Bear Down Chicago Bears!!!!!

Today is the game I have been waiting for all year long. MY DOMINANT CHICAGO BEARS Vs. overhyped overconfident new england patriots. Now I could not hate the new england patriots any more than I do now but then I started to read some of the predictions from the so called experts about this game. For some reason the Bears are still getting NO respect with the experts. On CBSSPORTSLINE.COM 4 out of 6 of the so called experts pick the patriots to win. Here are 4 HUGE reasons why the Bears will beat the patriots.
1.) Everyone seems to think that just because bill belichick has won superbowls in the past that he can out coach ANYONE? Last time I checked the patriots have lost 3 games this season and last year they lost 6 games. That tells me the big secret that no one in the NFL seems to realize.....belichick is not the almighty nor is unbeatable. He can and will be beat. Lovie Smith won coach of the year last year because he took a team that should not have won to 11 victories and his year Lovie has a better offense and the most dominating defense in the league. Love WILL win coach of the year again this year.
2.) Everyone seems to be comparing tom brady to the 2nd coming of Jesus. I have never seen more comparisons to Hall Of Fame Qb's in all my sporting life. Everytime someone in the media talks about tom brady it is to compare him to Joe Montana. The only comparison in my eyes is because they both won superbowls. Joe Montana was the most composed gentleman I have ever seen play the position of QB and tom brady does not deserve to breath the same air that Joe Montana does. I have seen tom brady explode in a press conference more times than I have seen Lindsay Lohan in a car accident. tom brady has an ouchy on his shoulder and they Bears will do ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING to bury his shoulder into the ground today. The Bears front 4 will put huge pressure on the patriots and will get to brady to the point that he makes mistakes. Watch for lots of incomplete passes out of brady as well as 1 or 2 interceptions.
3.) The patriots are not the team that everyone gives them credit for. They have lost too many big time players to be considered the same team that won superbowls from the past. Dieon Branch, David Givins, Willie McGinest, and Adam Viniteri all left for the money and that hurts the limping patriots. rodney harrison is out with a broken shoulder in a perfect piece of irony as he hurt himself trying for a head first shot against the Colts and in turn hitting the ground instead of the player. Watch for depth to be a problem with the patriots today.
4.) The BEARS ARE A GREAT TEAM. The Bears are outscoring opponents 28 - 12 and will continue the trend this week. They have the #1 Defense in the entire league and the #2 offense. The Bears defense will force a couple of turnovers today on the patriots side of the field which will lead to easy short field scores for the Bears. The Bears have a lot to prove today with all the experts saying that the Bears are not as good as advertised.
CHICAGO BEARS WIN 27 - 17

In other NFL games today:
Colts will win 31 - 14 against the hurting Eagles
Baltimore wins 24-17 against the lifeless Steelers
New Orleans Wins 31 - 24 over the exciting Falcons

Rivalry Weekend Part 2

Well besides feeling the after effects of Thanksgiving I love this weekend in college football. This weekend has no less than 15 huge rivalries. Games from Texas Vs. Texas A&M to the second longest rivalry in history outside of the Ivy League with Kansas Vs. Missouri. These games mean something no matter what. Even when 2 non-football teams like Duke and UNC play it comes down to being a BIG game for the students and Alumni of each school. Rivarlies are one of the main reasons why college football is so compelling and why every Saturday in the fall men, women, and children find themselves watching the TV and drinking themselves into a frenzy. Games this weekend mean so much more than many of the other weeks of the year to the point that they actually have names like "The Civil War", "The Holy War", The Egg Bowl", and "The Bedlam Game". They play for trophies that none of us would care about if it wasn't for these rivalries like "The Victory Bell", The Commonwealth Cup", "The Jeweled Shillelagh", "The Governors Cup", or even "The Golden Boot". Not only that but teams that should not win find a way to beat really good teams. In fact by the time I finish posting this the unranked Texas A&M will have beaten #10 Texas 12-7.

Here are a few picks for some of the weekends big rivalry games:

#19 Tennessee 8-3 Vs Kentucky 7-4.... The Vols have won this matchup 21 straight times and in the last 13 with Fulmer by an average score of 44-17. This year the 2 teams are very similar in every statistical category from passing to scoring to total yards. Kentucky is going to a bowl game this year but they will not end this streak of 21 games this weekend. Watch for Ainge to throw for over 300 yards and 3 TD's as well as a big day from the running attack of Cocker and Foster.
Vols 37 - Wildcats 17

#13 Oklahoma 9-2 Vs. Oklahoma State 6-5.... Bedlam in the Sooner state. This game means a lot more after the Texas loss today to A&M. Oklahoma has really impressed me after the year of turmoil they have had. 1 week before the start of the season they kick their starting QB off the team for violating NCAA rules, Oregon beats them because the refs who were suspended after that game blew 2 HUGE calls, and then their best player Adrian Peterson breaks his collarbone. Even through all of this they have a 9-2 record and look very good. If Oklahoma wins they go to the Big 12 championship against Nebraska and will play for a chance at a BCS game.
Oklahoma 24 Oklahoma State 17

#4 Florida 10-1 Vs. Florida State 6-5.... Florida has looked very vulnerable this year. They should have lost to Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Vandy. They beat those teams by a grand total of 15 points. The big move for them seems to be putting Tim Tebow in the game. Tebow before last weeks game against Western Carolina had been in 86 plays and had run the ball 67 times. Here is the secret that for some reason the rest of the NCAA does not understand... WHEN TEBOW IS IN THE GAME HE IS GOING TO RUN THE BALL!!!!! Florida State has played a lot better since putting Xavier Lee in at QB. Florida State is bowl eligible but barely and this game is all about pride.
Florida State 24 Florida 21

#3 USC 9-1 Vs. #6 Notre Dame 10-1.... This game could potentially be the final piece of the National Championship puzzle. Usc and Notre Dame played possibly the best game of the year last year with USC winning with a Matt Lienart QB sneak with 3 seconds to go in the game winning 34-31. Expect this game to be one hell of a game as well. This years USC is not as good as last years and Notre Dame came into this year with all the hype of winning the title. Notre dame is coming off one of the weakest 8 games streaks of teams I have seen in years. Notre Dame just finished playing Purdue, Stanford, UCLA, Army, Navy, Air Force, Michigan State, and North Carolina. These teams have a combines record of 36 - 53. Now you tell me if that team is worthy of playing for a national title. Notre Dame lost its only game against a good team Michigan at home 47-21. Notre Dame is the most overrated team in the country and we will see them exposed for playing teams like that.
USC 37 Notre Dame 24

Thanksgiving

Oh what a wonderful day. I love the fact that we can all be thankful for the 4 F's.
1.) Family
2.) Friends
3.) Food
4.) FOOTBALL!!!!!

Since we all know how important family is and instead of naming you all just know that I love you. Friends of course you should all know who you are and if you think you are my friend then you probably are and I love you as well. Food well that is something that makes me smile especially when it comes to turkey, green bean casserole, and PUMPKIN PIE.

Now lets talk some turkey football......
We have 3 games on Thursday to talk about:
The resurgent Dolphins against the lackluster Lions... The defense of the Dolphins has made them better. Jason Taylor is trying to play himself into the defensive player of the year race. Joey Harrington has played pretty well going 3-3 with a running game with Ronnie Brown playing well in every other game. The Lions have so much fire power on offense and yet they suck? Not sure what can be done about their underachieving attitude but they are 7-5 on Thanksgiving in the last 12 games.
Dolphins win 24-17 with one defensive score.

The wounded Bucs against the overconfident Cowboys... Chris Simms injury really hurt the Bucs and this week they actually had to put their most impressive sack master Simeion Rice in IR. They have injuries after injuries and on top of all that their running game with Cadillac Williams has been up and down with him only running for 619 yards in the first 10 games. I used to love the Cowboys back when they had Emmitt, Aikman, and Irvin but since Jerry Jones has tried once again to prove that he is the God of all owners and he signed T.O. they seem to have a different kind of attitude. One that I personally don't like and I have a hard time cheering for them at all. Tony Romo and his rib joint will fail soon enough but sadly it won't be on Thanksgiving.
Cowboys eat the Bucs 27-13

The powerful Broncos against the underachieving Chiefs... Is Al Wilson the same kind of defensive player he was in college back at the UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE.... NO. He is better. He has kept his 3 S's speed, strength, and scariness but now he has gained something extra.....Smarts. He leads one of the best defenses in the league by playing smart. He has all the skills and leadership and now he has the players to back him up as well. Champ Bailey, John Lynch, Ian Gold, and the entire defensive line that underachieved in Cleveland yet makes for a solid unit in Denver help make that team a top contender purely based on that side of the ball. The Chiefs have an offense that reminds me of a sleeping giant that has been woken up with the return of Trent Green. The game will be tight but will come down to a home 3 as I call it.
Chiefs will win in Arrowhead 24-21

Rivalry Weekend

So this Weekend we have a few games that go beyond the regular week in and week out games. That is right, this weekend we have some games we all know as rivalries.

Last night we had the beginning of it with the "Backyard Brawl" West Virginia Vs. Pittsburgh. This game has been played 99 times and the hatred between these 2 teams comes down to blue collar workers and pride. The Hillbillies of West Virginia Vs. the blue collar working class on Pittsburgh. My wife feels that West Virginia should fall off of the planet where as I hate the state but I do have 2 things good coming out of it..... I personally picked West Virginia as the best team in the country at the beginning of the year and 2 I have a good friend named Stoddard who moved there. Besides that I agree that West Virginia is me least favorite of all the Virgianas. The final score of the game was West Virginia 45 Pittsburgh 27.

Tomorrow we have 4 more huge games this weekend to talk about....
USC Vs. Cal... This game has become a huge rivalry and on top of that if USC wins it puts them 1 game away from a National Title shot. USC has to beat Cal and then an overrated Notre Dame in order to play the OSU-Michigan winner for the title. I have to say purely because I DESPISE Notre Dame I want USC to win this one and then destroy the Fighting Leprechauns. I am picking a high scoring game and the final score will come down to a couple of big turnovers. USC 38 Cal 31

Auburn Vs. Alabama "The Iron Bowl" Not played as many times (only 70) as some of these other games but not many other games played through out the year are as bitter as these 2 rivals. These 2 teams HATE each other and when they play no matter the records the game is hard fought. This year Auburn is 9-2 and Alabama is only 6-5 but watch for an upset. This rivalry makes the bad teams play like it is their last game ever and Bama will win 24-21 over Auburn.

Ohio State Vs. Michigan... Played 102 times, it is know as "The Big Game" and is one of the fiercest rivalries in all of college sports. This game has put out 14 national championships overall. Families disown their children for going to the other school and couples breakup when they find out the the other person went to the opposite school. There will be additional emotion involved this year after Bo Schembechler the long time coach of the Wolverines died today at the age of 77. Personally I think that all the hype of this game is overdone and I don't think that these 2 teams are actually the best 2 teams in the country. They play in a conference in which OSU, Michigan, and Wisconsin are the only 3 teams worth a damn, not to mention they play weak out of conference games with teams like Ball State, Central Michigan, Bowling Green and, Northern Illinois. I feel like in the long run West Virginia, USC, Arkansas, and even teams like LSU, Cal and Rutgers cold beat these teams. Michigan will win with heavy hearts 31-21

Tennessee Vs. Vanderbilt This game has been played 99 times with the Vols kicking Vandy's butt 67 times. Some might say this is not a rivalry but anytime you can play any type of game 98 times that makes it something for sure. The Vols will destroy the Commodores by a final score of 38-16

To all the Haters out there.....

Just wanted to bring up a few things after this last weekend of football.

Although My beloved Vols lost it was honestly to a better team. The Hogs are going to be very tough to deal with the rest of the year. Arkansas has only lost 1 game and it was to USC and interestingly enough the BCS has USC as #3 right now. That tells me that The Hogs are a fantastic team. They will beat Miss State and the LSU and the Florida in the SEC championship. Then it will come down to USC, Notre Dame, Rutgers, and Arkansas for the national title against the loser of the BIG GAME this weekend between Ohio State and Michigan.
Look for my predictions to some of the big games coming up this weekend on Friday.

MY BEARS..... Why does everyone say that they are not that good? First they are undefeated through 7 weeks but the critics say it is because they are playing a weak schedule..... Then they lose a game to Miami and now that of course proves they are not very good.... Now they put a HUGE Butt-Kicking on the "Best team in the NFC" in New York and all the critic's can say is that they are the "Bears are clearly the class of the second class NFC". Why Cant the bears get any credit for being a GREAT team? The power rankings have the Bears as the second best team in the league but an article on CBS.Sportsline.com goes on to say that yes the Bears are good but in general the NFC is BAD? Why not give the Bears the credit due. They went into a hostile game in New York and were losing 13-10 at the half and ended up spanking the Giants 38-20 and all the critics can say is they looked bad in the first half but the Giants gave the game away? What about saying the Bears were a better team and at the half made the right adjustments and came out and kicked butt? The Bears are scoring 30.22 points per game (2nd in the NFL) and only giving up 13.33 (also 2nd in the NFL)? Last I checked winning in the NFL by double digits was considered a blowout well how about winning by an average score of 16.89 points?????? Sounds like an ass kicking to me!

Bears go into New York for the second week in a row to play the up and down Jets this weekend. Watch for my prediction on Friday.

Forgive me Father for I have sinned

It has been 6 days since my last blog. Some of you might think it is because the Vols lost last Saturday and the Bears lost last Sunday but you would be wrong. I can actually say that even though those losses hurt last weekend they gave me plenty of hope and here is why:

Vols lose 28 - 24 with a TD pass with 9 seconds left in the game and you ask what can I take positive out of that..... Jonathan Crompton is what. The big physical freshman looked quite impressive against the #1 defense in the country. Without Ainge Meachem still caught passes of 37 and 57 yards for td's because Crompton put the ball in places where only he could catch them. I was very very impressed with Crompton's poise and that gives me hope. Seeing that a freshman could come in and not only keep us in the game but give us a chance to win makes me see that Tennessee is back where they need to be.

Bears lose 31 - 13 to a 1-6 Miami Dolphins team and you want to know what I take out of that? Symmetry!!! The 85 Bears went 15-1 with its only loss being to the Miami Dolphins 38-24. Now you think well that might just be a coincidence but look at this as well.... In 3 weeks the Bears play the New England Patriots..... Everyone knows that the 85 Bears beat the snot out of the Patriots in the superbowl 46 - 10 but not many people remember that we played the Patriots earlier in the year as well. So here it is.... Symmetry. The bears lose to the Dolphins and then beat the Patriots in the regular season then go on to DESTROY all comers in the playoffs and win the superbowl.

Predictions for the weekend:

Vols Vs. Arkansas..... I can tell you that everyone else in the country feels the same way I do about the Arkansas razorbacks.... HUH??? Arkansas as a front runner to go to the SEC championship out of the SEC west is as "Strange As Fiction". No one saw it coming except maybe for Houston Nutt. He is a very good coach and their running game scares me. Crompton has been named the starter and will have to play a good controlled game to win this one. I think that with Ainge hurt and Crompton taking most of the snaps this week in practice the coaching staff of the Vols will have him prepared and the vols will put up points. Will the Defense step up this week? The Defense has looked GREAT at times and HORRIBLE at others. If the Defense can cause a few turnovers then the Vols win.
Vols win in a great game on ESPN2.... Vols 31 Hogs 24

Bears Vs. Giants.... This is the first week of the "Flex Schedule" and this game will be a big matchup on Sunday Night. The Giants are a little banged up with Amani Toomer out for the year with an ACL tear and Michael Strahan out for 3-4 weeks with a sprained foot. This will help the Bears who are also a little banged up as well. Berrian is out with bruised Ribs and the best defensive player on the team, Urlacher, has a sprained toe. Urlacher should play and the 2 defenses will play very well. The offense for the Bears has struggled in 2 of the past 3 weeks but expect them to break a big play for over 40 yards to give them a huge momentum swing and turn the game. This is Rex Grossman's 16th game as a starter, that right after being drafted 4 years ago he is finally starting the equivalent of a full season. The Bears have something to prove and this will be their chance.
Bears win in a very exciting game on NBC Primetime.... Bears 31 Giants 17

Tennessee Vs LSU

Today is a huge day for us Vol Fans because it could lead to bigger and better things....... This is a rematch of last years most exciting game of the year with the huge win by the Vols in a 30-27 OT game. The key will be how well the most underrated QB-WR combo in the country, Ainge to Meachem, plays. Meachem quietly has the 4th most receiving yards in the country and no one seems to be talking about him. Ainge has been putting up huge numbers in the second half of games all year. Ainge has an injured ankle and that will be the key point to this game as to how well he can play. LSU has one hell of a great defense but has struggled on the road. Look for the VOL NATION or Smokey's Bandits as I like to refer to them as, to make some noise and cause LSU to have a few mistakes. This game will be one hell of a game and will be close until the 4th quarter when a score will stretch the score and make it look worse than it really is.
Vols win this one 27-17

A few predictions for all of my biggest fans:
Watch for the Vols to win out... If they win out and a few things happen this could be what happens....
Louisville loses to Pitt.... Ohio State Beats Michigan.... Florida loses to South Carolina...Texas loses to Texas A&M
With all of these things happening the Vols will play Ohio State in the National Championship!!!!!

When all of that happens the VOLS will be NATIONAL CHAMPIONS after beating Ohio State 24-17

Write it down today and see what happens. GO VOLS!!!!!!!!!!!!!