Sporcle.com (be prepared to waste some time), Autumn weather, it's almost here!


The Bad: People I'd Like to Punch in the Face

5. Paul Broun - A group of constituents would like to meet with you and you refuse to do it. Pathetic. You, sir, are an embarrassment. BTW, what's that odd smell coming from your son's bedroom...?

4. People from the suburbs with huge trucks, big tires, fake accents and rural affectations. What are you trying to prove, idiots?

3. Tila Tequila - Not because of the Merriman thing - I'd imagine there's some personal shit there that's really none of our business - but just for existing. This incident has just reminded of her and the fact she's famous for NO FUCKING REASON, except maybe as part of a global conspiracy to make America dumber. Congratulations: mission accomplished. Not only that, but it's looking more and more like she's just making shit up. Why couldn't Vick just have drowned, electrocuted, or hung this waste of space?

2. People who deny slavery as the cause of the Civil War. Grow up a little bit, OK? You're making the rest of us look bad.

1. SC Congressman, Joe Wilson. You stay classy, Palmetto State. You know, if they secede again, I say just let the nutty bastards go.

The Diggstown "Not Quite on the Fight Card" Honorable Mention:
Myself, again, for not having seen Inglourious Basterds or Extract, Nancy Pelosi - just because, Homer fans and bad sportsman - fuck you, you childish punks.


The Ugly:

Colorado Football. I picked them to finish second in the Big 12 North. Now they look like they'll be lucky to win a single game. They've been beaten by Colorado State and Toledo so far, so who knows how bad it'll get in league play. C'mon Hawk, THIS IS BIG 12 FOOTBALL!, remember? Between he and Gundy, it makes me wonder what's in the water out in Big-12 land.

Tequila = Lights Out

This weekend's tete-a-tete between San "Whale's Vagina" Diego's Shawne Merriman and famous for being famous's Tila Tequila gives us an opportunity to rhapsodize on more than what actually happened. There's a little thing called subtext that potentially draws more insight than did he or did he not hit her. It is relevant, but not for this conversation. This is more about Pop Culture at large. The Macro of it all, in other words.

You could almost even argue that Merriman and Tequila represent an intersection of two model post-2K archetypes. One is the 'roided up franchise player, beset on ending his career through self-destruction, and the other is a self-promoting not-celebrity, whose only fame comes from being famous (in an ironic circular sort of logic that somehow makes sense in 2009). They are equal parts of the same pie, in essence, and it gets right to the heart of celebrity culture today.

See, what Merriman - and definitely Tequila - don't realize is that they are but players in a much larger game. What they did or did not do has already become irrelevant, because their actions have only given rise to a discussion about gender as a whole, and about celebrity, and about blame and the media (and so forth and so on). They are the backdrop for what has become the cracked, self-loathing mirror America has held up to itself, and it is both startling and shocking.

Women, on the whole, believe that A) "Lights Out" Merriman tried to do just that or B) Tila Tequila is a whore because she gave a lap-dance in newly-released photos. Men see it in a decidedly annoying - and not surprising - opposite manner. Blah blah blah. It's these reactions that sort of reflect what we see in ourselves here, and these comments are as much an indictment of American culture as they are these two individuals. It's just easier to point out that Tequila is a whore for doing what 99.9 percent of women do at a club than for indicting club culture, or that Merriman is yet another sports star with way too much time and money on his hands than is deserved for a single person, rather than that he may just be one shining example of a league run amok.

I know it's a muddled point, but that's just what makes it so difficult to talk about this. Even the way we talk about celebrity, in all of its magnificently overindulgent forms, has become polarizing and politicized. People, and not necessarily the media, have built up sports stars and, well, hmm, "celebrities" (sorry, Tila) so that they are not just the uniform-clad people on the field or the television personalities. It's as if we've run smack-dab into some bizarro world, where the drama onscreen just isn't enough for us. How long can we go before the texts - sports and movies/tv/reality tv - become subtexts or backdrops themselves?

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

1. The Good: POWER POLL

1. Football Season! Sure I'm sitting at 0-1, now, and getting crushed in my pick 'em league, but I'm slowly becoming more of a fan of the sport as a whole than just my team. It's a spectacular feeling, the kickoff to a new season. The colors, sights, sounds; the excitement and the agony. Even in defeat, football is glorious and we are all better for it.

2. BLO-J's - Bud Light Lime + Orange Juice = A delicious morning cocktail for gamedays. Mix almost equal parts (a touch more beer) in a glass (or solo cup at tailgating) and enjoy. It makes the usual shitty spate of early games a bit more palatable and is a great way to ease into the day's festivities.

3. Anthony Bourdain - I'm reading Kitchen Confidential right now. It's the perfect literary compliment to the new season of No Reservations.

4. Megan Fox - She was fading away, but the ads for Jennifer's Body have her roaring back up the poll.

5. Big Season Opening Games - I know UGA went on the road and lost, but god was it exciting. I'll take it anytime over hosting a cupcake FCS cheesedick opponent in a blowout. I hope we see more, but I doubt we will. Kudos to OK St., UGA, VA Tech, Bama, Boise, Oregon and even SoCar and NCSU.

6. The Pogues' Body of an American - I love this song right now.

7. Allgood Lounge - Ah, my home away from home. I should probably just have my paychecks deposited directly into their accounts.

8. Hemingway - Between books, I revisited some Hemingway short stories. And, you know what? I think I like his non-fiction better than his fiction. A Moveable Feast is one of my favorite books of all time; I cruised through it in no time flat. His novels, however, can be slower reads, and a lot of that probably has to do with his shallow female characters. So, now that I think about it, why is he so high on the poll...?

9. Michigan's big win - For some reason, I'm pulling for RichRod. I thought he was losing his team with the hours rule violations last week and his players ratting on him, but things look OK. Tate Forcier played well for a true frosh, and adjusting for the fact it was Western MI, the Wolverines could be pretty good in '09. God, I hope the beat Notre Dame...

10. Taco Bell - There's no better late night treat after a hard day (and night) of heavy drinking. It's even more enjoyable when you have a go-to cabdriver who will take you there; God bless Yassin.

The Aaron Giachetti "Not My First Choice" Honorable Mention List:

Popeyes Fried Chicken; Alabama's all white unis; A steak and mushroom quesadilla from Barberito's; Madden NFL '10



2. The Bad: People I'd Like to Punch in the Face

5. Sarah Palin - If she keeps quiet, she'll eventually be off the list for good - and that will be good for everybody involved.

4. Lagarrette Blount - What an idiot. Now, I'm not going to ever actually try to punch him, because judging by what I saw, he'd murder me in seconds flat. He does, still, deserve mention here.

3. Any of these people.

2. Ignorant Fans/Homers/Cheering for Spite - With the joy of football season comes the hazards of interacting with various types of fans. Some good, some even great, but many more idiots, mouth breathers, knuckle draggers, assholes, drunkards, loudmouths and their douchey ilk. They'll scream about every call, complain and insult about their own players, and have the NCAA world view of a slug. I HATE most of these people.

1. Paul Broun - Look dumbass, Obama can't be a socialist and a fascist. Read a book, for fuck's sake, you ignorant douchebag.

The Diggstown "Not Quite on the Fight Card" Honorable Mention:

My O-line on NCAA Football '10; Michael Moore (I'll wait to put on the poll until I see the new movie); Penn and Teller for copping out and laying up with the season finale



3. The Ugly: One thing that happened during the week that just has to be mentioned:

Lagarrette Blount's KO punch after the Oregon Ducks lost to Boise State. Maybe it's the rarefied Boise air, or the blue turf, or some trash talk, but he went totally - and inexcusably - NUTS. It earned him a well deserved suspension for the rest of the season. Check Jinx's post here.

LeGarrette Blount

Woof, what a shot. LeGarrette Blount may have a second career lined up in MMA, if this whole college football thing doesn't work out. His ability to throw a punch (and a fit) is almost unparralleled in the NCAA.

Not only did Blount drop Boise State's linebacker Byron Hout with a single, vicious right hand, but he proceeded to act up to the point that it took several staff members and security guards to get him out of the stadium.

According to ESPN:

The Pac-10 later Friday will review tape of Oregon running back LeGarrette Blount's dropping Boise State linebacker Byron Hout with a postgame punch to the jaw to determine whether Blount will be disciplined, spokesman Jim Muldoon said.

Immediately following Oregon's 19-8 loss at Boise State on Thursday night, an ESPN replay of the incident showed Hout taunting Blount as the teams converged onto the field. As a Broncos assistant coach moved to separate Hout from Blount, the Oregon senior threw a right cross that connected with Hout's right jaw. Hout went down and popped right back up.

He's probably in BIG trouble, considering the fact that he's already been suspended once by his own coach for behavioral problems in the summer.

Blount's first missteps came in the offseason when, according to The Oregonian, he was suspended by first-year Ducks coach Chip Kelly for poor attendance at team meetings and workouts.

The First Five Minutes

Here's what's jumped out at me the first few minutes of SoCar-NCSU:

1. Oh my god, it's finally time for college football! I cannot wait for the first home game here in ATH. The sights, sounds, smells; I'm jealous of the 'Pack faithful in Raliegh right now.

2. Jesse Palmer actually looks like an adult this season.

3. Good point, JP: Spurrier has won more in his first few seasons than any other coach at SoCar. To say the OBC has lost his touch seems like an extreme when you consider where he is and the shadows he lives in...including one particular giant shadow that he created down in Gainesville.

4. This Kenny Chesney song SUCKS. Who would've ever though I'd actually miss that lame Big&Rich shit.

5. Stephen Garcia's brothers played college football...at Harvard?! Wow. If a friend of mine told me he saw or read this somewhere, I'd think he was lying, mistaken, or otherwise just full of shit. Seeing it on ESPN, though, makes it official. Talk about a black sheep. That kind of mediocre athleticism backed up with elitist, New England, party-boy antics might fly in the Ivy League, but here in the SEC...No wonder the boy lives with "a floating Matthew McConaughey on his shoulder at all times.".

6. Run-run-pass. Conservative, yet always in fashion; the little black dress of opening drives.

7. Fumble - not Garcia's fault. SoCar keeps. I'd love a few cold, mass-produced, shitty, lite beers right now. Now for the Richt-esque HB draw with a mile to go, and....punt.

8. FUMBLE LOST, NCSU. Let's see what the Cocks do here. Throw it?

9. Nope. Run-run-run, TD.

10. 7-0, SoCar. This first half is already higher scoring than last year's. I'm out, enjoy!

P.S. - This new song is awful. Yes, I know the old one sucked, too, but in a different, more charming way. Like a kid's artwork. Sure the drawing sucks, but they're kids. That, and the "coming to your city" hook was stuck in my head non-stop. This lame, time of your life crap Chesney's peddling will not the echoes wake on a hung over Saturday morning.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

UPDATE: Erin Andrews is still hot. That is all.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

UPDATE 2: 7-3. This game had some big defensive plays, and a TON of offensive ugliness. What does it mean? Not much, honestly. I've pegged both of these teams for improved seasons. Once they clean up a bit, they'll be fine. Hell, SoCar's next game is at Georgia and they always play the Dawgs close; that might be enough to push start them. As for the Pack, look for them to compete in the Atlantic Division.

Now, time for the Ducks on the Blue Turf of Boise!

"We Mortals Are But Shadows and Dust;

...shadows and dust...!"

One Day to Go.

Personal Polls, Week 2

Punch In the Face Poll: Who's cruising for a bruising this week?

5. The Black Eyed Peas - My anger has subsided a bit. I was going to leave them out altogether this week, but then I heard the "I Gotta Feeling" song (btw that's, like, half the fucking song's lyrics right there) and felt the urge to keep them around.

4. HBO - I'm new to the show, but last week's barley 40 minute True Blood was a rip-off. That, and stop filling airtime with shitty movies and dare to show more reruns of your best shows. Cycle through seasons of Six Feet Under, Oz, The Sopranos, etc. Will that many people be upset that they didn't get to see Maniac Cop 3 six times in one week?

3. Wachovia - They received a list of debit cards that had possibly been compromised in June and my card was on it. To protect me, Wachovia mailed me a letter and a new debit card, then deactivated the possibly compromised, older card. Nice, huh? Well, card security/ delivery and billing have separate records. So, while my statements come to my address, my letter and card went to a place I lived 3 fucking years ago. What does that mean? They left me a month and a half window to transition into the new card that I didn't have before closing it down, so I spent a night having my card denied everywhere I went, unable to order online and then rejected from the ATM before I could get someone on the phone to explain what happened. Now I have a instant issue card that's only good for ATM"s while I wait on another new card to come to my correct address. Fuck them.

2. Myself - I still haven't seen Inglourious Basterds. What a douche...

1. Sarah Palin - I was going to forgive and forget and move onto more contemporary things, but she deserves my hate for one more week...at least until football starts. I hate this woman and what she represents and people who think she's a quality candidate. So, I guess this is a punch by proxy to half the faces in the country...sorry, guys.

Didn't quite make the card: Charter Communications (your day's coming); People who embrace "free choice" when it come to denying public health care, but ignore free choice when it comes to sex, marriage, drugs, abortion or even buying alcohol on certain days - fucking hypocrites; Teenagers (I guess I'm officially old); People telling me where I should have ranked things on these lists (fuck you; This is my poll, make your own.)

----------------------------------------------------------------------

THE POWER POLL: Things putting Pep in my Step this week.

1. Football Season! - We're sooo close...'Pack and 'Cocks (sounds like a gay bar) Thursday night!

2. Last Week's No Reservations - Jim Harrison and Bourdain...good times. Not to mention that this allows me to include JH twice, because number 3 is...

3. Jim Harrison - I just finished his Memoir, Off to the Side, and it's convinced me that if you haven't read any of his work, than you deserve sincere consideration for the Punch in the Face list. I can't say enough about him or his work. If you appreciate the quaintness of the country or the bustle of the city, if you're drawn to great literature or simply good stories, if you're sure of who are or are still finding yourself, if you drink, eat, and be merry or melancholy, are seeking an answer or a time killer, if you like Tom Mcguane or Jack Nicholson you need to read Harrison.

4. R&R - I didn't do much this weekend, but I feel well rested for the first time in weeks. I should honestly do it more often, but I have a weakness for binge drinking.

5. Bill Moyer - We need more like him.

6. Genghis Khan - No particular reason and how are you going to argue about the man who conquered more of the world than even Alexander?

7. My Job - Even with all the extra shit we're being forced to do right now, not to mention the pay cuts, things are going smoothly and I'm...dare I say it?...enjoying it!

8. Hypocritical Pick of the Week: HBO - I know I put them on the punch list above, but I have to admit that I'm enjoying Sunday night television again. Usually the time between Big Love is crap, but I'm converted to True Blood, digging Hung, and Entourage is back. Not to mention Curb is right around the corner...

9. Publix - I popped in here after my drama filled trip to the bank Saturday, and MAN! is it nicer than Kroger. Samples, courtesy, no college students, cleanliness...everything but self checkout. Honestly, Publix, get some self-checkout. It's not the cashier's business how much fried chicken I'm about to inhale.

10. Football Season - 2X, mofos!

ALMOST: The Pogues' The Body of an American; The Falcons' late TD last night; A true frosh QB at USC; Mediocre cop movies;

I honestly don't know if these rankings will be back next week with football finally coming back. So, if not, thanks for coming along on this ride!

A Short History of Tailgating, Pt. 1

With football season bumping right up against us, it's time we start preparing by talking about the things that really make college football special. Chronologically speaking, tailgating is one of the first things done on a football Saturday (unless, of course, you count raiding the local grocery store for tailgating goodies like Doritos and beer). So let's take just a brief look at the history of tailgating, shall we? It'll be fun...

You might think that the first instances of tailgating occurred only decades ago, before modern football games, but you'd be wrong, but only slightly. The history of more general gatherings took place at least a hundred and fifty years ago, though today the practice might have us lose our collective lunches:

Well, if you examine the some of the earliest documented historical events, you may find that although modern tailgating most likely has its roots in college football, it may date back to the mid 1800's - think Civil War. You probably would not think that a war would be anyplace to throw a party, but it appears that is exactly what happened at the Battle of Run in 1861. Supporters of the Union showed up with baskets of food and enthusiastically cheered the soldiers on by shouting, "Go, Big Blue!" Source: E-Zine

Now, though true, the Civil War example sort of takes the legs out from under what we consider tailgating (and it's sort of a bummer, too), so let's jump a little farther into the future. For now, I'll skip the 1869 game between Princeton and Rutgers that is so often cited as the first instance of (wagon) tailgating. The football section of Suite101 has a much more recent example of the explosion of the nation's pre-game obsession:

During the 1920s and '30s tailgating was almost exclusively all day event taking place before and after games. But with the introduction of large electric lights in stadiums the night game would play a crucial role in the development of modern tailgating. Cooler night games allowed men and women to dress up for huge pregame bashes. The tradition of the night game continued unabated for about forty years until the beginning of the daytime college football coverage. This led fans to pack stadium parking lots for pregame festivities. With increasing media coverage, fan garb became more and more garish and absurd.

Source: Suite101.

Of course the Roaring Twenties would bring about the modern idea of tailgating, wouldn't it? What began as an organic festival celebrating football has now become mutually exclusive to football itself. You can go onto nearly any campus holding festivities and find people of all stripes there just for the food or the drink or the company or the unique fashion, without any considerable knowledge or understanding of football.

This is the first in (hopefully) a series of articles about the art and history of tailgating.

The Best Thing...EVER

No words...enjoy:

Soon...Very Soon.

A week until the roaring in my brain stops, the blood and star bursts subside from my vision and my jaw unlocks. Mere days until I can see again, feel again, and be right with the universe. A week from tomorrow the echoes wake and the fight begins for a champion of the west; the boys from old Florida rally and the Men of Troy fight; a week till Boomer Sooner, Rammer Jammer and the Rambling Wreck; till the eyes of Texas seek Gabriel and the War Eagle flies. So, Anchors Aweigh and Glory, Glory, motherfuckers, it is almost...MY time to shine!

Update

Holy Schnikes! I just got a power poll two-fer...Jim Harrison was on tonight's No Reservations. I've loved the show for two seasons now and just recently finished Off to the Side, Harrison's memoir. BTW, Harrison's Wolf is one of my all time favorite novels. Just don't confuse it with the movie Wolf, of which Harrison wrote the first few drafts. Anyway, I'm rambling now - probably due to the Dogfish Head Sah'Tea (Thanks HW1!). Enjoy your evening.

Polls and Rankings

The AP poll came out this weekend, the coaches poll hit two weeks ago and we've seen preseason top-25's all summer long. It's easy to burn out on all these polls, so I figured I'd mix it up a bit and write 2 lists to cap the week. One's a top-5 people I'd like to punch, man or woman (we're equal opp here at FTS), and the other list is a Power Poll of random things I'm really digging right now. Enjoy...

First, people I'd like to punch right in the face:

5. Nancy Grace - She hasn't done anything recently, but I saw an old highlight of her attacking a lawyer in the Duke rape case. She had those guys guilty and strung up before any evidence was presented and lambasted the defense attorney for defending his clients. Turns out there was NO evidence and the case was dropped. It's called justice, Nancy. How do you still have a show?

4. Any Birther - God, some of us are SO fucking stupid.

3. Glenn Beck - At least he's finally paying a small price for his right-wing douchebaggery.

2. The Black-Eyed Peas - How is that music? You're just saying the same thing over and over again.

And, who's number one in the face-punching poll?

1. Sarah Palin - Death Panels? Christ she's awful. She's an irresponsible leader and citizen, a hypocrite, and needs to actually look up the definition of the word "quit."

Others considered: Hipsters, Michael Moore, UGA students downtown for the first weekend of the school year

The Power Poll

So, we've covered the bad, but what's good? Here are the things that are high on my list after this week.

1. Megan Fox - Duh.

2. Preseason Football - We're getting very close...

3. That dog that saved that dude's life - She's like Lassie.

4. The bartenders at Allgood/Yassin the cab driver - Thanks for the weekend drinks and rides!

5. This Movie Idea - SWEET!

6. Bacardi Dragonberry - Do something with it!

7. EA Sports' Madden 10 - The online franchise is moving right along.

8. Curb Your Enthusiasm reruns - HBO Comedy everyday at 7:30.

9. Taquiera Del Sol - Skip the line, sit at the bar, and use the rear exit.

10. Anthony Bourdain - No Reservations is cruising through a new season, and I'm hooked.

Others considered: My Subway renaissance, EDSBS, So I Married an Axe-Murderer, Jim Harrison

AP Top-25

The AP Poll was just released and Florida is the runaway pick for #1. Not only do the have the top spot on lock, they're the most favored #1 in the history of the polls. That's a lot of pressure; I'm beginning to wonder if they can actually do this...

Here's the AP poll, from ESPN:

AP Top 25
RANK	TEAM	RECORD	PTS	PVS
1.	Florida (58)	0-0	1498	1
2.	Texas (2)	0-0	1424	4
3.	Oklahoma	0-0	1370	5
4.	USC	0-0	1313	3
5.	Alabama	0-0	1156	6
6.	Ohio State	0-0	1113	9
7.	Virginia Tech	0-0	1054	15
8.	Mississippi	0-0	1047	14
9.	Oklahoma State	0-0	989	16
9.	Penn State	0-0	989	8
11.	LSU	0-0	914	NR
12.	California	0-0	746	NR
13.	Georgia	0-0	714	13
14.	Boise State	0-0	659	11
15.	Georgia Tech	0-0	593	22
16.	Oregon	0-0	587	10
17.	TCU	0-0	521	7
18.	Florida State	0-0	307	21
19.	Utah	0-0	289	2
20.	Brigham Young	0-0	267	25
21.	North Carolina	0-0	261	NR
22.	Iowa	0-0	229	20
23.	Notre Dame	0-0	225	NR
24.	Nebraska	0-0	207	NR
25.	Kansas	0-0	134	NR

Others Receiving Votes:

Oregon State 122, Illinois 105, Pittsburgh 103, Michigan State 100, Rutgers 83, Texas Tech 76, West Virginia 57, Cincinnati 44, Clemson 42, Miami (FL) 40, East Carolina 30, Tennessee 15, Arizona 13, North Carolina State 10, Boston College 9, CENTRL MICHIGAN 7, Auburn 7, UCLA 7, Northwestern 5, South Florida 3, Southern Miss 3, Vanderbilt 3, Missouri 3, South Carolina 2, Nevada 1, Arkansas 1, Houston 1, TROY 1, Tulsa 1.

The Whole Michael Vick Fiasco

[Being a guest blogger, I feel it's necessary that I distance my own opinion from that of joaj's. He didn't write this, so don't blame him for my rantings!]

The big Michael Vick interview with James Brown played the other night on 60 Minutes - which you can watch below, after the jump - and it begs the question: is he remorseful? I can see you opening your mouth to answer, and I already have another question: does it really matter at this point? Now that he's gone to prison, served the term, lost most, if not all, of his money, does the public need another remorse litmus test of some kind?

The basic sentiment online is that people don't think he showed any remorse and that he should be punished to an even more extreme degree, and, while I love dogs as much as the next guy, when does punishing Michael Vick for what he did stop? In my circle of friends, I was a pretty outspoken critic of the guy (and I wasn't the only one), and though I don't think he necessarily deserves another shot at playing in the NFL (would John Wayne Gacy have been given his old job as a party clown after prison?), for the crimes he committed, Michael Vick has paid his debt to society.

Secretly, most people probably were ready to let go. If he had gotten out of prison and sunk into obscurity, perhaps they would have just let the whole thing slide from here on out. But the fact that he's out in the public eye has reignited personal ire for the guy, and I guess he should have anticipated that. What he probably doesn't realize, however, is that there is now more pressure on him than perhaps in his entire career. The sort of glee that people will take in his every misstep this year will dwarf the sort of hope he encountered the first time around in the NFL. It's not even going to be a contest.

Hate the guy or not; doesn't matter to me. But think about why. It's an important exercise to get at the root of this kind of stuff. The dog torture conviction? The lack of remorse? The fact that he was presumptive enough to try a second run in the NFL, rather than shrink into obscurity? Drugs? Falcons fan?

Thoughts on the Coaches Poll

Oregon and Oregon State...but no Arizona schools? I think this reeks of shallow thought and lack of analysis. They just looked at the Pac-10 and picked a couple regulars to fill out their forms. And who all do they see Cal losing to?

Bama, LSU and Ole Miss all in the top-10: I'll give you 2, but 3 teams from the same division, in the toughest conference, is just not going to happen. They drank the Kool-Aid on Ole Miss but not enough to pick them first or second in their own division? Well played, guys.

Mtn. West Love - It's a bit out of hand, now isn't it? 3 teams form a non-BCS conference? While Utah, BYU and TCU are all very good teams, they won't all finish ranked. Last year was a fluke with the Utes perfect run. In fact, looking ahead, I see Utah losing to both BYU and TCU, most likely resulting in their ejection from the rankings.

Speaking of...the MWC. So, we have 3 teams from the MWC and none from the Big East? Are the coaches promising that when Rutgers is 11-1 after their mighty schedule, they'll refuse to rank them? I'd be fine with that, but we all know that's not happening. Does this also mean that the coaches are supporting the inclusion of the MWC over the Big East in the BCS formula? It certainly looks like it here.

23? Who are they kidding with Notre Dame this low? The Irish play a Rutgers-esque schedule and will go 9-3 or 10-2. No way the coaches don't have the Irish in the top-10 with that record, touting them for a BCS berth.

Others receiving votes - Someone had Troy at 25 and Larry Blakeney isn't a voter. Strong.

And lastly, who filled out Spurrier's ballot?

2009 Preseason Coaches Poll

Check the complete details out here.

Here is the top-25 from usatoday.com.

Rank	Team (first-place votes)	2008 record	Points	Final 2008 rank
1.	Florida (53)	13-1	1,466	1
2.	Texas (4)	12-1	1,386	3
3.	Oklahoma (1)	12-2	1,358	5
4.	Southern California (1)	12-1	1,321	2
5.	Alabama	12-2	1,134	6
6.	Ohio State	10-3	1,126	11
7.	Virginia Tech	10-4	1,020	14
8.	Penn State	11-2	988	8
9.	LSU	8-5	917	NR
10.	Mississippi	9-4	889	15
11.	Oklahoma State	9-4	861	18
12.	California	9-4	711	25
13.	Georgia	10-3	707	10
14.	Oregon	10-3	694	9
15.	Georgia Tech	9-4	559	22
16.	Boise State	12-1	542	13
17.	TCU	11-2	461	7
18.	Utah	13-0	404	4
19.	Florida State	9-4	371	23
20.	North Carolina	8-5	293	NR
21.	Iowa	9-4	257	20
22.	Nebraska	9-4	236	NR
23.	Notre Dame	7-6	194	NR
24.	Brigham Young	10-3	178	21
25.	Oregon State	9-4	165	19

Comments to come later.

The Doldrums of Summer Camp and ESPN's New Plan

Soooo...what are we going to talk about for the next 30 days? Football's so close, yet so SUPER far away, I haven't read any blog-worthy books lately, and The Hangover is still the best movie I've seen this summer. Work has started back full-time, so now I'm all real-world, workin' man Jones, molding the future and such, leaving little time for anything else. Politics and religion are pretty much off limits, so, I've got nothin'.

Oh well, until I think of anything to write here, you should go to ESPN and check out the new-Gordon Gekko Division mock draft and conference realignment. It's not a bad idea: scale the bowl subdivision down to 40 teams split into 4 super conferences with the winners seeded into a playoff. The other 80 teams in the FBS drop into a new, lower subdivision, The Tom Joad league. After each season, the 5 worst of the Gekko teams get demoted and the best of the Joads get to play with the big boys. Yesterday, Maisel, Forde and Schlabach drafted the top-40 in a mock draft and today the conferences were unveiled. It's a lot of fun and a great way to kill time until the real season starts.