It's been a big year so far for the A-Sun. 5 wins against BCS conference teams (including 3 against the SEC). That said, it's a young (and, top to bottom, not very good) conference. According to Kyle Whelliston, the A-Sun has seven teams in the bottom 40, including 4 in the bottom 14. Ken Pomeroy ranks the A-Sun 28th out of 31 conferences. Gardner-Webb and ETSU are at the top in most of the computers. I'll have a complete team-by-team preview comig up later this week before conference play begins. But here are my votes for all-conference based on November and December:
Conference Player of the Year -- Jonathan Rodriguez, forward, Campbell
First Team All-Conference -- Forwards: Rodriguez, Thomas Sanders (Gardner-Webb), Kevin Tiggs (ETSU). Guards: Ben Smith (Jacksonville), Aaron Linn (Gardner-Webb)
Second Team -- Guards: Grayson Flittner (G-W), Justin Hare (Belmont), Shadeen Aaron (Mercer). Forwards: Calvin Henry (Mercer), Landon Adler (Florida Gulf Coast)
Honorable Mention -- Shane Dansby (Belmont), Brian Pfohl (Mercer), Adam Liddell (Fla-GC), Andrew Reed (ETSU), Shaun Stegall (Kennesaw), Brandon Brown (Lipscomb), Garfield Blair (Stetson), Marcus Allen (Jacksonville)
Monday, December 31, 2007
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
A Little Creepy
So I'm finishing up the first draft of my new book today. My book is about my experiences recovering from heart surgery, and the lessons I an still learning.
In between Google searches for inspirational quotes from Winston Churchill, Charles DeGaulle, and Don Henley, I click over to the Jeopardy message boards and find out that Alex Trebek is in the hospital recovering from a "mild heart attack."
Welcome to the club, Alex. Our prayers are with you.
In between Google searches for inspirational quotes from Winston Churchill, Charles DeGaulle, and Don Henley, I click over to the Jeopardy message boards and find out that Alex Trebek is in the hospital recovering from a "mild heart attack."
Welcome to the club, Alex. Our prayers are with you.
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
The Locke Paradox
In "A Letter Concerning Toleration," John Locke wrote that "I esteem that toleration to be the chief characteristic mark of the true Church." Writing in an era recently ravaged by all manner of religious strife, manifested most notably by the Glorious Revolution of 1688 settling the Catholic-Protestant conflicts of 17th Century England, Locke's premise makes sense. Locke argued that rather than have a Hobbesian central authority to settle all matter of religion on behalf of a society, the best available option was for religion to be privatized. If religion is a matter for the private chamber instead of the public square, then the doctrinal persuasions of one leader or another become irrelevent to his actions as a public official. Furthermore, if I tolerate your doctrinal dissent when I'm in power, maybe you will tolerate mine when roles are reversed.
Locke's ideas on toleration formed the basis of much of the thought on the relationship between church and state in America's infancy. The "go along to get along" mindset was formative for men loke John Adams, who believed that virtue was the key to happiness, and that if a person were properly educated, he would see that only through the pursuit of virtue was true happiness possible. Jefferson's idea of a "wall of separation between church and state" was largely a reaction to the excesses of church influence in government and politics.
And given the Catholicization of the Spanish Empire under Isabella, the painful birthing of the Anglican church under Henry VIII, the whole Oliver Cromwell mess, and (oh by the way) the Thirty Years War, Locke and his disciples might have a point. Keep government and religion separate, if for no other reason than in the name of peace.
As far as that goes, I agree. For that matter, so does the Apostle Paul. In 1 Timothy 2, Paul says Christians should pray that they can lead "peacable, quiet lives" in relation to the government. Interestingly for those of us in Churches of Christ, he uses the exact same language to describe the relationship between men and women in the church.
Furthermore, the historical evidence seems to indicate that Locke may have had a point. Societies where religious disagreement is a reason to fight have been marked by constant sectarian violence or harsh repression of any dissenting views -- religious, policitcal, or otherwise. By contrast, the tolerant societies have (generally) been peaceful, so long as there was nothing else to fight over.
But I would argue that Locke was not so much right as he was lucky.
Those societies which adopted his views fo tolerance and put them into practice were, at the time they became tolerant, largely Jesus-ist. The major societal disagreements Lockeian cultures have faced have not been between Jesus-ism and something else, but between one brand of Jesus-ism and another. But as Jesus has taken more and more of a back seat in those cultures, what has replaced Him has become harder and harder to tolerate.
John Locke was lucky, then, because his brand of tolerance only works in a society that leans on the crutch of the teachings of Jesus. Kick away that crutch, and tolerance becomes catastrophic.
Ironically, Christian teaching says as much. 2 Corinthians 12:20-21 says that the only possible path to virtue is by being invested in a community of faith. A religion that is purely private cannot, by definition, do anything to prevent sin or promote virtue. In fact, "private" religion does the exact oposite, providing a shield behind which all manner of vice and iniquity can hide.
For a society to truly be tolerant, there must be certain moral precepts everyone agrees to, accepts, and openly discusses in the public arena. If those precepts are violated -- or even supressed -- what is left is chaos.
Locke's ideas on toleration formed the basis of much of the thought on the relationship between church and state in America's infancy. The "go along to get along" mindset was formative for men loke John Adams, who believed that virtue was the key to happiness, and that if a person were properly educated, he would see that only through the pursuit of virtue was true happiness possible. Jefferson's idea of a "wall of separation between church and state" was largely a reaction to the excesses of church influence in government and politics.
And given the Catholicization of the Spanish Empire under Isabella, the painful birthing of the Anglican church under Henry VIII, the whole Oliver Cromwell mess, and (oh by the way) the Thirty Years War, Locke and his disciples might have a point. Keep government and religion separate, if for no other reason than in the name of peace.
As far as that goes, I agree. For that matter, so does the Apostle Paul. In 1 Timothy 2, Paul says Christians should pray that they can lead "peacable, quiet lives" in relation to the government. Interestingly for those of us in Churches of Christ, he uses the exact same language to describe the relationship between men and women in the church.
Furthermore, the historical evidence seems to indicate that Locke may have had a point. Societies where religious disagreement is a reason to fight have been marked by constant sectarian violence or harsh repression of any dissenting views -- religious, policitcal, or otherwise. By contrast, the tolerant societies have (generally) been peaceful, so long as there was nothing else to fight over.
But I would argue that Locke was not so much right as he was lucky.
Those societies which adopted his views fo tolerance and put them into practice were, at the time they became tolerant, largely Jesus-ist. The major societal disagreements Lockeian cultures have faced have not been between Jesus-ism and something else, but between one brand of Jesus-ism and another. But as Jesus has taken more and more of a back seat in those cultures, what has replaced Him has become harder and harder to tolerate.
John Locke was lucky, then, because his brand of tolerance only works in a society that leans on the crutch of the teachings of Jesus. Kick away that crutch, and tolerance becomes catastrophic.
Ironically, Christian teaching says as much. 2 Corinthians 12:20-21 says that the only possible path to virtue is by being invested in a community of faith. A religion that is purely private cannot, by definition, do anything to prevent sin or promote virtue. In fact, "private" religion does the exact oposite, providing a shield behind which all manner of vice and iniquity can hide.
For a society to truly be tolerant, there must be certain moral precepts everyone agrees to, accepts, and openly discusses in the public arena. If those precepts are violated -- or even supressed -- what is left is chaos.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Lipscomb Lady Bisions Basketball
It's that time of year. Coach, computer scientist, and all-around good egg Frank Bennett rolls out the latest edition of your Lady Bisons.
So far, the reviews are encouraging, even if there is still work to do.
First, the obvious: Lipscomb lost an exhinition game. Again. This time, Alabama-Huntsville came into Allen Arena and walked out with a 69-68 win. This can't be a good sign. A Divison I team ought to be able to give its 9 best players double-digit minutes and carry the day over a Division II team on talent alone, especially at home and especially in an exhibiton game in November. If Lipscomb has ambitions higher than "let's hope we make the Atlantic Sun tournament," this can't happen. And for Lipscomb, who relies so heavily on home-coourt advantage, this REALLY can't happen at home. Period.
What went wrong:
Free throw shooting. Lipscomb was 6 for 19 in the second half from the free throw line. Six for nineteen. Ugh.
Tempo. The game was WAY too fast for a team like Lipscomb. 80 possessions is high for a men's game, let alone women. For the talent Coach Bennett recruits to be most effective, Lipscomb needs to be playing in the high 60's to low 70's.
Turnovers. Lipscomb must take better care of the basketball. This is a recording.
What went right:
Shot selection: Last year, Lipscomb shot 3's almost without conscience. Tonight, fewer than 40% of their attempts were from beyond the arc. Factor in the number of 2-shot free throw situations they generated, and what we see is a return to the Bennett Ball of the mid 90's. Pound the ball inside and make their big girls make a play to stop you. In a guard-oriented league like the A-Sun, I like the idea.
Defense: 21 forced turnovers, including 14 steals. Defense and lay-ups, with just enough 3's to keep the other team honest. Welcome to Bennett Ball. One might have liked a stop late, but credit UAH for making plays when they needed them.
Grit: Down 5 with 2 minutes to go (in an exhibition game at home) and generally not playing very well, the Lady Bisons stepped up in crunch time. Miriam McAlister gets an and-one (which she made) to cut the lead to 2. Then Dana Carrigan, Katie Woods, and Jenna Bartsokas each hit 3's to give the defense a chance.
The Lady Bisions open up for real at UT-Martin on Friday.
So far, the reviews are encouraging, even if there is still work to do.
First, the obvious: Lipscomb lost an exhinition game. Again. This time, Alabama-Huntsville came into Allen Arena and walked out with a 69-68 win. This can't be a good sign. A Divison I team ought to be able to give its 9 best players double-digit minutes and carry the day over a Division II team on talent alone, especially at home and especially in an exhibiton game in November. If Lipscomb has ambitions higher than "let's hope we make the Atlantic Sun tournament," this can't happen. And for Lipscomb, who relies so heavily on home-coourt advantage, this REALLY can't happen at home. Period.
What went wrong:
Free throw shooting. Lipscomb was 6 for 19 in the second half from the free throw line. Six for nineteen. Ugh.
Tempo. The game was WAY too fast for a team like Lipscomb. 80 possessions is high for a men's game, let alone women. For the talent Coach Bennett recruits to be most effective, Lipscomb needs to be playing in the high 60's to low 70's.
Turnovers. Lipscomb must take better care of the basketball. This is a recording.
What went right:
Shot selection: Last year, Lipscomb shot 3's almost without conscience. Tonight, fewer than 40% of their attempts were from beyond the arc. Factor in the number of 2-shot free throw situations they generated, and what we see is a return to the Bennett Ball of the mid 90's. Pound the ball inside and make their big girls make a play to stop you. In a guard-oriented league like the A-Sun, I like the idea.
Defense: 21 forced turnovers, including 14 steals. Defense and lay-ups, with just enough 3's to keep the other team honest. Welcome to Bennett Ball. One might have liked a stop late, but credit UAH for making plays when they needed them.
Grit: Down 5 with 2 minutes to go (in an exhibition game at home) and generally not playing very well, the Lady Bisons stepped up in crunch time. Miriam McAlister gets an and-one (which she made) to cut the lead to 2. Then Dana Carrigan, Katie Woods, and Jenna Bartsokas each hit 3's to give the defense a chance.
The Lady Bisions open up for real at UT-Martin on Friday.
Friday, November 2, 2007
In Defense of the National League
For the third time in four years and the seventh time in ten, the representative of the American League has won the World Series.
I'm stunned.
Consider this: Since the dismantling of the Big Red Machine 30 years ago, only three American League teams have gone to the World Series and failed to win at least 2 games -- the 2006 Tigers and Tony Larussa's A's in 1988 and 1990. The American League has been swept EXACTLY ONCE since 1977. By contrast, the National League has gone down 4-0 three times in the last four years, and five times in ten years.
Competitive disadvantage, much?
Maybe, but randomness implies clusters. If the teams really are even and the National League is just hitting a "bad patch," things should even out over the long term.
So let's look at the long term.
The last 30 World Series have gone for the AL team 17 times and the NL 13. Pretty even, unless you consider that the NL won 4 in a row between 1978 and 1981. The AL leads the NL 16-9 in 25 Series.
What's more, in the last 10 years, the NL has won 16 World Series games, and 12 of those wins came in Series they won. The AL has won 38, a .704 winning percentage. In the last 25 Series, the AL is 82-52. 61.2% of World Series games in the last 25 years have been won by the team that used a Designated Hitter all year.
If you take any two teams and give one team a 61.2% chance of winning any one game, that team will win a best-of-seven series 73.3% of the time.
So in spite of their dominance, the American League has actually UNDER-performed in terms of winning championships since 1983. Statistically, they should have two more (and in 1997 and 2001, the AL team took a 1-run lead into the 9th inning of Game 7 and lost).
But all that said, this is a great time to be a National League fan. 9 different pennant winners in 10 years. 12 of the league's 16 teams have been to the playoffs since 2003, and Milwaukee got close this year. Fully half the league finished with 5 games of a play-off spot this year, a fairly routine occurance in the lower-offense NL. Not so routine -- with four days to go in the season, not only were there 8 teams still alive, but ALL FOUR spots were still up for grabs. Wild card or no wild card, that's a great race.
Then there's the AL. Yawn. The last time the AL played any meaningful baseball in September was 2000. The last one-game play-off in the AL was in 1978. The NL has seen six since. Almost half the league (6 of 14) has gone at least 5 years since their last post-season appearance, and for 4 of those 6, the drought is a decade or more. Plus, the average American League team plays 10 fewer 1-run games per year than the average NL team, resulting both in more blow-outs AND in longer games.
That said, scoreboard. The AL is killing the NL when they play head-to-head, finishing 18 games over .500 in interleague play this year, which is better than the 50+ games the AL had on the NL last year. Clearly, rosters that include a DH for 162 games are better than rosters built around the relaity that pitchers have to hit.
So what to do?
With no DH, the baseball is better, with closer games and tighter pennant races, both of which make for great TV. The balance between the leagues is restored. Big-time sluggers have to play defense. Plus (and this is no small consideration), shorter games fit better into TV schedules.
Maybe then baseball would be worth staying up for.
I'm stunned.
Consider this: Since the dismantling of the Big Red Machine 30 years ago, only three American League teams have gone to the World Series and failed to win at least 2 games -- the 2006 Tigers and Tony Larussa's A's in 1988 and 1990. The American League has been swept EXACTLY ONCE since 1977. By contrast, the National League has gone down 4-0 three times in the last four years, and five times in ten years.
Competitive disadvantage, much?
Maybe, but randomness implies clusters. If the teams really are even and the National League is just hitting a "bad patch," things should even out over the long term.
So let's look at the long term.
The last 30 World Series have gone for the AL team 17 times and the NL 13. Pretty even, unless you consider that the NL won 4 in a row between 1978 and 1981. The AL leads the NL 16-9 in 25 Series.
What's more, in the last 10 years, the NL has won 16 World Series games, and 12 of those wins came in Series they won. The AL has won 38, a .704 winning percentage. In the last 25 Series, the AL is 82-52. 61.2% of World Series games in the last 25 years have been won by the team that used a Designated Hitter all year.
If you take any two teams and give one team a 61.2% chance of winning any one game, that team will win a best-of-seven series 73.3% of the time.
So in spite of their dominance, the American League has actually UNDER-performed in terms of winning championships since 1983. Statistically, they should have two more (and in 1997 and 2001, the AL team took a 1-run lead into the 9th inning of Game 7 and lost).
But all that said, this is a great time to be a National League fan. 9 different pennant winners in 10 years. 12 of the league's 16 teams have been to the playoffs since 2003, and Milwaukee got close this year. Fully half the league finished with 5 games of a play-off spot this year, a fairly routine occurance in the lower-offense NL. Not so routine -- with four days to go in the season, not only were there 8 teams still alive, but ALL FOUR spots were still up for grabs. Wild card or no wild card, that's a great race.
Then there's the AL. Yawn. The last time the AL played any meaningful baseball in September was 2000. The last one-game play-off in the AL was in 1978. The NL has seen six since. Almost half the league (6 of 14) has gone at least 5 years since their last post-season appearance, and for 4 of those 6, the drought is a decade or more. Plus, the average American League team plays 10 fewer 1-run games per year than the average NL team, resulting both in more blow-outs AND in longer games.
That said, scoreboard. The AL is killing the NL when they play head-to-head, finishing 18 games over .500 in interleague play this year, which is better than the 50+ games the AL had on the NL last year. Clearly, rosters that include a DH for 162 games are better than rosters built around the relaity that pitchers have to hit.
So what to do?
With no DH, the baseball is better, with closer games and tighter pennant races, both of which make for great TV. The balance between the leagues is restored. Big-time sluggers have to play defense. Plus (and this is no small consideration), shorter games fit better into TV schedules.
Maybe then baseball would be worth staying up for.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
A Date Which Shall Live in Infamy
Happy Jeop-iversary to me.
November 1, 2004 -- known to most of nerd nation as the glorious day when the Sudoku puzzle made its major U. S. daily newspaper debut in the New York World -- was memorable in the life of your humble correspondent for another reason.
That was the night my Jeopardy show aired.
Note the singular.
I occupied the middle podium, armed with quick-draw reflexes, an obligingly cute cat story (Note to future contestants: Do NOT incur the wrath of the Jeopardy spirits by telling a pet story from the middle podium), and all the preparation I could muster. Between getting The Call in June and tape day on August 17, I had watched over 100 episodes, read the transcripts of 200 more, memorized the list of frequently referenced works of art and literature from the NAQT website, and generally crammed my brain with whatever else I could find to stuff in there. To my left (left, right?, uh, left. Yeah, left.) stood Lisa Ellis, a lovely young school teacher and recent Williams graduate who then worked at the Hathaway-Brown School in Shaker Heights, Ohio.
To my right . . . well, let's just say he'd been there a while.
As for the game, I actually don't remember much. The gory details are available on J! Archive. They tell me I got 10 right, 1 wrong: the miss coming on a Classical Music clue that opened the door for Ken to claim a Daily Double (Arutro Toscannini, best known as a lyric in Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire").
I also almost missed a Bible question, but fearing a rupture in the space-time continuum, the judges eventually ruled in my favor.
The other memorable clue from that game was near the end, when Ken had about 3 times my score and got a clue on "Bridge to Terebithia." The night Ken lost to Nancy Zerg there was a batch of clips from Ken's games (presumably provided by Sony) that aired on Nightline, David Letterman, A&E Biography, and the TV Guide Channel. Ken is seen firing off answer after answer, while his slack-jawed opponents stand helplessly behind their measly 3- and 4-digit scores. About three clues from the end, you hear "What is Terebithia?"
The slack jaw with the beard would be me.
Word to the wise -- don't use the word "Terebithia" in my presence. I might vomit on your shoes, and then I'll be in no condition to explain myself. If you're studying for the SHC, don't look for it any time soon.
If you remember that Final Jeopardy, you are probably not surprised to learn that "left" and "right" are still an issue for me three years later. I'm the goofball who drew the arrow the wrong way. For the record, I still wear my watch extra-tight on my left wrist when I referee soccer games so I'll remember.
Confession time: I haven't read Brainiac. I picked it up long enough to find out I'm not in it, then put it down and walked away.
Because that's exactly the kind of bitter, egotistical, curmudgeonly old windbag that I am.
P. S.: To Lisa -- If the editors ever have the sense to list you in the Social Register, I'll buy that.
November 1, 2004 -- known to most of nerd nation as the glorious day when the Sudoku puzzle made its major U. S. daily newspaper debut in the New York World -- was memorable in the life of your humble correspondent for another reason.
That was the night my Jeopardy show aired.
Note the singular.
I occupied the middle podium, armed with quick-draw reflexes, an obligingly cute cat story (Note to future contestants: Do NOT incur the wrath of the Jeopardy spirits by telling a pet story from the middle podium), and all the preparation I could muster. Between getting The Call in June and tape day on August 17, I had watched over 100 episodes, read the transcripts of 200 more, memorized the list of frequently referenced works of art and literature from the NAQT website, and generally crammed my brain with whatever else I could find to stuff in there. To my left (left, right?, uh, left. Yeah, left.) stood Lisa Ellis, a lovely young school teacher and recent Williams graduate who then worked at the Hathaway-Brown School in Shaker Heights, Ohio.
To my right . . . well, let's just say he'd been there a while.
As for the game, I actually don't remember much. The gory details are available on J! Archive. They tell me I got 10 right, 1 wrong: the miss coming on a Classical Music clue that opened the door for Ken to claim a Daily Double (Arutro Toscannini, best known as a lyric in Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire").
I also almost missed a Bible question, but fearing a rupture in the space-time continuum, the judges eventually ruled in my favor.
The other memorable clue from that game was near the end, when Ken had about 3 times my score and got a clue on "Bridge to Terebithia." The night Ken lost to Nancy Zerg there was a batch of clips from Ken's games (presumably provided by Sony) that aired on Nightline, David Letterman, A&E Biography, and the TV Guide Channel. Ken is seen firing off answer after answer, while his slack-jawed opponents stand helplessly behind their measly 3- and 4-digit scores. About three clues from the end, you hear "What is Terebithia?"
The slack jaw with the beard would be me.
Word to the wise -- don't use the word "Terebithia" in my presence. I might vomit on your shoes, and then I'll be in no condition to explain myself. If you're studying for the SHC, don't look for it any time soon.
If you remember that Final Jeopardy, you are probably not surprised to learn that "left" and "right" are still an issue for me three years later. I'm the goofball who drew the arrow the wrong way. For the record, I still wear my watch extra-tight on my left wrist when I referee soccer games so I'll remember.
Confession time: I haven't read Brainiac. I picked it up long enough to find out I'm not in it, then put it down and walked away.
Because that's exactly the kind of bitter, egotistical, curmudgeonly old windbag that I am.
P. S.: To Lisa -- If the editors ever have the sense to list you in the Social Register, I'll buy that.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Lady Bisons Win!
The Lispcomb Lady Bisons soccer team got its first-ever conference win last Friday, defeating USC-Upstate 1-0 on a goal early in the second half.
Statistically, it was their best game of the year, as they mounted 23 scoring chances to Upstate's 21. This marks the first time all year the Lady Bisons have had more scoring chances than the opposition. Their two previous best performances came against Jackson State (a 1-0 OT win where they were out-chanced 14-12) and Central Arkansas (a 2-1 loss where UCA had 23 chances to Lipscomb's 18).
I guess there's something to say for confidence -- and defense -- considering that Lipscomb was coming off a dreadful North Carolina trip where they escaped with a 1-0 loss and a 0-0 tie depsite giving up 86 scoring chances in two games while mounting only 16. The 86 chances doesn't say much about Lipscomb's ability to possess the ball in the midfield, but the one goal is a credit to goal-mouth defense.
The Lady Bisons' all-time Atlantic Sun record improves to 1-38-3 with the win.
Statistically, it was their best game of the year, as they mounted 23 scoring chances to Upstate's 21. This marks the first time all year the Lady Bisons have had more scoring chances than the opposition. Their two previous best performances came against Jackson State (a 1-0 OT win where they were out-chanced 14-12) and Central Arkansas (a 2-1 loss where UCA had 23 chances to Lipscomb's 18).
I guess there's something to say for confidence -- and defense -- considering that Lipscomb was coming off a dreadful North Carolina trip where they escaped with a 1-0 loss and a 0-0 tie depsite giving up 86 scoring chances in two games while mounting only 16. The 86 chances doesn't say much about Lipscomb's ability to possess the ball in the midfield, but the one goal is a credit to goal-mouth defense.
The Lady Bisons' all-time Atlantic Sun record improves to 1-38-3 with the win.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Postcard From the Ledge
Metsfan, I feel your pain.
110 minutes ago, Scott Hairston gave Trevor Hoffman and the Padres a 2-run lead. Then the only closer in baseball history to record 500 saves gags on a wild-card-clinching inning for the second time in three days, this time to a team without the namesake of your franchise's only Hall of Famer.
Double. Double. Triple. Walk. Sac fly.
Thanks for coming.
And I'm not even going to get into whether or not Matt Holliday touched the plate, because Michael Barrett dropped the ball. Besides, the 80 MPH slop Trevor throws anyway is going to have even less movement in Colorado than anywhere else. Even with 2 outs and a man on first, I like the Rockies chances if Hoffman is still out there. If there were ever a situation tailor-made for sinker-baller Cla Meredith, this is it.
I just wish I could say I (or, better yet, Bud Black) thought that 110 minutes ago.
A team where Greg Maddux is the THIRD starter, the best bullpen in baseball, and a 5 game lead with 12 to go ought to be able to finish, even with 2 starting outfielders out with injuries.
But credit Colorado. 14-1 is 14-1, no matter what anybody else does.
110 minutes ago, Scott Hairston gave Trevor Hoffman and the Padres a 2-run lead. Then the only closer in baseball history to record 500 saves gags on a wild-card-clinching inning for the second time in three days, this time to a team without the namesake of your franchise's only Hall of Famer.
Double. Double. Triple. Walk. Sac fly.
Thanks for coming.
And I'm not even going to get into whether or not Matt Holliday touched the plate, because Michael Barrett dropped the ball. Besides, the 80 MPH slop Trevor throws anyway is going to have even less movement in Colorado than anywhere else. Even with 2 outs and a man on first, I like the Rockies chances if Hoffman is still out there. If there were ever a situation tailor-made for sinker-baller Cla Meredith, this is it.
I just wish I could say I (or, better yet, Bud Black) thought that 110 minutes ago.
A team where Greg Maddux is the THIRD starter, the best bullpen in baseball, and a 5 game lead with 12 to go ought to be able to finish, even with 2 starting outfielders out with injuries.
But credit Colorado. 14-1 is 14-1, no matter what anybody else does.
Thursday, September 27, 2007
Here's the latest:
Tom Kelso won the Summer Hiatus Challenge for the second time in three years. He didn't miss a clue in the TOC. A late-discovered typo by the second-place player made the tiebreaker irrelevant.
The first draft of my first book ("I'm Getting Better: Reflections on a Broken Heart") is almost finished. Stay tuned.
The Padres are in the thick of a National League 7-team pennant race that, as of Thursday afternoon, has exactly ZERO clinched play-off spots. Four days to go and almost half of the league is still alive for the post-season. Anyone want to make the case that the DH makes for better baseball? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?
Still to come: a new (or at least improved and re-packaged) tempo-free stat for college basketball. Again, stay tuned.
Tom Kelso won the Summer Hiatus Challenge for the second time in three years. He didn't miss a clue in the TOC. A late-discovered typo by the second-place player made the tiebreaker irrelevant.
The first draft of my first book ("I'm Getting Better: Reflections on a Broken Heart") is almost finished. Stay tuned.
The Padres are in the thick of a National League 7-team pennant race that, as of Thursday afternoon, has exactly ZERO clinched play-off spots. Four days to go and almost half of the league is still alive for the post-season. Anyone want to make the case that the DH makes for better baseball? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?
Still to come: a new (or at least improved and re-packaged) tempo-free stat for college basketball. Again, stay tuned.
Sunday, July 29, 2007
The Summer Hiatus Challenge is underway. Best of luck to all participating. I'll be on vacation all this week, but the game must go on.
Friday, July 20, 2007
Basketball Schedules Out
Lipscomb has released its basketball schedules for the Bisons and Lady Bisons. Highlights:
-- 10 road games. The men only play 3 of their 13 nonconference games at home. That'll help the conference RPI. My first look gives them about 6 wins, but with road games valued the way they are in the RPI everyone will look better.
-- Men's road games at Vandy and tournaments at Iowa State and MTSU. App. State is in the MTSU field.
-- Divisional play. The A-Sun now has 12 (!) teams, so Lipscomb only plays home-and-home with Belmont, ETSU, Gardner-Webb, Campbell, and USC-Upstate. The rest of the conference only plays once.
-- The women get to go to Hawaii again. They kicked off their NCAA run with a couple of big wins in the islands 4 years ago. Unfortunately, the likelihood of history repeating itself is slim unless they get a lot better at winning away from Allen Arena.
-- The women are at Vandy and at TSU. They also travel to Arkansas in November. Best case for the Lady Bisons? Assuming their tall girls are healthy (which is so rare as to be laughable lately), they are capable of going 7-7 out of conference. That said, if they have the injuries again (especially if those injuries force Coach Bennett to play a perimiter-oriented game instead of the post-play style he likes) and they play on the road the way they have the last 2 1/2 years (3 wins total since February '05), we could be looking at 2-12.
-- Speaking of Allen Arena, Lipscomb is the host school for both the men's and women's conference tournaments this year. The tournaments will be played concurrently with the top 8 qualifying. Three points on this: 1) See above about the importance of Lipscomb's women playing at home. Since January 29, 2005, they are 14-17 at home and 3-36 on the road. 2) Finishing with a top 2 seed will be vital to winning this thing, since they will likely put the 1-8 and 2-7 games on Day 1 and the 3-6 and 4-5 game son Day 2. The extra day of rest will be huge, especially for a team like Lipscomb who tends to play with a short bench anyway. 3) I am so there. I'll be looking for tickets as soon as they come available.
-- 10 road games. The men only play 3 of their 13 nonconference games at home. That'll help the conference RPI. My first look gives them about 6 wins, but with road games valued the way they are in the RPI everyone will look better.
-- Men's road games at Vandy and tournaments at Iowa State and MTSU. App. State is in the MTSU field.
-- Divisional play. The A-Sun now has 12 (!) teams, so Lipscomb only plays home-and-home with Belmont, ETSU, Gardner-Webb, Campbell, and USC-Upstate. The rest of the conference only plays once.
-- The women get to go to Hawaii again. They kicked off their NCAA run with a couple of big wins in the islands 4 years ago. Unfortunately, the likelihood of history repeating itself is slim unless they get a lot better at winning away from Allen Arena.
-- The women are at Vandy and at TSU. They also travel to Arkansas in November. Best case for the Lady Bisons? Assuming their tall girls are healthy (which is so rare as to be laughable lately), they are capable of going 7-7 out of conference. That said, if they have the injuries again (especially if those injuries force Coach Bennett to play a perimiter-oriented game instead of the post-play style he likes) and they play on the road the way they have the last 2 1/2 years (3 wins total since February '05), we could be looking at 2-12.
-- Speaking of Allen Arena, Lipscomb is the host school for both the men's and women's conference tournaments this year. The tournaments will be played concurrently with the top 8 qualifying. Three points on this: 1) See above about the importance of Lipscomb's women playing at home. Since January 29, 2005, they are 14-17 at home and 3-36 on the road. 2) Finishing with a top 2 seed will be vital to winning this thing, since they will likely put the 1-8 and 2-7 games on Day 1 and the 3-6 and 4-5 game son Day 2. The extra day of rest will be huge, especially for a team like Lipscomb who tends to play with a short bench anyway. 3) I am so there. I'll be looking for tickets as soon as they come available.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
What I'm Up To
For the last three weeks, I've beetn writing the Jeopardy! message boards Summer Hiatus Challenge. The game debuts July 30th.
17 categories down, 67 to go.
I've also been experimenting with a new individual basketball stat. It's tempo-free and can compare performances across positions. Preliminary testing indicates it will end up looking something like Slugging Percentage. I'll roll it out as soon as I finish tinkering.
Between that and our Gospel Meeting which just finished and the camp presentation I'm making at church Sunday night and the Future Preachers Camp we're trying to get planned for next summer and soccer camp tomorrow and and and . . .
Well, stay tuned. Or not.
17 categories down, 67 to go.
I've also been experimenting with a new individual basketball stat. It's tempo-free and can compare performances across positions. Preliminary testing indicates it will end up looking something like Slugging Percentage. I'll roll it out as soon as I finish tinkering.
Between that and our Gospel Meeting which just finished and the camp presentation I'm making at church Sunday night and the Future Preachers Camp we're trying to get planned for next summer and soccer camp tomorrow and and and . . .
Well, stay tuned. Or not.
Friday, June 8, 2007
Atlantic Sun Spring Sports Recap
More detail when I get back from camp, but here we go:
Outstanding Team -- East Tennessee State Men's Golf. Conference championship and a trip to the national tournament, finishing 18th. Nationally ranked all year, #14 going into nationals.
Runner-Up, Outstanding Team -- Stetson Baseball. Ranked in the low 20's all year. Won the conference regular season title going away. Earned an at-large bid to and won a game in the NCAA tournament, the only one awarded to a conference team in any sport all year.
Honorable Mention, Outstanding Team -- Jacksonville women's track. Sent two individuals to the NCAA's.
Outstanding Player -- Rhys Davies, ETSU golf. He's going to the U. S. Open. Yes. The U. S. Open. Sure, he won a conference title, was once ranked #1 in the country earlier this season, and did a good job in the NCAA's, but he's going to the U. S. Open. Dude.
Honorable Mention, Outstanding Player -- Corey Kluber, Stetson baseball. Conference pitcher of the year, 4th round draft pick by the Padres. Sam Tilley, Campbell men's track. Won a spot at the NCAA's in the long jump by finishing 5th at regionals. Natasha Harvey, Jacksonville women's track. 5th place in the regionals in the women's long jump, going to the NCAA's.
Outstanding Team -- East Tennessee State Men's Golf. Conference championship and a trip to the national tournament, finishing 18th. Nationally ranked all year, #14 going into nationals.
Runner-Up, Outstanding Team -- Stetson Baseball. Ranked in the low 20's all year. Won the conference regular season title going away. Earned an at-large bid to and won a game in the NCAA tournament, the only one awarded to a conference team in any sport all year.
Honorable Mention, Outstanding Team -- Jacksonville women's track. Sent two individuals to the NCAA's.
Outstanding Player -- Rhys Davies, ETSU golf. He's going to the U. S. Open. Yes. The U. S. Open. Sure, he won a conference title, was once ranked #1 in the country earlier this season, and did a good job in the NCAA's, but he's going to the U. S. Open. Dude.
Honorable Mention, Outstanding Player -- Corey Kluber, Stetson baseball. Conference pitcher of the year, 4th round draft pick by the Padres. Sam Tilley, Campbell men's track. Won a spot at the NCAA's in the long jump by finishing 5th at regionals. Natasha Harvey, Jacksonville women's track. 5th place in the regionals in the women's long jump, going to the NCAA's.
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
ETSU Golfer to the U. S. Open
Before we get to the complete A-Sun spring recap later this week, this event warrants its own post.
East Tennessee State golfer Rhys Davies earned medalist honors at the Rockville, MD U. S. Open qualifier yesterday, beating Joey Sindelar by 1 and Fred Funk by 2.
No word whether or not he's related to Sliders star Jonathan Rhys-Davies. How cool would that be.
East Tennessee State golfer Rhys Davies earned medalist honors at the Rockville, MD U. S. Open qualifier yesterday, beating Joey Sindelar by 1 and Fred Funk by 2.
No word whether or not he's related to Sliders star Jonathan Rhys-Davies. How cool would that be.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Go Predators. And Take Greer Stadium With You.
The Nashville Predators are being sold. The new owner is probably going to take them to Hamilton, Ontario.
As a small college sports fan, I am extremely excited about this development. If you live within 100 miles of Nashville, the Titans are king, and nothing is going to change that anytime soon. Lipscomb, Belmont, the Sounds, and the like could never compete with the NFL.
But the Predators are another matter.
If the Predators are gone, $23 million in ticket sales, corporate sponsorships (such as they are), and valuable airtime on sports radio and TV are suddenly up for grabs. The 1,800 people (I am not making that number up) in the Nashville media market who watched the NHL All-Star Game on TV will watch whether there is a Nashville team or not.
This move is good for the NHL, good for the new owner, and good for the rest of the Middle Tennessee sports community.
Coming soon -- The Atlantic Sun spring sports recap, and thoughts about Mark Cuban's new football league.
As a small college sports fan, I am extremely excited about this development. If you live within 100 miles of Nashville, the Titans are king, and nothing is going to change that anytime soon. Lipscomb, Belmont, the Sounds, and the like could never compete with the NFL.
But the Predators are another matter.
If the Predators are gone, $23 million in ticket sales, corporate sponsorships (such as they are), and valuable airtime on sports radio and TV are suddenly up for grabs. The 1,800 people (I am not making that number up) in the Nashville media market who watched the NHL All-Star Game on TV will watch whether there is a Nashville team or not.
This move is good for the NHL, good for the new owner, and good for the rest of the Middle Tennessee sports community.
Coming soon -- The Atlantic Sun spring sports recap, and thoughts about Mark Cuban's new football league.
Thursday, May 3, 2007
Lipscomb Sports Update
So.
For the second consecutive year, Lipscomb's baseball team is one of 23 to be docked scholarships for lack of academic performance. Lipscomb is the only school in the Atlantic Sun to incur any penalty of any sort under the NCAA's Academic Progress Report.
Granted, the penalty is less than last year's (1.01 scholarships, down from 1.07). But still. And if things don't get better next year, the whole athletic department can be placed on probation.
But they're winning, so I guess all is forgiven?
In the interest of equal time, credit to Frank Bennett and the women's basketball program for earning a citation from the NCAA for outstanding academic performance, long a hallmark of Bennett's program dating back to the NAIA era.
Alma mater hail.
For the second consecutive year, Lipscomb's baseball team is one of 23 to be docked scholarships for lack of academic performance. Lipscomb is the only school in the Atlantic Sun to incur any penalty of any sort under the NCAA's Academic Progress Report.
Granted, the penalty is less than last year's (1.01 scholarships, down from 1.07). But still. And if things don't get better next year, the whole athletic department can be placed on probation.
But they're winning, so I guess all is forgiven?
In the interest of equal time, credit to Frank Bennett and the women's basketball program for earning a citation from the NCAA for outstanding academic performance, long a hallmark of Bennett's program dating back to the NAIA era.
Alma mater hail.
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
A Thought on Game Shows
There is this theory floating out there that traditional game shows are being "dumbed down" to make them more "accessible" to everyday viewers. The lifelines on Millionaire, the lack of any skill whatsoever on Deal or No Deal, and the very title of Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader are cited as evidence.
I'm not so sure.
What seems to be disappearing is not the quiz itself, but the "game" element. Deal or No Deal is one player against the Banker. Millionaire and Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader are one player against the question stack. Even 1 vs. 100, a show which has come a long way since its dreadful early days, portrays the "Mob" as a faceless, nameless bogeyman present only to put an obstacle in the way of the One.
Not coincidentally, I think this is why so many of the other quizzes in the Prime Time Millioonaire era failed. 21, Winning Lines and their cousins had too much competition for the taste of the American consumer.
Even Jeopardy is not immune to anti-competitiveness. Remember when Jeopardy was the most-watched show on TV three years ago? Thank you, Ken Jennings. Ken turned Jeopardy into "one guy against the board," and America lapped it up. Since becoming an actual "game" again, Jeopardy's ratings have returned to their pre-Ken levels.
Need evidence? See if you can name these four Jeopardy legends. If you're a fan of the show, ask somebody who has heard of Ken Jennings but doesn't watch the show regularly.
1 -- Who won the Ultimate Tournament of Champions, breaking Ken's record for most money won?
2 -- Who finished third in the UToC Finals?
3 -- Who won the most recent Jeopardy Tournament of Champions?
4 -- Which Jeopardy champion won 19 games in a row over two seasons, second only to Ken Jennings?
As long as TV quizzes have "winners" and "losers," they will struggle in the ratings.
But if "everybody wins," everybody watches.
Blech.
I'm not so sure.
What seems to be disappearing is not the quiz itself, but the "game" element. Deal or No Deal is one player against the Banker. Millionaire and Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader are one player against the question stack. Even 1 vs. 100, a show which has come a long way since its dreadful early days, portrays the "Mob" as a faceless, nameless bogeyman present only to put an obstacle in the way of the One.
Not coincidentally, I think this is why so many of the other quizzes in the Prime Time Millioonaire era failed. 21, Winning Lines and their cousins had too much competition for the taste of the American consumer.
Even Jeopardy is not immune to anti-competitiveness. Remember when Jeopardy was the most-watched show on TV three years ago? Thank you, Ken Jennings. Ken turned Jeopardy into "one guy against the board," and America lapped it up. Since becoming an actual "game" again, Jeopardy's ratings have returned to their pre-Ken levels.
Need evidence? See if you can name these four Jeopardy legends. If you're a fan of the show, ask somebody who has heard of Ken Jennings but doesn't watch the show regularly.
1 -- Who won the Ultimate Tournament of Champions, breaking Ken's record for most money won?
2 -- Who finished third in the UToC Finals?
3 -- Who won the most recent Jeopardy Tournament of Champions?
4 -- Which Jeopardy champion won 19 games in a row over two seasons, second only to Ken Jennings?
As long as TV quizzes have "winners" and "losers," they will struggle in the ratings.
But if "everybody wins," everybody watches.
Blech.
Monday, April 9, 2007
Lipscomb All-Decade team
No, my blog is not daily. Deal with it.
So Lipscomb has been in Division 1 for 10 years now. Mostly. It's been 10 years since they quit playing post-season tournaments in Kansas City/Tulsa/Olathe or wherever they had the NAIA tournaments back in the day.
I thought it might be fun to compose an all-decade team for the NCAA era and compare them to the greats of the Don Meyer-coached NAIA teams.
So I went to the Lipscomb Athletics website. Guess what? There is NOTHING about the NAIA era there. Sure, the Lipscomb Hall of Fame lists come key names, but stats? Records? History? Nope. Nada.
So going from memory, here is my All-Decade team for the last ten years of the NAIA era:
PG -- Kenyatta Perry
SG -- Andy McQueen
SF -- Darren Henrie
PF -- Philip Hutchenson
C -- John Pierce
Off the bench -- Wade Sandrell, Jerry Meyer
The first ten years of the NCAA era:
Lorenzo Withrite, James Poindexter, Eddie Ard, Brian Fisk, Shaun Durant
Off the bench -- Ryan Roller, Chad Hartman
Now I admit on the front end that this is not an apples-to-apples comparision. Meyer and Sanderson play different styles -- Meyer coaches an inside-out game while Sanderson plays a Dutch soccer style "interchangeable parts" offense. Sanderson also places a much higher premium on defense than Meyer did.
Not to mention the differences in opposition. As Coach Meyer once said, "I'd rather play a cupcake than be a cupcake."
That said, my suspicion is that any of the best players from a Don Meyer-coached team could have started on Scott Sanderson's best team (05-06). OK, Kenyatta was 3 inches shorter and a step slower than Ard, and Durant and Poindexter more than held their own against Boomer Herndon (the closest approximation the A-Sun has to Pierce and Hutchenson), but Meyer's best against Sanderson's best is a pretty close contest.
The question for Lispcomb fans -- how much better is Lipscomb as a D-1 program? And it is worth the cost?
So Lipscomb has been in Division 1 for 10 years now. Mostly. It's been 10 years since they quit playing post-season tournaments in Kansas City/Tulsa/Olathe or wherever they had the NAIA tournaments back in the day.
I thought it might be fun to compose an all-decade team for the NCAA era and compare them to the greats of the Don Meyer-coached NAIA teams.
So I went to the Lipscomb Athletics website. Guess what? There is NOTHING about the NAIA era there. Sure, the Lipscomb Hall of Fame lists come key names, but stats? Records? History? Nope. Nada.
So going from memory, here is my All-Decade team for the last ten years of the NAIA era:
PG -- Kenyatta Perry
SG -- Andy McQueen
SF -- Darren Henrie
PF -- Philip Hutchenson
C -- John Pierce
Off the bench -- Wade Sandrell, Jerry Meyer
The first ten years of the NCAA era:
Lorenzo Withrite, James Poindexter, Eddie Ard, Brian Fisk, Shaun Durant
Off the bench -- Ryan Roller, Chad Hartman
Now I admit on the front end that this is not an apples-to-apples comparision. Meyer and Sanderson play different styles -- Meyer coaches an inside-out game while Sanderson plays a Dutch soccer style "interchangeable parts" offense. Sanderson also places a much higher premium on defense than Meyer did.
Not to mention the differences in opposition. As Coach Meyer once said, "I'd rather play a cupcake than be a cupcake."
That said, my suspicion is that any of the best players from a Don Meyer-coached team could have started on Scott Sanderson's best team (05-06). OK, Kenyatta was 3 inches shorter and a step slower than Ard, and Durant and Poindexter more than held their own against Boomer Herndon (the closest approximation the A-Sun has to Pierce and Hutchenson), but Meyer's best against Sanderson's best is a pretty close contest.
The question for Lispcomb fans -- how much better is Lipscomb as a D-1 program? And it is worth the cost?
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
SILT -- 4/4/07
Stuff I learned:
Tito was Croatian.
The Sava River separates Croatia from Bosnia/Herzegovena.
Merton College is part of Oxford.
In Japanese, kohhi is coffee, kaji is fire, and atsui means "heated."
Cardial Wolsey was an advisor to Henry VIII.
Other Voices, Other Rooms is the first novel by Truman Capote.
The Christmas Rose has black roots.
Betty's Blue and Twickle Purple are varieties of lavendar.
Cameron Diaz was dating Justin Timberlake in 2006.
Stedman's last name is Graham.
Shannon Tweed is the wife of Gene Simmons.
Jackie Onassis once had a relatioship with a man named Maurice Templesman.
The Pierce Arrow is a kind of car.
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels is also a Broadway musical.
Harker and Morris teamed up to kill Count Dracula.
Jean Valjean dies in the presence of Cosette, his beloved.
Randall McMurphy is smothered to death in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.
Kingfisher is a brand of Indian beer.
The Battle of Inkerman was during the Crimean War.
There was a Czar in 1604 named "The False Dmitri."
Boris Coudanov's death triggered the "Time of Troubles."
Carl Sagan wrote the first scientific paper on nuclear winter.
Monday, April 2, 2007
One Shining Moment
Three favorite highlights from OSM:
3. The Belmont Baby. How cute is that?
2. Gus Johnson's call of the tying 3 in the Ohio State-Xavier game. Talk about capturing the emotion of a moment.
1. Rameses at the Sweet 16. Thoughts and prayers to the Ray family. RIP.
3. The Belmont Baby. How cute is that?
2. Gus Johnson's call of the tying 3 in the Ohio State-Xavier game. Talk about capturing the emotion of a moment.
1. Rameses at the Sweet 16. Thoughts and prayers to the Ray family. RIP.
Thursday, March 29, 2007
J-Archive Milestone
Congratulations to the folks over at the Jeopardy Archive on reaching the 90,000 clue mark. And that on the night a fellow Charter Archivist, Brendan Pimper, goes down on a strategically-unsound wager.
Fortunately for the show, Brendan's wager overshadowed an spectacularly bad FJ clue:
LITERARY FIGURES: Bono, Jim Sheridan & Liam Neeson were featured in a 2004 documentary honoring the 150th anniversary of the birth of this man.
Now, unless you happen to know that Oscar Wilde was born in 1854 AND that G. B. Shaw (1856), William Butler Yeats (1865), and James Joyce (1882) weren't, what is there in this clue that separates Wilde as the clear choice? The movie?
So much for the writing Emmy this year.
Fortunately for the show, Brendan's wager overshadowed an spectacularly bad FJ clue:
LITERARY FIGURES: Bono, Jim Sheridan & Liam Neeson were featured in a 2004 documentary honoring the 150th anniversary of the birth of this man.
Now, unless you happen to know that Oscar Wilde was born in 1854 AND that G. B. Shaw (1856), William Butler Yeats (1865), and James Joyce (1882) weren't, what is there in this clue that separates Wilde as the clear choice? The movie?
So much for the writing Emmy this year.
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
SILT -- 3/28
SILT:
- Rome fell to the Allies in 1944, not 43.
- The Jazz Singer came out in 1927, not 1929.
- Amundsen reached the South Pole in 1911, not 1917.
- There is a rite involving witches which use a bell, book, and candle.
- More yiddish -- a Jewish wedding canopy is called a chuppah.
- Sinatra won an Oscar for From Here to Eternity.
- Nancy, Ava, Mia, and Barbara are Sinatra wives.
- The runners in Blade Runner were called replicants.
- Battle Bots is Conedy Central's answer to Robot Wars.
- Robby the Robot appeared in Forbidden Planet and The Invisible Boy.
- W. B. Yeats wrote the poem "Easter, 1916."
- Victoria Woodhull ran for President in 1872.
- A nix is a water spirit.
- Gerald Ford represented Grand Rapids, Michigan in Congress.
- Carel Fabritius was Rembrandt's most prominent pupil.
- Rembrandt was also known for self-portraits.
Look up:
- More about Rembrandt.
- English words from the Yiddish.
- A biography of Sinatra.
- The whole "Bell, Book, and Candle" deal.
Weakness Exposed -- Rat Pack trivia, Visual recognition of artistic style, Yiddish.
SILT from the Calendar
From the desk calendar:
- Faulkner wrote "A Rose for Emily."
- Pan is the moon of Saturn closest to the planet
- Pan played the pipe.
- Elmore Leonard wrote Hombre.
- Memorial Day was originally set on May 30.
- Stevie Wonder had a hit with "Happy Birthday." Now that is talent.
- King Arthur was in The Gododdin and Daughter of Tintagel.
- Moose and elk are basically the same.
- Janus had two faces.
Tuesday, March 27, 2007
SILT -- March 26
Stuff I learned:
- Director John Carpenter also composed the scores to "The Thing," "Halloween," and "The Fog."
- That famous picture of the sailor kissing the girl in Times Square celebrated V-J Day, not V-E Day.
- No one knows which Johannes is the namesake of Johannesburg, South Africa.
- The chariot pulled in a harness race is called a "sulky."
- Emerial Lagasse is from the Boston area.
- Paul Prudhomme is the Pavlovian response for cajun chef.
- Irma Rombauer wrote The Joy of Cooking.
- Martin Yan wrote The Joy of Wokking.
- Italian chef Giacca de Laurentiis is the granddaughter of film producer Dino.
- "A Horse with No Name" was a hit by America.
- Brasil 66 sang "Mas Que Nada" and "One Note Samba."
- "No More Words" and "The Metro" were by Berlin.
- Asia sang "Heat of the Moment."
- A nebulizer turns asthma medicine into a mist.
- The bulb syringes we used to use on the girls' noses when the were babies are called "irrigation syringes."
- Abe Fortas resigned from the Supreme Court in 1969 because of a financial scandal.
- Jacob Riis was a socially-conscious photographer.
- Lillian Helman wrote Watch on the Rhine and The Children's Hour. I should really know that by now.
- Pictures from V-E Day celebrations, especially in New York.
- The connection between Crosby, Stills & Nash and the city of Marrakesh.
- The movies of Dino de Laurentiis.
- Balfour's Declaration
Weakness exposed -- Pop Music, Famous Chefs. Look for a list of "Exposed" categories to appear here sometime soon.
Friday, March 23, 2007
Atlantic Sun Men's Recap
In other fora, I have commented about what I though would happen this year. Here's how it turned out:
First the misses: Campbell, ETSU, and Jacksonville.
In January, I pegged Campbell as the fourth-best team, a likely conference semifinalst and a tough out. I didn't think they could sustain their pace for 3 days, but their style is tough to defend. 1.05 points per possession was the best in the league during pre-conference. I guessed they would go 11-7, giving them a look at a top-3 seed. I missed their conference record by 3 games and their seed line by 2.
ETSU played a really tough schedule out of conference, including a pasting at Vanderbilt. Their schedule made them look worse than they actually were. My guess on them was 12-6, second place. Swap the 6 and the 2 and make them regular season champs. Imagine -- in a guard oriented league that shoots 3's with no conscience at all, the team with the best defense would win. Who knew?
Jacksonville looked breathtakingly average in November and December. They played an average pace, shot average free throws, and were slightly below-average defensively. I guessed they would go 8-10 and bow out of the tourney on the first day. Try 11-7 and a 3-seed. They did lose day 1, but that was to that dangerous Campbell team above. Coming off an abysmal 2006, that's remarkable.
A couple of bragging notes: I picked Belmont as conference champs and guessed their record within 1 game. Not that that is too surprising, but I like to be right. I guessed Lipscomb's record within half a game (I couldn't decide between 11 and 12 wins, so I gave them 11 1/2). I also pegged Mercer as a dangerous 5-seed.
The conference awards were severely jacked up. Jonathan Rodriguez of Campbell was far and away the best player this year, but his team finished 6th. In this league, defense and rebounding are very important and significantly undervalued by voters. If I had a ballot, my first-team would be Rodriguez (F-CAM), Shadeen Aaron (G-MERC), Courtney Pigram (G-ETSU), Jesse Kimbrough (G-JAX), and Calvin Henry (F-MERC). I know, I know, I've got 3 guards on there, but this is a guard league. Second team would be Brad Knuckles (F-ETSU), Shawn Stegall (F-KENN), Ronnell Wooton (G-KENN), Eddie Ard (G-LIP), and Boomer Herndon (C-BELM).
Sorry kids, but James Florence (G-MERC) was not first-team-all-conference good. Good, but not that good. He scored a lot, but he shot a lot too. And his defense could use some work. Fortunately he's a freshman and isn't going anywhere for a while, so he has a good chance to get better.
You'll notice the lack of Belmont presence on this list. And that might be the secret of their success. They've got so many interchangeable parts that if each player does his job, everybody wins. They remind me a lot of the 1980 Olympic hockey team that way. That and they have no business on the same floor with the Big Boys.
Enjoy the off-season. I'll update other sports as events warrant.
First the misses: Campbell, ETSU, and Jacksonville.
In January, I pegged Campbell as the fourth-best team, a likely conference semifinalst and a tough out. I didn't think they could sustain their pace for 3 days, but their style is tough to defend. 1.05 points per possession was the best in the league during pre-conference. I guessed they would go 11-7, giving them a look at a top-3 seed. I missed their conference record by 3 games and their seed line by 2.
ETSU played a really tough schedule out of conference, including a pasting at Vanderbilt. Their schedule made them look worse than they actually were. My guess on them was 12-6, second place. Swap the 6 and the 2 and make them regular season champs. Imagine -- in a guard oriented league that shoots 3's with no conscience at all, the team with the best defense would win. Who knew?
Jacksonville looked breathtakingly average in November and December. They played an average pace, shot average free throws, and were slightly below-average defensively. I guessed they would go 8-10 and bow out of the tourney on the first day. Try 11-7 and a 3-seed. They did lose day 1, but that was to that dangerous Campbell team above. Coming off an abysmal 2006, that's remarkable.
A couple of bragging notes: I picked Belmont as conference champs and guessed their record within 1 game. Not that that is too surprising, but I like to be right. I guessed Lipscomb's record within half a game (I couldn't decide between 11 and 12 wins, so I gave them 11 1/2). I also pegged Mercer as a dangerous 5-seed.
The conference awards were severely jacked up. Jonathan Rodriguez of Campbell was far and away the best player this year, but his team finished 6th. In this league, defense and rebounding are very important and significantly undervalued by voters. If I had a ballot, my first-team would be Rodriguez (F-CAM), Shadeen Aaron (G-MERC), Courtney Pigram (G-ETSU), Jesse Kimbrough (G-JAX), and Calvin Henry (F-MERC). I know, I know, I've got 3 guards on there, but this is a guard league. Second team would be Brad Knuckles (F-ETSU), Shawn Stegall (F-KENN), Ronnell Wooton (G-KENN), Eddie Ard (G-LIP), and Boomer Herndon (C-BELM).
Sorry kids, but James Florence (G-MERC) was not first-team-all-conference good. Good, but not that good. He scored a lot, but he shot a lot too. And his defense could use some work. Fortunately he's a freshman and isn't going anywhere for a while, so he has a good chance to get better.
You'll notice the lack of Belmont presence on this list. And that might be the secret of their success. They've got so many interchangeable parts that if each player does his job, everybody wins. They remind me a lot of the 1980 Olympic hockey team that way. That and they have no business on the same floor with the Big Boys.
Enjoy the off-season. I'll update other sports as events warrant.
SILT -- 3/22
More SILT from yesterday:
- North Korea is north of Japan. I thought it was south.
- A pogrom is an attack on Jews. The word derives from the Russian word for "destruction."
- Babe Ruth once coached first base for the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Things to look up:
- The history of pogroms.
Jeopardy has had several diabolical coin-flip clues lately. Rumor has it there's a new writer in the crew. I hope so, because clues like this reek of inexperience.
Re: today's show -- I was 51-4 going into the last category, about Hal Prince. I finished 52-8. Still a good day, but what might have been . . .
Thursday, March 22, 2007
ETSU Guard Transfers
Back-up guard Dante Williams has been granted a release from ETSU. He plans to transfer somewhere closer to his Michigan home.
Read the story here.
Williams averaged 3 points and 9 minutes per game. He saw action in 18 games.
Read the story here.
Williams averaged 3 points and 9 minutes per game. He saw action in 18 games.
Stuff I Learned Today
- To remove an appendix, first make a McBurney's incision.
- The first disease known to be caused by a bacterium was anthrax.
- The Tugela waterfalls in South Africa are over 2600 feet tall.
- A guy named Pissarro was a famouos impressionist painter.
Look into:
- Who was this McBurney, anyway?
- Who was Pissarro?
- Was there ever a guy named Tom Collins?
Fun category I'd like to write someday: "People From -Stan"
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Welcome to My World
Hello Internet.
This is the infancy of what may turn out to be a good idea. Or not. Nobody really knows yet.
I have a bunch of pipe dreams about what might happen in this space. We'll see how many of them come to fruition.
I don't really have anything to say yet, but I promise to let you know when I do.
-Ben Wiles
AKA DadofTwins
This is the infancy of what may turn out to be a good idea. Or not. Nobody really knows yet.
I have a bunch of pipe dreams about what might happen in this space. We'll see how many of them come to fruition.
I don't really have anything to say yet, but I promise to let you know when I do.
-Ben Wiles
AKA DadofTwins
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