Tag Archives: Sports

It’s Set or: The Two Week Wait

20 Monday Jan 2020

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Salutations™!!

The stage is set! We know the two teams that will be playing in the LIV game on February 2. It will be the San Francisco 49ers vs. the Kansas City Chiefs.

I am clearly pulling for the Chiefs here but for more than one reason. Let’s start with the obvious. I hate the 49ers. Now, they’re not the Patriots or Cowboys or Ravens or Bengals or Browns but they are danged close. I think the biggest reason for that is they have five Super Bowl rings. They were the first to get there, even before my beloved Pittsburgh Steelers (who were the first to get to 4-0). I was adamant about the 49ers and Patriots and Cowboys staying behind us. Now that the Patriots won the worst SB game of all time last year and tied us, then it’s not as big a deal, but I would rather no one else be 6-x.

Super_Bowl_LIV

©NFL

And, I really don’t like their uniforms. We know how fashion-conscious I am about pro sports unis and this is one of the ones I don’t like, except for the fact that it’s “classic.” I do like that aspect of it. And, really, I like Raheem Mostert and Jimmy Garappolo and Richard Sherman. George Kittle, meh. But, some of the players I really like. I like the coach even. But I have to dislike them on principle.

On to the Chiefs. I like Andy Reid for the most part. He’s a good guy and he needs to win one big game so he can get that “legitimacy” thing out of the way. I don’t think he needs it for legitimacy, but others do and perhaps he does. I don’t know. But, I hope he wins.

I do like the Kansas City uniforms. All that red. They will be in their dark colors, too because they’re the home team. Yay! I like Tyreek Hill. I like Travis Kelce. I like Damien Williams. I like Mercole Hardman. I like Sammy Watkins. I like Tyran Matthieu. I like the whole team. But, most of all, I really, really like Patrick Mahomes. He is amazing to watch and he mastered the “no-look pass” but I hope he abandons that in this game. No need to get fancy. They have to muster a lot of points because I foresee SF putting up a shload of points. They won the game yesterday in a rout over Green Bay and Jimmy G only threw the ball six times! So, Mahomes and Co need to sling a lot of balls and run up some points. Just like they have the last two weeks, except they need to do it early instead of getting behind early.

The Chiefs haven’t been to the big one since 1970 when they won Super Bowl IV against the Minnesota Vikings. They lost the first one (which wasn’t called the Super Bowl, yet) to Green Bay. I was hoping for a rematch of that being as this is the 100th season of the NFL. The 49ers were there in 2013 and lost to the Ravens. This should be a good game and I don’t think either team is really mismatched overall, just in their approach. Both teams are offensive beasts and KC has come into its own on defense where SF is a defensive wall.

I do think it has a chance to be a ridiculously high scoring game because both teams can put up big numbers. But, then again, that chance was there last year, too and that whole game was a dud from the get-go. I would love to see it go both teams into the 50s. Well, okay, maybe just the Chiefs and the 49ers stay in the 20s. That would be better for my ticker. Anyway, both teams are young and talented. Here’s looking forward to this game!

Who are you picking, Dear Reader? Or, are you one of those, “my-team-isn’t-in-it-so-I-don’t-care/I-won’t-watch-it” people? I said it a few posts back, I’ll watch any NFL game, even if I don’t like either team. I haven’t missed a SB since XV and don’t plan on it until I’m gone, so I certainly won’t miss that one. Plus, we’re having a small gathering at our place, so here’s to a good game.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“The Chiefs are the designated home team for Super Bowl LIV, (sic) because the AFC team is the designated home team in even-numbered years and the NFC team in odd-numbered years. As the designated home team, the Chiefs have elected to wear their standard home red jerseys with white pants. The 49ers will wear their standard white away jerseys with gold pants.” – Wikipedia

Dang Cats or: The Difference Is…

14 Tuesday Jan 2020

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Salutations™!!

It is a long train of thought that got me to this, so bear with me for a bit.

In watching the awesome Disney+ service, I’m watching the “True Life Adventures” from the 1950s and 1960s. I’m watching Jungle Cat (1960) right now and it’s focusing on the part where they are featuring the jaguar. I noticed at the same time that the announcement of Luke Kuechly’s retirement from the Carolina Panthers.

1024px-Jaguar_in_Pantanal_Brazil_1_(cropped)

©Brad van Dorp

That got me thinking. The Panthers and the Jacksonville Jaguars started playing in the NFL the same year, 1995. Both “big cats.”

So, I got to thinking, who would win in a real fight, the panther or the jaguar? So, I did a little research. I don’t know who much of this is actually factual, but what I did find, was interesting.

Both cats are of the Animalia kingdom. Both are of the Felidae family. Both are of the Panthera genus. Both are of the Carnivora order. The average head and body length of both cats are 43″ to 75″. The average weight of both is 79 to 350 lbs. They both exert the same force, have the same technique, stamina and intelligence. The average life span of the panther is 13-15 years and the average life span of the jaguar is 14 years.

So, basically, they are the same exact animal. A few of the sites I looked at say that pathers are basically just melanistic jaguars. Panther is also kind of generic for leopards and jaguars, but with black coloring. So, again, they’re the same animal.

The natural area for the panther is Asia, Africa (leopard) and America (jaguar), and I suppose that’s North and South. The area for jaguars is Central and South America. So, the color of the skin/coat and area seem to really be the only differences.

So, does that mean that both teams are the same? Nah, but I do find it interesting. So, that meant nothing but I thought why not share it?

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

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“As written and directed by James Algar, this is one of Mr. Disney’s best—intimate, tasteful, strong and matter-of-fact.” – Howard Thompson of the New York Times about Disney’s Jungle Cat.

In Through the Out Door or: As the Stile Turns

06 Monday Jan 2020

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Salutations™!!

So, here we are at my favorite time in the NFL season. No, not the playoffs, although that is exciting, especially Whiney Tom Terrific is out of the picture and possibly out of New England, although I’ll believe that when I see it. So, my favorite time of the NFL year is the offseason. I know that sounds oddball and counterintuitive, but hear me out.

_Tua

Top 2020 Draft QB prospect Tua Tagovailoa (©Getty Images)

Yeah, I love the games. I love watching NFL games even when I can’t stand the teams. Cowboys vs. Redskins? Yeah, I watch that. Browns vs. Bengals? Yeah, I watch that. Panthers vs. anyone? Yeah, I watch that, too. I love NFL games. But, what really gets me going is the “behind the scenes” and sometimes even non-so-behind-the-scenes activity. You know the Monday after the regular season, and sometimes that Sunday night, some coach is going to be fired. It happens almost every year. And you can almost predict which ones with near accuracy.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t like people losing their jobs but this is a business and big money at that. The goal is to win, not just contend. So, no, I do feel for those losing their jobs but let’s move on already.

The past offseason we saw seven new head coaching jobs. Adam Gase in New York, Kliff Kingsbury in Arizona, Zac Taylor in Cincinnati, Vic Fangio in Denver, Freddie Kitchens in Cleveland, Matt LeFleur in Green Bay, Brian Flores in Miami and Bruce Ariens in Tampa Bay. All of them had been either head coaches or assistant coaches of some sort.

On to this year… Of that crowd, Adam Gase is on thin ice and Kitchens is already out in Cleveland, as of last Sunday. Ron Rivera was out in Carolina and Jay Gruden out of Washington with a few weeks left in the season. Pat Shurmur was the coach for two years for the Giants and was fired last Monday. Jason Garrett who had been the Cowboys’ head coach for 10 years was fired and the next morning it was announced that former Green Bay HC Mike McCarthy was the new coach in Big D. McCarthy has won a Super Bowl.

Rivera is now the coach of the Redskins and like with McCarthy, we’ll see if their owners can let them run the team or stay hands-on and make their jobs even more difficult. The Panthers haven’t yet filled their vacancy and neither has the giants.

And, it’s not just the head coaches, either. Many assistant coaches are making moves, either by choice or not. Vagabond Wade Phillips, who most recently was the defensive coordinator for the LA Rams was let go this morning. Former head coach of the 49ers, Mike Nolan will be the DC for McCarthy in Dallas. These are just the big names that I’m seeing.

And, let’s not forget GMs. Bruce Allen out in Washington and John Dorsey out in Cleveland. Who knows who’s next.

Then there are the players, old and new. Ones that were out from surgery, are they coming back? Who will be traded? Who will be cut? Who will retire? Who will be drafted? Who will move via free agency that starts March 18?

I don’t watch a lot of college football, but I like to keep track of the names and see where they may end up come April in the draft.

There is a lot of speculation about Tom Brady’s future. He voided any contract extensions, he put his house up for sale (as did his personal trainer), he can’t be tagged as “franchise” to keep him there. Do I see him in another uniform? I don’t really know. He has said that he wanted to play until he’s 45 but he looked all of 40 (he’s 42) whereas he looked like he was 35 last year. Sure, he doesn’t have all the personnel around him. Gronk retired (thank any deity here) and the only thing he really has going for him, with any experience, is Julian Edelman. He didn’t look right all season either. I hope Brady retires. Move on, let someone else dominate. Watson, Wilson, Jackson, Josh Allen, Mahomes (my fave of the bunch), who knows, but let someone have the spotlight. Your age is showing.

Anywhat! I just wanted to mention how much I love this part. I love free agency. I love trades. I love the personnel changes. I love the draft. I love the NFL. The games are pretty good, too.

Until tomorrow… hike!
Scorp out!

—
“Though the loss wasn’t entirely the fault of Brady’s, there was reason — including his career-worst marks in key passing categories down the stretch — for folks to view his play and wonder if Father Time might finally be catching up to him.” – Nick Shook on Tom Brady and the Patriots’ loss this past Saturday

Mondaying In My Pants or: The Heck!?

18 Monday Nov 2019

Posted by in Life as We Know It, Podcasting, The Less Desirables Network

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Salutations™!!

First, we recorded and published two podcasts today. The Man Who Ate the Town and The Beer Dads were both published. I’d appreciate it if you’d check them out.

playstation-vue-shutting-down

Bye-bye PlayStation Vue/

Okay, so here’s my rant. About six/seven months ago, we “cut the cord” from DirecTV as their pricing was escalating out of hand and availability of NFL Network was non-existent. It was getting crazy. Initially, we went the DirecTVNow route, which became AT&T Now. They didn’t have NFL Sunday Ticket, even though DirecTV did. I couldn’t figure that out. Why?

Then, out of nowhere, AT&T Now dropped the NFL Network. Well, it was time to change. We went the Fubo route, then. They had NFL Network and at least did have NFL RedZone so we could watch that. But, I didn’t realize that they didn’t have any Disney-owned channels. Obviously, if I’m hunting down NFL Network and NFL RedZone, then I want to watch football. The end of every week in the NFL season is Monday Night Football. What channel is MNF on? ESPN. Who owns ESPN? Disney.

So, before the trial week was up, I switched PlayStation Vue. It had everything I wanted, except NFL Sunday Ticket which is, unfortunately, only available to DirecTV subscribers because of the exclusive contract with them. “NFL Sunday Ticket is available via DirecTVNow, they said, so I canceled it.” It wasn’t. It is only available outside of DirecTV if I can prove that I can’t get DirecTV. Well, I had it. I can’t very well prove that huh?

I digress.

So, as I was saying, PSVue had everything I wanted minus NFL ST and the DVR is a bit wacky at times. All is well. All is good. All is… well, crap. PlayStation Vue is ceasing operations on January 30, 2020, because it wants to concentrate on its gaming. I get that but don’t leave us all in the dark. This is totally throwing me off. I have been scrambling tonight looking for other services that can give me comparable service/channel selection.

There is none.

Some have a very select channel selection. Some have many channels but not the ones I want. Some have all I want but aren’t available now. None match the selection of PlayStation Vue. This is killing me. Do I go back to DirecTV with a much-reduced plan? Do I just do without the things that I want and do one of the ones that do without NFLX and just keep the CNN, USA, TNT, ESPN and networks? I can find the games and RedZone via the internet but I like to have my computer with me and I lose that when I do.

I don’t know. I have Disney+ which includes ESPN+, so maybe I go back to Fubo? I don’t know. I didn’t like that service and the DVR was also a maximum of 20hrs. I’m just at a loss, here. I’m about done. What do you do, Dear Reader?

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

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“Today we are announcing that we will shut down the PlayStation Vue service on January 30, 2020. Unfortunately, the highly competitive Pay TV industry, with expensive content and network deals, has been slower to change than we expected. Because of this, we have decided to remain focused on our core gaming business.” – PlayStation

Football is Back or: A Decent Start

05 Thursday Sep 2019

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Salutations™!!

So finally! The 100th season of the NFL has started. My fantasy defense did okay. Could have been better had the Bears offense could have done more, but whatever.

Oh! And while I hate it for 3B (he had him on one of his teams), I have to laugh that A.B. is being held out and possibly could be suspended and lose his $30M guaranteed money. He was a whiney little byotch when he was a Steeler but he was our whiney little byotch. Now, he’s someone else’s problem and he’s an even bigger piece of crud than when he was in Pittsburgh. Karma is just like you, pal. nfl 100.jpg

This is going to be a short post, just like yesterday but I’ve put in an extra-long day and I’m just too giddy that football is back. Thanks for reading. I’ll try to write a longer one tomorrow.

Until then, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

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“Not a lot is clear yet other than that the Raiders say that A.B. should stay home today. They’re trying to work through their relationship with him. We haven’t heard anything about a potential decision yet. My hope is there won’t be a suspension. I’m not aware of any as of yet. That’s their decision. I’m working with them to try and avoid that scenario.” – Drew Rosenhaus

A Piggyback Return or: Full Week

16 Thursday May 2019

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Salutations™!!

15 Spicy Honey Chix

Spicy Honey Chicken Sandwich from Zesto Burgers & Ice Cream

I’m going to piggyback a little different today. Yes, I’m going to talk about all five podcasts’ episodes on the TLD Network this week. But also, I want to bring attention to the announcement I made on The Man Who Ate the Town blog today. Zesto is having their first-anniversary celebration this Saturday and they want you to come. So, make sure you read that post. You can do that HERE.

Now, we did all five of the TLD Network shows today. You can listen to them:

The Man Who Ate the Town
The Beer Dads
Apartment 5B
Fan Interference
The Less Desirables

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

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“Our menu is based on fresh products and over 70 years of passionate cooking for millions of customers.” – Zesto Burgers & Ice Cream

Not-So-Silent Sunday or: The Home Game

21 Sunday Apr 2019

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Salutations™!!

Yesterday was my first game as “the Voice” of the Carolina Cobras. It was a little nerve-wracking at first as the schedule was tight and we had to hit marks. But, I had an intern on headset telling me what they wanted when. After the first 10 minutes or so, everything settled down and the flow really picked up.

I had plenty of time to throw my personality in the announcements, as well, interacting with the crowd a bit. And, we raised the 2018 NAL Championship banner last night!

I’m also proud of my Fan Interference partner, Ty Collins as he was the play-by-play for the Cobras. He did a great job with his color commentator, Matthew (sorry I missed the last name). This was co-broadcast on local My48 and on YouTube. So, I am including the YouTube feed and it’s a long one, but if you’re interested, you can enjoy the game. The next game is on May 4th and it will be Star Wars night. So, enjoy the game.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

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“Cobra Nation, make some noise!” – Me

Roundtable Piggyback or: The Giveaway

17 Wednesday Apr 2019

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Salutations™!!

I got a good deal of feedback from the conversation I posted on here yesterday, either on my page or those of Salem, who were really supportive of Graylen and, I suppose, me. cobras-logo

We didn’t have a guest on The Less Desirables tonight. That was mostly by design. We haven’t had a chance to really catch up with our lives, so Danielle, Bethany and I had a good “roundtable” discussion.

One thing we did talk about the Carolina Cobras this weekend, where, again, I am the “voice” of the team. Tomorrow morning I will release some social media that will act as a contest where I will give away two sets of two tickets to this Saturday’s game. I do hope you’ll enter the contest. You’ll have to listen to the show to win, though. You’ll have to answer a question about it. You can listen HERE.

Until then, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“The team will play in the Greensboro Coliseum and be called the Carolina Cobras.” – NAL

Excellence Indeed or: Another Piggy

27 Wednesday Feb 2019

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Salutations™!!

So today was the big day. It was the DWSP Excellence Awards for 2018. All the recipients were pleased with their videos and since it’s now over and happened, I can say who won the awards. Bailey Power Plant, The Ramkat, Cobblestone Farmers’ Market, The Canteen Bistro & Market, Fiddlin’ Fish Beer Company and Claire Calvin. Claire kind of won three times. She won for herself and her restaurants, plus she co-owns Canteen and since her Alma Mexicana restaurant was the first one in Bailey Power Plant, then she was mentioned there, as well. Also, Kim Lawson is the GM of Canteen and her husband is Richard Emmett who co-owns the Ramkat. It was a lot of one degree of separation going on today.20190227_214217

There was a hiccup that wasn’t my doing and I will address that first thing tomorrow, but otherwise, it was a great day.

Plus, we recorded Fan Interference today where we interviewed former WFU and current Arizona Hotshots (of the AAF) QB John Wolford. It was a good interview. Hailey Brooke McFadden is getting a lot of good guests for us. It is awesome. She has some big news that really goes hand-in-hand with my big news that I still haven’t announced yet because I and the entity haven’t worked out the announcement, yet.

Tonight on The Less Desirables, we had Kristen Williams in to talk about K10 Yoga. She was a great guest. And, she got D and B on the floor doing yoga, that’s something.

Stay tuned to the DWSP YouTube channel (and you know I’ll forward it here) for those Excellence Awards vids. Listen to Fan Interference HERE. Listen to TLD HERE.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

—
“While the focus has always been presenting live music, The Ramkat hosts performing arts of all stripes, as well as other community events and entertainment.” – Me

Catching a Buzzy or: a Long Day Through

13 Wednesday Feb 2019

Posted by in Food, Life as We Know It, Podcasting, The Less Desirables Network

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Salutations™!!

We recorded Fan Interference today and TC and HB interviewed Greg Dortch, a former All-ACC WR from Wake Forest who is attending the NFL Scouting Combine in a few weeks and hopes to be drafted. It was a cool interview.

WF Live

Sam (l) and Seth performing live on The Less Desirables

Then I ran down to Uncle Buzzy’s and attended a tasting especially for food bloggers. I ate myself stupid. I probably had around three pounds of food. That may or may not be the case, but it sure did feel like it. It was all so good, though. Look for a post about it in the next few days, over on The Man Who Ate the Town blog/podcast. Again, it was a lot of food.

Then we recorded The Less Desirables and we had Sam Foster and Seth Williams of the band Whiskey Foxtrot and they played three tunes on the podcast, live. I did Facebook Live teasers of the three songs. So you should go listen to them, as they’re pretty awesome tunes.

To hear the interview with Mr. Dortch, listen HERE. To hear the songs from Whiskey Foxtrot, listen HERE.

I’m done. Oh, the “posting movie” this week is 1984 starring John Hurt, Richard Burton and Suzanna Hamilton.

Until tomorrow, same blog channel…
Scorp out!

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“I need a wheel barrow.” – Me after Uncle Buzzy’s today.