IT'S OFFICIAL: Limbaugh has lost his freaking mind!

OK, it's official! Rush Lumbaugh has finally LOST it! Apparently, he is consume, and spending most of his air time, attacking female writers of ALL sorts, from all avenues and on all topics (calling them liars, no talent hacks and being bitchy). He has nary said, or spread, a word about male counterparts - focusing all his mindpower (what's left of it) and energy on women, a group that clearly he cannot stand! Hell, his four childless marraiges should have proven THAT!

Limbaugh attacked one female journalist who wrote a book on poor American families and their eating habits...someone has to explain that to me. It is now obvious of the man's complete disdain and fear (yes, FEAR) of women - a group of humans who completely doesn't understand, like or wish to be with (in ANY sense of the word).
He has reduced himself to a sad caricature and laughable clown, undeserving of future mention by anyone ... until te next time one, or all, of the GOP candidates bend to kiss his ample ass for fear his flaming wrath should singe their nose hairs (based on placement).
How damn-ass SAD!

Let's BUYCOTT these businesses!!!!

Instead of a boycott, I suggest a BUYCOTT for the following businesses:

Pro Flowers (I used them this Valentine's Day)

Quicken Loans

Sleep Train

Sleep Number

Citrix Systems, Inc.

Carbonit

Legal Zoom.

THESE companies finally saw the light and have removed themselves as advertisers from Rush Limbaugh's radio/propoganda show! They were fed up with this buffoon's hateful, bigoted, idiotic and malicious statements against women and other Americans.

FINALLY, some people with intenstinal fortitude and proper attiudes, who believe calling women "sluts" is NOT appropriate and certainly NOT "entertainment." Only a schmuck who enjoys watching roosters fight and kill each other considers it to be "entertainment."
People should "rush" to support these people; they obviously are run by parents with daughters, who understand such language, against someone's "little girl," is NOT acceptable under ANY circumstances!
Bravo! Let's see MORE! It is time to send this nag to the barn for good! And then move the attention to another idiot/bigot on the airwaves named Glenn Beck. This is NOT a political thing or ideological crusade; it's about restoring good taste and rational thinking to the public square.

Why did 3M mess with a good thing?

Like using the term "a bridge too far," referring to an effort was stretched beyond its anticipated capacity, I must place this tag upon the 3M Corporation, makers of the famed Post-It Notes. Having used its NEW full-sticky (my name, not 3M's) notes this weekend at the North Texas Irish Festival, I can confidently declare that 3M has tried to fix what wasn't broken. These new pads, distinguished ONLY by rounded bottom edges, SUCK! - a good professional word. Unless you get your nails done at Madame Fu Manchu's salon, it takes too much precision work to pry apart one sheet from another. You end up wasting notes instead of wasting the time it take to unstrip them.
I know it was a good idea at the time to develop a memo pad that REALLY could adhere itself to more surface, but I kinda though that WAS the original purpose of the Post-It note - to pull right off and just by stuck on something really fast! Now it's like getting unstuck from flypaper. Thanks in the future, but no thanks! And people, STOP reinventing the wheel when it rolls just fine...

Super Bowl 46: Five times five

Unless there is a clear superiority in talent, the results of most athletic contests come down to mistakes. He who makes the least miscues usually wins. In Super Bowl 46, the team that resembled that remark was the New York football Giants, emerging with a 21-17 win and its second title in four years (both over New England).

The Patriots made five crucial mistakes during the contest, which led directly to the eventual outcome.

First, on its first offensive play of the game, New England was flagged for intentional grounding when standing in the end zone – a safety under the rule book when an offensive infraction happens in your own end zone. No argument there.

What constitutes “intentional grounding” should be better defined for the future. A quarterback is allowed to intentionally ground the ball to stop the clock (as important many times than avoiding a sack to lose yardage) and if he had heaved the ball out of bounds, 10 rows into the stands and 20 feet over the head of the nearest receiver, no call would have been made.

Such a call makes sense if the QB is actually in the clutches of a defender, but in this case, the pressure (from Justin Tuck) was imminent but not yet actually there. The rule simply needs to be consistent; it doesn’t excuse the brain freeze suffered by Tom Brady.

Mistake number two took place later in the first quarter as the Giants were driving for its first touchdown of the game. On third-and-3, from the NE 11, a pass to Victor Cruz was completed but the ball was stripped from Cruz by SMU’s Sterling Moore and recovered by Patriot Brandon Spikes. However, the turnover was nullified by a flag for too-many-men-on-the-field on the defense.

Two plays later, New York scored for a 9-0 lead. THAT non-turnover proved to be the most crucial play of the game that went overlooked. A later mistake by Brady, an interception at the Giants 8, did not result in any points, but it stopped a scoring opportunity.

To begin the second half, New England re-demonstrated its ability to methodically march down the field with Brady in the midst of a Super Bowl record 16 straight complete passes. A touchdown pass to Victor Hernandez pushed the school to 16-9, a seven-point margin.

I believe it was a mistake NOT to go for a two-point conversion to make it a two-score game at that point. As it was, NE spent the remaining time protecting an eight-point cushion, meaning New York could have tied the contest at any time with a touchdown and two-pointer of its own. The Giants chipped away with a pair of field goals to pull within two at 17-15.

An additional Patriot point would have forced everyone to rethink the game’s final three minutes. No Giant would have tried NOT to score and no Patriot defender would have played toreador defense to allow a free touchdown.

The final mistake came late in the game, early in the fourth quarter, with the Giants backed up within the shadows of their goalposts, at the 11. On a third-and 7, the Patriots defense forced an incomplete pass from Eli Manning to Cruz. But the Patriots were offsides on the play, and while New York did not score, the drive continued to eat up valuable time and yardage.

Of course, the two incomplete passes on New England’s second-to-final drive probably cost it the true outcome. Brady hit both Wes Welker and Deon Branch in the hands on potential long gainers. Both required adjustments to be made, but on the NFL level, a championship team makes those plays; New England’s receivers did not.

To be honest, New York, with the inferior record, had the strong squad. New England’s receiving corps, especially the wideouts, were the worst in Brady’s tenure; hence the over-reliance on tight ends. And for this game, Brady’s top receiver, Rob Gronkowski was so limited due to a high ankle sprain as to be neutered.

But excuses are only for whiners. New York made the fewest mistakes and deserved to win the game. Sadly, their fans won’t let anyone in the country forget it for years to come.

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But many people tuned into the game with no natural affiliation, but simply to see the vaunted commercials.

For the most part, the Super Bowl commercial were … tiresome; at least to me. I am tired of commercials with talking babies, cute polar bears that don’t do anything, anything with has-been celebrities (Jerry Seinfeld STILL isn’t funny) or chimpanzees.

Only a couple of the movies previewed peaked my interest and they all looked to possess the same theme – something wants to blow up the earth and someone has to stop them (Bruce Willis, The Rock, Liam Neeson for the umpteenth time, the brooding, shirtless guy from “Friday Night Lights”).

For the most part, Bud Light shed all its humor (save for the clever “We Go” dog spot) and Budweiser parked the Clydesdales in favor of a history lesson on the end of Prohibition and a visual time warp that could have had “We Didn’t Start the Fire” as its soundtrack. Chevy attacked Ford in an apocalyptic manner, Audi’s headlights proved too much for those True Blood Twilighters out there, and since I hate Doritos, their spots had no impact on me.

My top five commercials, from ascending order were:

the Hondo/Ferris Bueller ad (except there might have been many young viewers with no clue as to the nostalgia factor at play …. not everyone watching had seen that 80s movie). And oh, my, how puffy and pudgy has Matthew Broderick gotten? It would have been nice to have seen this in a 60-minute format with others from the original cast (Alan Ruck, Mia Sara, Jeffrey Jones, Ben Stein) included. Still it was … interesting.

TaxACT peeing in the pool. Sorry, it was funny and it’s something ALL of us relate to – either as a parent or as a former child. Tax returns? That’s getting peed upon.

Skechers dog race – Very clever, very well-presented. Of all the dog spots, this one grabbed me the most (followed by the VW Beetle ad with the dog losing weight and Bud Light’s We Go ).

The second best spot was not for any product, but for “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” with Madonna in the elevator when his ringtone (“Like A Virgin”) goes off and to Madonna’s surprise. It drew an instant laugh from me, which is more than I could say for 90 percent of the other concepts.

But the commercial of the night was a repeat winner – Chrysler! The two-minute essay on “America’s Second Half,” featuring the closest thing we have to a John Wayne icon (Clint Eastwood) was beyond words! The ad agency that created the entire “Imported from Detroit” theme has done more to improve attitudes towards the auto industry as a whole, Detroit in general and Chrysler (on the verge of extinction in 2008) than anything else. Today, the U.S. carmaking industry has rebounded, Detroit is gaining jobs and a future and Chrysler is viable on its own two feet after a (needed) helping hand from the U.S. government.

And you KNOW someone did a great job when Karl Rove is really pissed off! (according to the Washington Post).
“I was, frankly, offended by it,” Rove told Fox News on Monday. “I'm a huge fan of Clint Eastwood, I thought it was an extremely well-done ad, but it is a sign of what happens when you have Chicago-style politics, and the president of the United States and his political minions are, in essence, using our tax dollars to buy corporate advertising.”
As opposed to what, Karl? Corporations trying to buy elections??? It would be nice, for once, if partisan politicos started rooting FOR this country (and its major industries) instead of trying, with millions in their pockets, to tear it down in such an ugly fashion.
By the way, Eastwood filmed “Gran Torino” in the Motor City in 2000; he saw what the loan package meant to the city. And, yes, all the money has been paid back and at a profit to the U.S. Treasury!
That ad will be discussed in all circles for at least a year to come until Chrysler stuns us again with a new message, at Super Bowl 47 (will it finally be Lion Time?).

Moment of silence: the late Ben Gazarra

One of my favorite actors from the 1960s has passed away - gravelly-voiced Ben Gazarra - at the age of 81. He was the star of a TV series, "Run for Your Life," which is seldom seen, even on TV Land or any cable channel, plus scores of movie roles, playing a wild-eyed Al Capone to the accused murdered in the legendary "Anatomy of a Murder," with James Stewart and Lee Remick.

British actor Williamson ("Excalibur") dead at age of 75

The death of one of the best Britsh actors, Nicol Williamson, was announced this week, at the age of 75 from a long battle with esophageal cancer. The Scottish-born Williamson, possessor of one of the great voices in movies and theater (as well as one of the more volitaile tempers) was best known for his role as Merlin in the John Boorman production of "Excalibur," regarded by many as the best of the King Arthur movies.
Williamson also played Sherlock Holmes in "The Seven Percent Solution," as well as Little John in "Robin and Marian," with Sean Connery and Audrey Hepburn.
He actually passed away on Dec. 16 in Amsterdam, but his death was only announced this week on his website.

A contrasting view of two Arizona women

Here is a contrast of two Arizona woman and the state of political discourse, courage versus cowardise and bitterness in our nation. One is a nasty, crabby, snarly ineffective bee-otch of a soul, sadly serving as governor, who is doing nothing more than selling books while acting as a schoolmarm by disrespecting the President of the United States in public.
The other is the very symbol of courage, having battled back from a tragic, near-fatal assassination attmept of her life, where others died but she barely survived and has triumphantly battled back, attmepting to regain as much as her life as possible. So she hugs the President, who was unwavering in his support of her efforts and rehab, at the State of the Union. This singular moment will remain with Americans long after the dust is wiped away from the speech's text.
Which ONE is really worthy of praise?

One picture IS worth a thousand words

What else is there to say?

The last sad days of Joe Paterno

The death this morning of former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno, at the age of 85, culminates one of the strangest and saddest chapters in college football this season. The man who won more games than any other head coach on ANY level is being remembered more for a scandal, over which he had little control and had even less understanding of it, than his decades long career.
If you imagine how short 90 days actually flies by, it is still hard to fathom how Paterno, in a time-span of less than three months, was idolized for the record-breaking victory, then being in the eye of the hurricane that was Jerry Sandusky, to being fired (in such an ignominous fashion) to the revelation of affliction with lung cancer to literally dying overnight. Sometimes, life AND death take place faster than the speed of light and certainly quicker than the speed of comprehension.
It would probably be proper to state that Paterno stayed too long at the dance; he should have retired a decade ago (about the time he first learned of Sandusky's behavior through McQuerry's disclosure and allegation). I can only play armchair quarterback to ask, in hindsight, what would Paterno have wanted: a clean legacy or the victories record? I don't think the record book, which is still a temporary position until someone else eventually replaces you, is any substitute for retaining your reputation and good name. Paterno will forever be linked to this scandal, even on the day he died.
Here's my hypothesis: Paterno was SO old school, so rigid in his belief system, focusing all of life to football, that when he was informed of the shower incident, involving Sandusky (his trusted right-hand man for 30 years on the job) and a 13-year-old boy, he could NOT process it. Pure and simple. His mind couldn't conceive of such behavior happening, taking place on his facility, and involving a man he trusted for three decades. In a digital age, it simply did not compute.
Paterno did inform his "superiors," despite the unwritten understanding of who lorded over whom, and continued his business of running Nittany Lion football. He didn't follow up because 1) it still didn't register and he had NO idea of the depth of the depraved behavior; and 2) he honestly thought his actions were satisfactory. After all, shouldn't school officials have taken upon themselves to go to the police?
But if you think back, right around 10 years ago, Paterno became less and less involved, on a direct basis, with the football team. His health began to decline, he spent more time coaching in the press box than on the field and most of the game decisions were left to the coordinators. Everything began to crumble - from Penn State's on-field influence to Paterno's physical well-being. About 10 years ago, fans began to hear the various calls for JoePa to step down and allow new, fresh blood into the program for reinvigorate it. However, Paterno would have none of it; perhaps because he saw no reason to exist other than running Penn State football.
In the wake of the nationwide scandal and condemnation, Paterno was fired on Nov. 5, and a few days later (seemingly just a few hours later), his lung cancer condition was diagnosed, followed by reports of a broken hip, identical to the one suffered a few years before.
When Paterno gave his only on-camera interview to Sally Jenkins of the Washington Post, the first half was conducted with Paterno sitting in a chair (although he wore a wig to cover the effects of cancer treatment). The second half, not shown on camera, was held while Paterno was lying in bed. The end was closer than people knew.
On Saturday night, the grim news leaked from different sources that family was gathering to say goodbye; his son bravely denied it through various messages, but ... you knew it was true. Which is why his eventual death was no shock; it was more a feeling of sadness for what had transpired in less than 90 days.
Paterno SHOULD be remembered for his accomplishments and achievements as a football coach - NOT for what others criminally did through an association with Penn State football. But that's not the times in which we live; we have forgotten that people are innocent until proven guilty and Joe Paterno was guilty of nothing other than growing old and failing to understand the depths by which some people will fall in the course of human behavior.
He was the last of his generation of coaches and perhaps the last of an era where one man held such an unflinching grip over a single program and a single university. All condolences to the State College community and the Penn State family.

Leader of the "Maize Rage" pack

Look who was part of the Maize Rage last night... why it's Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson!!! (bouncing adn cheering all game long behind the Michigan State bench). Now that's a team/school leader who is saying loud and clear, "I LOVE being a Michigan Man." Was wearing his letterman's jacket too ... having the time of his life!
And a GREAT win over Sparty (I love it when MSU Coach Tom Izzo is hacked off at losing to Blue?).

Ten changes needed to college football’s bowl season

Now that the 2011 collegiate football season has finally come to an exhaustive conclusion, having felt like one of those old WWII prisoner of war movies where everyone is in tattered shoes and physically drained, there are some changes to be made to the whole system. Some are radical and some are common sense, but all of them are very much needed.

First, in the future, only teams with actual winning records will be allowed to participate. Going 6-6, or .500, is not good enough; it means you simply suck half the time. And for sure, NO team with a losing record (regardless of circumstance as was UCLA at 6-7 this season) plays in a bowl game.

Second, no team facing, or under, any type of NCAA penalty/sanctions can participate (and yes, that is aimed directly as schools like Southern Cal and Ohio State). Rule breaking, lying and cheating should never ever be rewarded, as was the case last year (and this season) concerning the Buckeyes. It was a double sham for the 2010 Sugar Bowl because five players, subsequently suspended but made public prior to the game, were permitted to perform. Their suspension should have been doubled.

Third, the Rose Bowl shall ALWAYS be played on Jan.1, regardless of what the NFL has scheduled. The parade is held in the morning and kickoff is 2 p.m. Pasadena time. If the NFL gets upset, screw them! At some point, tradition and history MUST count for something; it was a mockery of both to see the parade and game held on Monday, Jan. 2.

Fourth, hold no more cold weather outdoor bowl games! Let’s simply forget about playing games in Boise, Idaho, or Yankee Stadium when it could blizzard or freeze. Let the NHL play its Winter Classic in an outdoor stadium for the novelty effect; college football bowl games should be seen as some sort of reward (Boise is punishment in December.)

Fifth, Outside of the BCS championship game, a city gets to host just one post-season contest. Sorry, but the organizers and chamber bosses in New Orleans, San Diego, Orlando and Dallas must pick just ONE post-season contest to use as a tourist Power Point presentation. The New Orleans Bowl will just have to find a new home.

Sixth, if a school is planning to fire, or hire, its head football coach, it must wait until AFTER the conclusion of the bowl game it accepts as a participant. In 2011, some 12 schools entered their bowl encounters with interim coaches after the game of musical coaching chairs began. In fact, two games saw both teams played under interim bosses.

But continuity always produces a better quality of football and if a school is all-too-willing to take that bowl game cash, perks and rewards, then it can damn well wait until scrambling its players and staff when the grim reaper makes its appearance.

Seventh, all these corporate sponsors are massive marketing ploys and disturb the natural rhythm of the football universe. I say go retro, back to the future, and return some of these contests to their original names. The Capital One Bowl should really be the Tangerine Bowl, which began in 1947; the Chick-Fil-A Bowl sounded better when it was the Peach Bowl, honoring the peach industry of Georgia; and the Outback Bowl had been known as the Hall of Fame Game.

If college teams can don “throwback” uniforms, which may or may not have actually existed long ago, then these games can return to their true roots.

Eighth, games should be played in cities that people actually WANT to visit in December. Birmingham, Ala.? Charlotte, N.C.? Shreveport, La.? Detroit … in wintertime? Seriously???

Ninth, a game dedicated to the U.S. armed forces should actually involve one of the academy schools. Neither Brigham Young University nor University of Tulsa qualified in 2011.

And, finally, tenth, if the FCS, and its old Division 1-A schools, can execute a legitimate playoff process to determine a national champion (it was North Dakota Stadium in a game held last Saturday in Frisco, Texas), then the big boys have no righteous excuse to avoid it.

These student-athletes have the same examination challenges as anyone in the SEC, Big 10 or Big 12. Their fans had the same travel obstacles as LSU, Alabama, Michigan or Oregon. YET … it was done very successfully (as was the case in Division 2 and Division 3 NCAA action), with no complaints from players, coaches, or administration.

So why, again, does the BCS go through its ridiculous square dance of excuses every year??? Could you imagine the overall fan interest, and television ratings (as well as stadium attendance) if you took the top eight, 12 or 16 teams and worked it out over a four-week time frame? In fact, a national championship could be played on the off-week before the Super Bowl.

The hang-up is found in the offices of the various collegiate presidents, who are the REAL powers behind the NCAA hierarchy – not coaches or athletic directors; for some reason, the prospect of MORE money isn’t as enticing as the seduction process employed by the various bowl committees. What a shame for the rest of us!

In the end, some of these lower-rung games will have to disappear – for the sake of the game itself. Nothing was gained to have Purdue edge Western Michigan, or for Illinois and UCLA to have played at all. If someone in charge will help cull these weak sisters out of the system, future action after the regular season won’t be such a major beatdown.

It might actually MEAN something.

One year later: Profile in REAL courage

This photo is of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, (D-AZ), one year AFTER some madman shot her in the head during a meeet-and-greet in a Tucson parking lot. Six people died, including an innocent 9-year-old girl, and 13 were left wounded.
Through it all, she has battled to recover as much normal function as possible and, Sunday night, led a memorial service of 1,000 in the Pledge of Allegiance. As always, her husband, retired astronaut Mark Kelly, has been by her side.
In 2011, the public's reaction and outpouring of affection for this woman, and that community, might have been the high point in a year of such ugliness and sadness.
God Bless Gaby and I hope she recovers enough to run for re-election. If not, I hope Kelly does so to carry on her fights and her legacy.

Sugar Bowl love: Kisses sweeter than whine

The 2011 Redemption Tour of Michigan football is now complete and no place could have been a better finishing port than New Orleans – land of laissez faire and “Laissez les bons temps rouler” … let the good times roll. Before an announced crowd of 64,512 in the Louisiana Superdome (some of us will just have to wait until the Mercedes naming rights have been seared into our brains), the collegiate football program left for dead, just a shade over one year before, was officially resurrected and made nationally relevant by the unlikeliest of sources – its defense, its resilience and its coaching.

The 23-20 overtime Sugar Bowl victory over a very fine Virginia Tech squad brought the Wolverines their 11th victory of the season and more than immense satisfaction for its display of defensive tenacity and good fortune – on at least two overturned calls which, for once, went Michigan’s way in the post-season (just two words to say – Anthony Davis).

This victory was earned; it was NOT given by anyone. Actually, that’s not entirely true. Michigan also had lots of help from an unlikely source – the Virginia Tech coaches. On three occasions, poor game decisions and play calls led to Michigan’s win, and Frank Beamer, now the tenured dean of big school coaches, must assume responsibility and blame for what happened.

First, in what was obviously a defensive struggle from the start, leading 6-0 late in the second quarter, Beamer set aside a sure three points to call for a quarterback sneak on fourth-and-1 from the Michigan 4. Although Hokie QB Logan Thomas runs well in the open field, at 6-6, it’s harder for him to get that quick first step needed to make the play successful. The Big Blue defense rose up and held him short of the first down marker. And 9-0 would have been a much bigger hurdle to face than 6-0 with the ball.

In truth, Virginia Tech never fully recovered from that failed execution for the remainder of the game. Michigan, helped by a roughing-the-punter call, marched (actually stumbled) down the field until senior Junior Hemingway made one of his patented midair catches, broke free from a gambling defender and sprinted into the end zone for a 7-6 lead with 49 seconds left in the first half.

On the ensuing kickoff, UM’s J.B. Fitzgerald stripped the ball from Hokie returner Tony Gregory and Delonte Hollowell recovered at the VT 26. Three unsuccessful plays later, Michigan executed a fake field goal play … uh, not exactly.

Holder Drew Dileo did throw a pass into the end zone, which was tipped by the Hokies before it reached that destination, only to see it fall into the friendly arms of Michigan long snapper Jareth Glanda, who rumbled to the VT 8 with 8 seconds left in the half.

All those voodoo dolls being employed by Michigan fans in the stands were obviously working. They absolutely were affecting the VT coaching.

Brendan Gibbons gave UM a 10-7 halftime lead with his first field goal on the night and a team which was completely outplayed was still winning. The difference was the play of the much-maligned Michigan defense and by halftime, no one could rationally question its worth, its talent or its bend-but-don’t-break mentality.

The second Michigan touchdown came when true freshman linebacker Frank Clark literally stole a pass out of Martin’s hands, setting up the second Robinson-to-Hemingway scoring pass and a 17-6 advantage. Again, had Virginia Tech kicked that field goal instead of trying the QB sneak in the first half, it would have made, in my mind, a major difference in how the game was played.

The second VT coaching mistake was calling for a fake punt with nine minutes left in the fourth quarter; it had no chance to succeed from initiation and the punter was smothered by the swarming Michigan defense from the snap. The gadget mistake gave Michigan excellent midfield position instead of pinning the Wolverines deep in their own territory.

In a close encounter of the fourth (quarter) kind, position means everything. Michigan took advantage by kicking the go-ahead field goal for a 20-17 lead.

Finally, as regulation time rolled down, Virginia Tech, clearly marching to a possible victory, went “defensive” on offense in the final minute. Too many plays were called to merely to establish position for the game-tying field goal (which came with 2 seconds left in regulation). But Beamer never really tried anything true shot to win the game outright…or so it seemed.

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This was the first-ever meeting between the schools and showed how a lack of familiarity can come back to bite a team (and coaching staff). For sure, the amount of team speed possessed by the Hokies could never be properly measured on film/tape. You cannot practice for it if you’ve never seen it up close and personal (not permissible since the pairing was made AFTER both teams ended regular season action).

VaTech’s speed on defense gave Michigan’s offense fits all night long, holding the Wolverines to 184 yards and just 56 yards rushing – all season lows. Quarterback Denard Robinson was the obvious focal point of the Hokie attack and with just a few exceptions, he was NOT in control of his fate Tuesday night.

Speed versus power is what distinguished the four major conferences (the Big 10 represents power football for the most part with the SEC and Big 12 displaying most of the speed). In a one-game, winner-take-all matchup, speed usually holds a significant advantage, but over a nine-week schedule, power often reduces the speed factor through sheer wear-and-tear. So it is to Michigan’s credit that it emerged victorious since speed is NOT its middle name.

The Big 10 school which manages to produce a significant speed factor over its conference rivals will dominate for the next decade and be better equipped to play Southern-based schools in bowl encounters.

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Michigan’s win helped wipe some of the manure splattering off the Big 10 mantle during this bowl season, but it remained a sorry sight for the conference to have lost six of nine games prior to Tuesday night’s Sugar Bowl. Sparty, despite all the whining about its lot in BCS life, finally decided in the second half to show up and went into triple overtime to edge Georgia. Purdue almost embarrassed itself by barely nipping Western Michigan in the Pizza Bowl in Detroit.

The strength (or weakness) of the Big 10 Conference was not on trial; the silly (non-BCS) bowl system itself was indicted for what it actually is … a fraud. To fill all those contractual obligations, a greedy conference has allowed itself to be ridiculed and teams which had NO business playing an extra game merely got further humiliated.

Just because a team becomes “bowl-eligible” means it should be “bowl-selected.” The proliferation of these unnecessary games is hurting college football. As disclosed on HBO’s “Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel,” these games often are held under some guise for “charitable contributions,” but usually don’t give a penny of money to anyone but themselves. That show outlined how the bowl executives got salaries closer to seven figures than five figures, and how IRS disclosure statements revealed no funds sent to any charities.

They are mere vehicles for sponsors to primp around the host cities like they own the damn place, and college student-athletes become their unwitting pawns. No sponsor with the name “Taxslayer.com” should be allowed to sponsor ANYTHING related to college athletics and Yankee Stadium (or Boise, Idaho), in late December, is NO place to play a college football game.

I live in suburban Dallas and I can assure you there were fewer people in the Metroplex aware that Penn State was playing Houston in the TicketCity Bowl (sponsored by a service unavailable in this area) than voted for John Huntsman in the Iowa Causcuses. And the empty seats, disguised as ticket-purchasing fans, echoed that fact. For the Cougars, it was a chance to score a big win over a formerly-decent national name; for Penn State, the game meant nothing and it showed.

Same holds true for the Buckeyes, who quit against Florida, and Nebraska, who shut it down in the fourth quarter against South Carolina. Iowa was overmatched against Oklahoma from the moment the matchup was announced and Northwestern didn’t have the talent on its roster to handle an underachieving Texas A&M team, essentially playing a home game in Houston just 90 minutes away from College Station.

Of course, Illinois and UCLA (both of whom should be in witness protection) still got to “play” in the Hunger Bowl, while neither of which had named new head coaches. I wonder if they could’ve filled AT&T Park in San Francisco if they gave those tickets away for free.

To be fair, Wisconsin fought tooth-and-nail in order NOT to lose its second straight Rose Bowl and should be commended.

But you know WHO likes this system? NCAA college presidents. That’s because schools get paid to play and the honchos get wined and dined by this various bowl representatives. Of course, these are the same people (the campus bosses) who have firewalled any NCAA-BCS playoff proposal, citing the myth of semester testing and runaway practice schedules.

This Saturday, a Texas school – Sam Houston State University in Huntsville (home of Texas’ state prison and death row) – will face North Dakota State at noon just a hoot and a holler from my house. The game will be played at a soccer stadium in Frisco, Texas, and will culminate a four-week playoff process. If it works for the Bearkats and the Bison, despite the semester finals, extra practice and week-to-week uncertainty where the next game will be held, it can work for the big schools, earning even MORE money for the NCAA and its institutions.

It’s just that no one gets wined and dined to death and no fans get scammed.

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For the first time in a decade, the future looks SO damn bright, Michigan fans will need more than the best shades Oakley makes to hide the shine. Recruiting classes for 2012 (and beyond) are becoming the envy of the conference and the start of a permanent place in the top 3-4 in the nation. There are some big holes to fill in the defensive and offensive lines and more depth needs to be added.

But while other programs scramble to find their way in the dark, hoping old names in new places will be the magical answer, Michigan has defied the experts (and critics within its own circles) and demonstrated how making changes … properly … with the correct choice to be the leader … makes all the difference.

As said time and time again this season, in this blog, the personnel appeared to have been there all along – even on defense. It merely took the right coaches/leaders to have gotten the best (and complete) performance to come to the surface. The fifth-year seniors, recruited by Lloyd Carr and thought to be less-than-stellar performers, proved their worthiness and ultimate legacies in UM gridiron history throughout the season and especially in this Sugar Bowl.

Made all those beignets Tuesday morning taste that much sweeter.

By the way: Best sign(s) inside the Dome was “Spartan. Tears. Taste Like. Sugar.”

Go Blue!

Time to seriously re-think voting periods

As the 2012 election marathon officially begins Jan. 3 in the snow-driven cornfields of Iowa, it is the start of a slow-drip deth spiral upon the public's head. It's been dripping for most of 2011 and will continue past the election of the next President in November.

The obscene amount of money spent by various candidates to attempt to obtain elective office should convince even the biggest partisan die-hard that a different method is needed in the United States to choose public officials. If anyone truly thinks the primary and general election process makes financial or participatory sense, when it takes almost two full years to complete – from the first public pronouncement of candidacy to the official filing and then to the final general election – then I’ve got some newly discovered Lehman Brothers stock to sell you.

A good analyst should always offer an alternative solution and I’ve got a doozy. Simply read and think about it.

First, ALL elective offices below the state level should be non-partisan. I don’t understand why the county sheriff necessarily HAS to be a Democrat or Republican when that person is a law enforcement officer.

And wouldn’t judges appear more impartial if they were non-partisan? Then you’d be voting for personal standards and performance; not along party lines. All judgeships should be non-partisan choices.

More importantly, it would save thousands of dollars in duplicate expenditure. Today, a man or woman must wage two expensive campaigns (party primary, general election) to gain such offices as county or district clerk, county treasurer, justice of the peace, constable, etc.

You hold one general election (and one runoff if needed) and let it be done. The winner would need 50 percent – plus one vote – and if the first round doesn’t produce a clear-cut victor, have a runoff 30 days from that first vote.

Second, in presidential years, hold a one-day nationwide primary, to allow as many candidates in each party to vie for the presidency; it would permit ALL Americans the same opportunity to make their feelings known. The first primary could come in August and then the November general election would pit the winners of each major party (or alternative parties if you want to be benevolent).

At the present time, a handful of small northern states get all the say-so in who becomes the next president. In 2000, if Bill Bradley or John McCain had an equal opportunity to go before ALL the voters in their respective parties, instead of getting slowly chopped piecemeal state-by-state, perhaps the outcome “might” have been different. And who knows where we would be today if a national primary was held four years ago? Would we be saying President Hillary Clinton? Or would Mitt Romney be seeking re-election this November?

When each candidate reached my home state, Texas, in early March of 2008, the nomination process was effectively a foregone conclusion. Many voters simply stayed away because they felt their vote for certain candidates were wasted without ANY legitimate chance of winning.

Why should Iowa and New Hampshire voters get SO much power and influence to pre-determine what every other state decides? A national primary would allow any candidate a fair shot at the electorate – always a better way to do things.

A 90-day campaign period would then begin – plenty of time to get one’s message to the nation without months of monotonous campaign advertising bombarding our senses ad nauseum (literally). It would also end the nonsense for holding national party conventions – good only for dull speeches, a lot of partying and staged photo opportunities and balloon drops. Nothing is ever mysterious about these trumped-up, bloated campaign rallies. No real news is ever made, which is why the networks stopped coverage in favor of anything available to broadcast.

Perhaps NBC could put the candidates through a real version of “Fear Factor?” The winner, bugs swallowed and all, gets the nomination.

Third, make early voting a national phenomenon (with clear-cut standards) and move Election Day to a Sunday (many other democratic nations already do that). Our archaic system retains the first Tuesday in November for the general election because … that was the best day when the U.S. was an agrarian society.

But does it fit a very busy 21st century America? How many people simply shun the chance to vote because of a limited (in their mind) time factor? It should be a customer-friendly process, not akin to paying one’s taxes.

Finally, the right to vote is guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution; it never mentions a damn thing about voter identification requirements. This argument that voter fraud is a major virus eating at the American fabric is a canard; such laws are simply passed to oppress certain voting groups from exercising their Constitutional rights. It’s shameful and it’s un-American.

And please stop this silly rationale about needing photo IDs to fly on an airplane or cash a check. Neither activity is mentioned in the Constitution and fails to take into account that millions of Americans don’t NEED a photo ID (they don’t drive, fly and only use cash to do business). If someone wants to propose a national ID for all citizens to carry and maintain (with all pertinent legal information include, such as voter registration, social security number, other licenses, etc.), hold that discussion separately from the right to vote.

I know this will never come to be because … in your heart you know it makes sense.

Hence, it’s doomed. Rats! Can I get on “Fear Factor?”

Creole sugar tasting sweeter than rest of BCS stew

It’s official: Michigan is headed to the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 3 in New Orleans and the entire Bowl Championship Series is headed for the crapper. The process to select a national Division 1 football champion (without actually using a sensible playoff system) has spit out a rematch for its coveted crystal football – a game most fans, outside of the Southeastern Conference, do NOT want to see; that contest has been held and decided.

But in the wisdom and contrivance of too many computerized system, it has been declared that undefeated LSU, the legitimate top-ranked team in the nation, will play Alabama, the squad the Tigers beat 9-6 in an overtime battle of field goals in early November.

It, frankly, stinks; it is NOT what most of college football wants to see, and in the process of this ridiculous charade, many excellent programs got the shaft so hard, they might as well employ Isaac Hayes’ classic theme for their entrances (and that means the likes of TCU, Boise State, Houston, Southern Miss and, yes, Michigan State).

Michigan’s appearance almost completes the circle of full redemption from last year’s disastrous conclusion to the 2010 year in the Gator Bowl. A victory over a good (but not great) Virginia Tech squad, accomplished by playing at their best, will allow the Wolverines to feel totally vindicated.

And has anyone noticed that 10 of the schedule’s 12 opponents earned bowl bids of some kind – including San Diego State and Western Michigan. The only two schools NOT invited? Eastern Michigan (although head coach Ron English was named MAC Coach of the Year) and Minnesota. I’m not sure how many schools can equal that.

The BCS need to institute several changes to its policy for picking championship game participants – all based on the avoidance of a rematch of ANY kind (either scheduled or from conference play).

First, two teams from the same conference cannot face each other in the finals. When Ohio State beat Michigan 42-39 in 2006, they were the top two-ranked teams in America and little of what happened in Columbus changed that. Yet … they did not play a second time for the 2007 national championship. As difficult as it is to say, Michigan had its bite at the apple and fell short. Another team would assume that mantle (Florida did and won it all).

Besides, let’s assume Alabama does upset LSU on Jan. 9; what will football fans then expect? A best 2-out-of-3? The bickering could be endless; the best answer is to avoid such a scenario.

The team burnt the most by the choice is Oklahoma State, sitting at 11-1, having utterly and thoroughly destroyed in-state rival Oklahoma in the season finale. The Cowboys would be MORE than a worthy opponent to LSU, offering someone not often seen in the SEC – a potent offense. Much of the defensive statistical supremacy by a host of SEC schools can be attributed to offensively-challenged systems. No one can really name one school whose attack was superlative; Oklahoma State is capable of overwhelming most defenses so playing the best unit (LSU) could make for a compelling matchup.

People inaccurately point to OSU’s double overtime loss at Iowa State as the reason for non-placement in the BCS title game. Yet very few fans, outside of Stillwater, remember the circumstances under which that game was played.

A plane crash the night before had killed two members of the OSU women’s basketball staff and two of the school’s major boosters; all of Stillwater was in morning. YET … because the game was set for Friday night, prime time, on ESPN, it HAD to be played. Or did it? Would a postponement really have been so improper, in deference to the tragedy that also affected the football program?

Iowa State played out of its mind and Oklahoma State seemed distracted, but the Cyclones earned their win and no one from OSU bitched about it. Their performances from that point forward seemed to employ more urgency and the annihilation of OU was the capper.

Of course, the team who “might” have been the one to play on Jan. 9 is ineligible – Southern Cal. Because of that status, the Pac-12 championship march was a joke; all the quality was in one division (Oregon, Stanford) and the Pac-12 title game produced a team that is the only one going to a bowl game with a losing record (UCLA).

Come to think of it, after so many other programs have committed equally egregious violations, why IS Southern Cal on the outside looking in? All because of one player? Come on…

Speaking of UCLA, if you have a sub-.500 record, you simply cannot, and should not, be allowed into ANY post-season bowl game. Period! And if there are not enough teams to fill those slots, cancel the damn game. Sorry, Boise, you ain’t playing this year; sorry, Little Caesars, no bowl bowl for pizza pizza.

And the most worthless of the matchups should be relegated to the kind of channels the Republican presidential candidates held their debates. A few public access outlets might want to show the Belk Bowl.

Next, some conferences lose their automatic bids if their teams stink too much – specifically the Big East. It’s a basketball conference; football is an after-thought. The Mountain West has more of a legitimate claim than the Big East. And if you have members west of the Ohio River, you’re not the Big EAST anymore.

If football purists really want fewer games and better competition in the post-season, then do this: winner take all! Excluding the major games, let’s have all these 6-6, 7-5 and 8-4 schools play on an “all in” basis (especially at the Las Vegas Bowl), with the winner of the contest (and that includes the coaches and players) getting 100 percent of the payout. The loser gets squat, squa-doosh, zilch.

If that was the situation, you’d see two things: a MUCH better contest and fewer of them because many of the schools would back away from that proposal. School presidents wouldn’t have the same stomach to take that wager as they do when wined and dined by these various bowl committees and respective chambers of commerce.

One other thing: except for the BCS title game, one game to a city per year. Sorry, San Diego it’s either the Poinsettia OR the Holiday Bowl … but not both. Same goes for Orlando and New Orleans.

Obviously, an eight-team or 16-team playoff system, held between school semesters, climaxing in late-January on the weekend before the Super Bowl, would end all this nonsense about the BCS. A real national champion would be earned, not pre-anointed by some jukebox of a computer and a smoked-filled meeting room.

For anyone going to New Orleans for the first time, eat beignets and café aulait at the world famous Café DuMond at 2 a.m., see Audubon Park, ride the trolley up and down St. Francis, listen and watch the street scenes around Jackson Square, see the galleries on Royal Street include George Rodrigue’s “Blue Dog” exhibition, and eat at the greatest garden (and most decadent) buffet in the world, The Court of Two Sisters – make sure you order some mimosas.

New Orleans is a Creole city, as opposed to Cajun (which is the rest of Southwest Louisiana, also known as the Acadian region). Creole cooking involves sauces, Cajun cooking involves spices (youse gotta know dat).

So let the good times roll and Geaux Blue!

Here are the BCS bowl lineups (with comments):

Rose Bowl (presented by Vizio) (Pasadena, Calif.), Jan. 2, 5 p.m. – Oregon (11-2) vs. Wisconsin (11-2) (ESPN)

The only way Bucky Badger wins this game is ball control and keeping the Oregon offense off the field. Michigan State possesses just half the potency on offense as do the Ducks and they scored a bunch against Wisconsin. This is Oregon’s chance for redemption from last year’s Rose Bowl.

Tostitos Fiesta Bowl (University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Ariz.) Jan. 2, 8:30 p.m. – Oklahoma State (11-1) vs. Stanford (11-1), (ESPN)

In a parallel world, this would be worthy of the national title. The battle could be between the top best pro-style quarterbacks in the collegiate game and NFL scouts could account for a significant portion of the crowd. The Cowboys have more to prove than the Cardinal.

Allstate Sugar Bowl (Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, La.) Jan. 3, 8:30 p.m. – Michigan (10-2) vs. Virginia Tech (11-2) (ESPN)

There’s no history between these two schools so animosity will not be a factor. But Michigan has played, for the most part, with chips on its shoulders and this should be continued vindication on two levels – which the coaching change was the right move and there was enough talent on campus to have prevented what happened the previous three years.

Discover Orange Bowl (Sun Life Stadium, Miami, Fla.) Jan. 4, 8 p.m. – Clemson (10-3) vs. West Virginia (9-3) (ESPN)

You have to like any coach whose name is “Dabo.” And no Michigan fan should be able to like anything labeled “West Virginia” – again because of the previous three seasons.

Allstate BCS National Championship (Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, La.), Jan. 9, 8:30 p.m. – LSU (13-0) vs. Alabama (11-1) (ESPN)

LSU’s defense is more dynamic than Trent Richardson for the Crimson Tide. Someone will actually score a touchdown, but the real question is whether America will be so “gamed” out by Jan. 9 to care about watching…even on ESPN.

And here is the full schedule for the also-rans:

Gildan New Mexico Bowl (UNM Stadium, Albuquerque, N.M.), Dec. 17, 2 p.m. – Temple (8-4) vs. Wyoming (8-4) (ESPN)

Gildan is some kind of activewear company (that sells the blank shirts/fleece that are used by screenprinters) that I’ve never heard of… blank as in this “who cares” game. El Pinto is a great Mexican restaurant in north Albuquerque and makers of the best green chile salsa and sauce I’ve ever tasted. It should have been the sponsor.

Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Bronco Stadium, Boise, Id.) Dec. 17, 5:30 p.m. – Ohio (9-4) vs. Utah State (7-5) (ESPN)

Five minutes of watching any game on this blue carpet will send you straight to the ophthalmologist for severe eye damage. If you need a local/state team to boost your attendance, it’s a game that should never be played.

R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl (Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, La.) Dec. 17, 9 p.m. – Louisiana-Lafayette (9-3) vs. San Diego State (8-4) (ESPN)

Michigan played its first quality overall game versus the Aztecs, heading into Big Ten action. SDSU was better than it showed in Ann Arbor. Louisiana-Lafayette is down Interstate-10 from New Orleans and used to be the Southwestern Louisiana Rajun Cajuns. Press box food ought to be pretty good, though.

Beef O’Brady’s St. Petersburg Bowl (Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, Fla.) Dec. 20, 8 p.m. – Florida International (8-4) vs. Marshall (6-6) (ESPN)

Never heard of Beef O’Bradys, which is a Florida-based eatery chain that looks like any other generic joint of its kind. So does the game, with (again) a state team needed to boost ticket sales. And why is Marshall here? So we can rehash the story of “We Are Marshall?” I’ll pass.

S.D. County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl (Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, Calif.) Dec. 21, 8 p.m. – TCU (10-2) vs. Louisiana Tech (8-4) (ESPN)

My, oh my, how Texas Christian got completely screwed! Louisiana isn’t a quality opponent for the Horned Frogs to care about, and this assignment is a complete disrespecting of the program and its conference. TCU DID beat Boise State, BYU, Wyoming and SDSU, plus Air Force to go 7-0 in winning the Mountain West, and this is its reward? It stinks!

MAACO Las Vegas Bowl (Sam Boyd Stadium, Las Vegas, Nev.) Dec. 22, 8 p.m. – Boise State (11-1) vs. Arizona State (6-6) (ESPN)

And then there’s Boise State penalized to this zero bowl game. If I am Boise, why would I give a flip for such a lousy also-ran as Arizona State, who is spending more time finding a new coach than coaching up its players to getting whipped like rented mules.

Sheraton Hawaii Bowl (Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, Hi.) Dec. 24, 8 p.m. – Nevada (7-5) vs. Southern Miss (11-2) (ESPN)

Once again, a conference champion being given the BCS finger. Southern Miss pulled one of Championship Week’s biggest upsets by defeating undefeated Houston and then no respect. At least the Golden Eagles will spend Christmas in Oahu.

AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl (Independence Stadium, Shreveport, La.) Dec. 26, 5 p.m. – Missouri (7-5) vs. North Carolina (7-5) (ESPN2)

Of all the places for a bowl game, Shreveport is probably at the bottom of anyone’s list. The stadium got renovated when it was State Fair Park, but it’s still not an inviting place to play. Just ask Texas A&M when the Aggies lost a game held in a full-fledged blizzard. This, however, would be a great basketball matchup. Can they substitute sports?

Little Caesars Pizza Bowl (Ford Field, Detroit, Mich.) Dec. 27, 4:30 p.m. – Purdue (6-6) vs. Western Michigan (7-5) (ESPN)

They better giveaway tickets with special orders of cheesy bread and thee-topping pizzas, pickup only. No one is his or her right mind wants to see this game. Thank Goodness Godfather’s Pizza isn’t the sponsor; it could sell tickets, but still suspend the game.

Belk Bowl (Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, N.C.) Dec. 27, 8 p.m. – North Carolina State (7-5) vs. Louisville (7-5) (ESPN)

Belk is a retailer chain of stores specializing in a Southern lifestyle; Charlotte is a city which likes basketball more than anything. So they had to have NC State bus from Raleigh to sell tickets. Boo!

Military Bowl (presented by Northrup Grumman) (RFK Stadium, Washington, D.C.) Dec. 28, 4:30 p.m. – Air Force (7-5) vs. Toledo (8-4) (ESPN)

At least there’s a school actually representing the service academies, as opposed to the Armed Forces Bowl which does not. Aside from Rocket fans, or Air Force personnel, interest doesn’t seem to be high.

Bridgeport Education Holiday Bowl (Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego) Dec. 28, 8 p.m. – California (7-5) vs. Texas (7-5) (ESPN)

This is a crime on SO many levels. Cal is too average and Texas’ offense is one of the weakest in all of college football. What’s sadder is how this bowl game, which once upon a time decided a national championship, is reduced to this.

Champs Sports Bowl (Florida Citrus Bowl, Orlando, Fla.) Dec. 29, 5:30 p.m. – Florida State (8-4) vs. Notre Dame (8-4) (ESPN)

This game is more about past reputations than actual on-field performances. The Irish’s only top-flight win was over Michigan State; it was its golden-helmeted heads handed to it by Southern Cal. But FSU is not USC so Notre Dame might escape with a win in the final college game of the country’s best (and poorest utilized) receiver Michael Floyd.

Valero Alamo Bowl (Alamodome, San Antonio, Tex.) Dec. 29, 9 p.m. – Baylor (9-3) vs. Washington (7-5) (ESPN)

Baylor deserves a better showcase for the talents of Robert Griffin III than to play Washington, It used to be a Big Ten representative but the contract got changed. This year, there’s no decent Pac 12 team to match the Bears, who will destroy the Huskies.

Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl (Gerald J. Ford Stadium-SMU, Dallas, Tex.) Dec. 30, Noon – BYU (9-3) vs. Tulsa (8-4) (ESPN)

The SMU campus stadium only holds 36,000 and it will STILL be half-empty for this matchup. That’s a sad prospect.

New Era Pinstripe Bowl (Yankee Stadium, New York City) Dec. 30, 3:20 p.m. – Rutgers (8-4) vs. Iowa State (6-6) (ESPN)

What’s next? The Clam Chowder Bowl played in Fenway Park? Or the Billy (Bartman) Goat Bowl in Wrigley Field? So Rutgers had to be imported from Jersey? The ghosts of Glenn Davis and Doc Blanchard are shaking in their graves (when REAL football was played in Yankee Stadium).

Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl (LP Field, Nashville, Tenn.) Dec. 30, 6:40 p.m. – Mississippi State (6-6) vs. Wake Forest (6-6)

Funny, I thought all mortgage companies were in ruins; I know this matchup is in ruins. It really should be against the law to have a game with two teams without above-.500 records. And Michigan fans, whatever happened to the newest charging program in America? Wasn’t Mississippi State the darling of predictors after last year’s Gator Bowl swamping of UM? To quote Rick Perry, “Oops.”

Insight Bowl (Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Ariz.) Dec. 30, 10 p.m. – Iowa (7-5) vs. Oklahoma (9-3) (ESPN)

If a team played as poorly as did Oklahoma in its traditional rival game, with the Big 12 title on the line, it deserves to face no-name Iowa. I can’t see how OU even gives a damn about this game; Iowa could pull the upset.

Meineke Car Care of Texas Bowl (Reliant Stadium, Houston, Tex.) Dec. 31, Noon – Northwestern (6-6) vs. Texas A&M (6-6)

Amazing what beating Minnesota and Illinois gets you … a trip to Houston (it used to be called The Bluebonnet Bowl) to face the coach-less Texas A&M Aggies – THE single most disappointing football team of 2011. Sadly, the stadium will be stuffed with A&M fans and the 500 Wildcat followers will get lost, mistakenly thinking the game is at The Astrodome next door.

Hyundai Sun Bowl (El Paso, Tex.) Dec. 31, 2 p.m. – Georgia Tech (8-4) vs. Utah (7-5) (CBS)

Another former Big Ten/Pac-12 destination that has lost out. Too bad because the people in El Paso REALLY put on quite a show; one of the best in all America.

AutoZone Liberty Bowl (Memphis, Tenn.) Dec. 31, 3:30 p.m. – Cincinnati (9-3) vs. Vanderbilt (6-6) (ABC)

Another former prestigious game reduced to inviting Vanderbilt, whose most memorable win is over hapless Tennessee. Cincinnati will have nothing to gain by beating the Commodores.

Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl (AT&T Park, San Francisco, Cal.) Dec. 31, 3:30 p.m. – Illinois (6-6) vs. UCLA (6-7) (ESPN)

First, neither team has a head coach; both Ron Zook and Rick Neuheisel got fired. Second, UCLA does not have a winning record and should be ineligible. Third, I’d rather see a rematch of the Oakland cops versus Occupy Oakland protesters – it will be more interesting.

Chick-Fil-A Bowl (Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Ga.) Dec. 31, 7:30 p.m. – Auburn (7-5) vs. Virginia (8-4) (ESPN)

Once upon a time, wasn’t this the Peach Bowl? Good thing it’s being played on a Saturday because all Chick-Fil-As are closed on Sunday…so no overtime in Atlanta. Virginia is a team on the up as Auburn tries to remember what it was like to win.

TicketCity Bowl (Cotton Bowl, Dallas, Tex.) Jan. 2, Noon – Houston (12-1) vs. Penn State (9-3) (ESPNU)

Follow me here: The Cotton Bowl, one of the original Big Four, was downgraded when the Fiesta Bowl bid higher. The Cotton Bowl people wanted a shinier palace to play their game so they accepted the bid from JerryWorld to depart the actual Cotton Bowl and go to Arlington. But the actual Cotton Bowl still needed a game, so it started a new game last year and TicketCity (which has no outlets in Dallas) became the sponsor. This year, poor Houston gets the short straw on little seen ESPNU to play toxic Penn State (for reasons not needed to be said) in a really good pairing. Not sure PSU has enough offense to match UH.

Capital One Bowl (Florida Citrus Bowl, Orlando, Fla.) Jan. 2, 1 p.m. – Nebraska (9-3) vs. South Carolina (10-2) (ESPN)

This is Tier 1-A from BCS games. This actually is a very good, equal matchup between two name teams, one semi-legendary coach and one semi-traditional program. Nebraska would endear itself as a Big Ten member by actually … winning!

Taxslayer.com Gator Bowl (EverBank Field, Jacksonville, Fla.) Jan. 2, 1 p.m. – Ohio State (6-6) vs. Florida (6-6) (ESPN2)

Everything about this game is a joke – from the sponsor name to the participants. The fact that Ohio State even received, and then accepted, a bowl bid shows the shame and the sham that is the NCAA … and its rules. If 10 people outside of Columbus and Gainesville watch this game, the TV police should go to their homes and remove their cable/satellite systems.

Outback Bowl (Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Fla.) Jan. 2, 1 p.m. – Michigan State (10-3) vs. Georgia (10-3) (ABC)

Spartan fans can complain all they want, but they had the Big Ten title game won and let it go. Georgia, in turn, threw the scare of a lifetime into the BCS hierarchy by leading LSU 10-0 at half of the SEC championship. Of the sub-BCS level games, this is probably the best matchup (aside from the Cotton Bowl) and the edge should go to Sparty for playing through a more difficult schedule.

AT&T Cotton Bowl (Cowboys Stadium, Arlington, Tex.) Jan. 6, 8 p.m. – Arkansas (10-2) vs. Kansas State (10-2) (FOX)

For the first time in years, the “new” Cotton Bowl has a better matchup than most of the BCS games. Arkansas was always overrated at number 3 and Kansas State was always underrated when it never entered the top 10. The Wildcats are for real, but the Razorbacks have one of the most fanatic followings. The move to Arlington was made to boost the Cotton Bowl to legitimate BCS standing; I just wish it was still played at the real palace.

BBVA Compass Bowl (Legion Field, Birmingham, Ala.) Jan. 7, 1 p.m. – Pittsburgh (6-6) vs. SMU (7-5) (ESPN)

I might be the only one among you who knows one of these coaches. Pitt’s Todd Graham used to coach here at Allen (Tex.) High School just 10 years ago, when I was working for that community paper. Since then, he’s worked for RichRod, and been head coach at Rice, Tulsa (his alma mater) and Pitt … and it wouldn’t surprise me if he bolted before kickoff here for another school. SMU’s inclusion doesn’t mean much, even here in Dallas. So enjoy.

GoDADDY.Com Bowl (Ladd-Peebles Stadium, Mobile, Ala.) Jan. 8, 9 p.m. – Northern Illinois (10-3) vs. Arkansas State (10-2) (ESPN)

Didn’t they play the Senior Bowl here? And why are two conference champions (MAC, Sun Belt) playing in Mobile??? Oh yeah, no real coach at ASU; Hugh Freeze went to Ole Miss Monday.

If fans want to dump this silly system, it can be done by either refusing to watch these games or buying tickets to them. Economics will eventually drive/force the poo-bahs of college football to institute a playoff system, rotating the site of the tournament finals and using a system of game sites (calling them whatever bowls are used) with a wild card play-in match or two like Major League baseball.

It will bring true excitement and interest to college football instead of this pandering, manipulating (ask Coach Peterson at Boise State what HE did to try to fix his team’s chances) and near-bribery from bowl executives.

Meanwhile, enjoy New Orleans Michigan fans!!!