New Year's Resolutions

The "Bad Boys" are back in town...

Well another year has come and gone. We've all had the ups and the downs but we're all still here so I consider 2011 a WIN. As far as 2012 goes, who the hell knows what's going to happen. 2011 turned out nothing like I thought it would and that's for better and worse. I haven't come up with any 2012 resolutions yet and personally I think they are kind of stupid. Besides, being in Athens tonight, I would expect to break whatever resolutions I set forth by 12:02 AM at the latest.

I will say this this though, while I think NYE is a bit overrated, I love the thought of a clean slate and a chance to start over, even if it comes every year. I'm a big believer in 2nd chances (unless you cheat on me then your lying ass gets kicked to the curb). God knows I've made mistakes but with each new year brings new hope. I'll cut out the sappy shit right there but you get the point.

Slic vs Dick for NYE supremacy

All of that said, as YOUR World's Champion, I am issuing a challenge to a one Mr. Dick Clark. He thinks he has the preeminent Rockin' NYE Party up there in the Big Apple but Dick you've met your match this year my friend. Slic's Rockin' NYE Party comes to you live and in living color this year from Athens, Ga, "Sin city of the South" as I like to call it, for the first time ever. We may not have a ball drop (hiohhh?), or the bright lights, or the big city but when it comes to quality over quantity I'll take the Horsemen every time and twice on Sunday. Walk that long and illustrious aisle Dick, through the blood sweat, and the tears, and let's see who throws the better bash! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

Tale of the Tape (Neither list complete)

Dick's Rockin' NYE Party

Ryan Seacrest

Glamorous Fergie

Pitbull

Lady Gaga

Slic's Rockin' NYE Party

Last Resort

Firehouse

Bourbon Street

General Beauregard's

Magnolias

Bourbon Street (yes twice)

TJ's Sports Grill

Little Italy

I'll leave you with Eddie Murphy from Trading Places. If you haven't seen this movie you're pretty much an idiot.

What are some your resolutions or plans for 2012?

Happy Holidays from OIA (and the Johnson's)

No words necessary.

Friday Haiku

Another weekend-
Still control own destiny.
Keep on rolling, guys.

#1 Out of 337

As JJBA says, "some people never make it to the mountaintop."

Richt Flair takes the top spot. Suck it PWD!

MURRAY!!!

Keep up the good work, Aaron. It's not your fault.

Quote of the Week

I'll preface the quote by saying I like Christian Robinson. He's undersized but plays hard. Seems pretty smart and like it or not is one of the more reliable guys on our defense right now.

From Emerson:

"Robinson said overall he still feels okay about the performance of the defense, pointing out that Boise State didn't have many plays of 20-plus yards."

That was always Van Gorder's mindset.

And, every single line of Emerson's recap of today's presser is depressing. I might read a little much into certain things but three or four things in there says a lot about where the program is as a whole.

Words of the Week

Pee on Pius!

Murf the Smurf!

Boo

Ken Malcome won't light it up come Saturday, but he sure does on Twitter:

"If NFL didn't exist... would dere be college players?"
"I'm on so far as I'm concern u on"
"cuz ball out me and India gon support you"
"my fone bill high up some early dis morning I'm piss"
"It's lonely at da in watever u do so take care of yoself"
"My ears ain't fa gave wat I heard yet u sat in my living room tellin lies dont put trust in a stranger even if offered some special"
"I was neva popular in elementary skool... I was da crazy quiet kid eating paste in da back of da class"

Reminder

Week 1 Picks

A Whale of a Season

Georgia is in for a BIG 2011!!

Sep. 3 Boise State W
Sep. 10 South Carolina W
Sep. 17 Coastal Carolina W
Sep. 24 at Ole Miss W
Oct. 1 Miss. State L
Oct. 8 at Tennessee W
Oct. 15 at Vanderbilt W
Oct. 29 Florida W
Nov. 5 New Mexico St. W
Nov. 12 Auburn W
Nov. 19 Kentucky W
Nov. 26 at Georgia Tech W

SEC Championship: vs Alabama L
Record 12-2 with a Sugar Bowl Victory

I'll let Holland or Mouse start the conference predictions/Heisman thread on PPB. Thanks. See ya:)



Tech fans do not rike a the rhales (also some mag 7 in here)

Two Weeks In

As most of you know, two weeks ago today , I moved to Atlanta. So far the transition has gone rather smoothly. I haven't had much time to eat at many good restaurants or get drunk at any bars. That will change this weekend.

This is my apartment.


This is my school.


Last week, I was miserable and wondering if I made a good decision. I've since gotten more comfortable and am now basically begging for visitors. That's an open invite, doors always open.

Moving on, BC plays 25 miles down the street from me. Kickoff in a little over an hour.

Other "news": Lenny Dykstra is in the news ago. This time for, as TMZ puts it, "whipping out his dong"

Almost Forgot How To Log-in

For no particular reason whatsoever, I have recently decided to begin blogging again.

After nearly 3 quarters of a year's hiatus, I will pick up exactly where I left off... at some point later in the week. Currently, I am running on fumes and I'm stealing the neighbors Internet, so unfortunately, I must keep this short. For now, I'll simply leave you with this gem.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pkFYqilPAg&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Damn We Used To Be Good

Return to glory starts 9-3-2011

ESPN Gets It Right For Once

The soccer flop...

Not to be confused with the infamous "Flair Flop..."

The difference, Flair gets up and #WINS, #16times. Woooooo!!! Go USA!

Friday Haiku

Yes, the time has come-
Slic, bad boys and the horsemen.
Gonna have some fun.

Top 5 Sports Moments

5: 04 defeats 03 in 3 on 3 football.

Since the days of Holland's front yard in Kensington Park, Jack and Rick never lost a 3 on 3 football game. Jack's brilliant offensive mind with Rick's genuis on the defensive side made them impossible to stop. For years Rick, Jack, and Andrew conquered all suitors. With Andrew's multiple injuries, they turned to Shane who could run all day, cover, and catch passes.

For years, Schiv mixed and matched teams, but all fell short. FInally, in December of 2009, he turned to Plowe and myself. Plowe ran and matched up physically with Schwarz- something that had never been done before. (Big night before, Foran). Schivera chunked it around. I pushed and yelled a lot- manipulating a few rules. The specifics are a little hazy, but we came out on top in which looks to be the last 3 on 3 football tourney.


4: Jones, Bell, Jackson defeat Cannon, Gray, Summerlin
Junior year Franky and I wanted to be on the same 3 on 3 team. He chose Deejay as our 3rd member. The overwhelming favorites to win were the Coaches and Brady's team. When Brady's team knocked off the coaches in the semis, around 90% of the school- the faculty, the staff, the student body, and the other coaches- felt they had already won the championship and the money. We knew that wasn't the case. It did surprise me that as we started to pull away, a lot of the guys in the stands began to root for us. In a game that was never really close, we finished the drill with a score of 32-19. I remember going to Sawyer's with them Brady, Bryan, and Keenan afterwards. No hard feelings. The better team had just won.


3: BC defeats Effingham 2003
Freshman year I played football. I think we had 9 games. I played in 3 or 4 of them. Junior summer, Coach Brackett convinced me to play senior year. It was the best decision I ever made. We went 4-6 and lost to Savannah High, but I wouldn't trade that experience for anything. Highlights included a 27-0 demolition of Calvary and an overtime win over Effingham. I caught a td pass with under a minute left to send the game to OT. Definitely one of the best moments of my life.

2: St. Michael's defeats BSS in SPAL JV B League Championship
I almost put this number 1. Plowe still talks about this season every weekend. To put it in perspective, we had two guys go on to play high school sports- Plowe and myself. Some of our key contributors included Vernie, Whitaker, Tim Smith, and J Alstad. BSS had athletes: B Mell, Josh Dean, Shearouse, Walden, McCarthy, Nolan, Keenan, and Ian Paige who had hit puberty at the age of 8. Anyways, that year we beat St. Peter's 3 times, St James 5th grade 3 times, and BSS 3 times. BSS was far and away the best team in our league. I still don't know how we won it all. St. Michael's Gym- the Shark Tank- will never rock again quite like it did for that championship game.


1: BC defeats SHS 2004
Plowe talks about the BSS SMS games every weekend. I talk about this game a lot more. Hinchey had 27 rebounds. Mike Hill went for double digits. We held Casey to single digits, and Luke only had one basket. They hammered us by 50 earlier in the season, and we would only finish the season with 7 wins- but I'd argue this one game was the greatest upset in the history of BC sports. I'll never forget meeting at half-court before the game with Coach Cannon and Coach Jordan. I won't forget the lights being off by the time we got out the locker room. Still not sure how long it had been since BC had won at SHS, and we'll see how long it takes to happen again.

Ouch

Disclaimer: I have absolutely nothing against Trey Thompkins. He's a Dawg so I wish him luck. This is just too funny to ignore.

Jay Bilas on Thompkins' body fat percentage during ESPN's NBA Draft coverage...

"It's pretty good if you're a sea lion."

Ouch indeed. (Artwork courtesy of GFS IV)

Birthday Haiku

Happy birthday, Schiv-
Cadets, Crider- a wild man.
Glad you are my friend.

Friday Haiku

Big birthday weekend-
Golf, Collins, and halfrubber,
Hangover part two?

USA!!!

Irwin Blitzer (John Candy) in Cool Runnings: "Those guys have earned the right to walk into that stadium and wave their nation's flag. That's the single greatest honor an athlete can ever have."

Question: Is waving your nation's flag and competing against other nations still the greatest honor an athlete can have? Has this ever been the case?

Lebron has caught a lot of hell lately; he deserves it. 1: He has a tattoo that says "KING" 2: He said they'd win multiple championships before they won a single ring. 3: He had a show to announce where he would play. 4: He continually backtracks off of stupid statements. 5: He needs a brush.

My question is what's worse: doing these 5 things, or turning down a chance to represent your country?

In the summer of 2008 I stayed up pretty late a few nights to watch Kobe, Dwight Howard, Lebron, D Wade, and Carmelo "redeem" USA basketball from the "nightmare" team of 2004 captained by Iverson and Duncan. As much as I hate Duncan and Iverson, they devoted their offseason in the midst of declining careers to represent their country. Hell, Iverson wanted to play again in 2008 but wasnt invited.

Last summer, the World Cup caught fire in the United States (until mighty Ghana knocked us out). Of course, not watching made you anti-American, but that's for another time (wonder how many of these people watched basketball and luging with the same resolve in 2008). Anyways, say what you want about Donovan and Altidore, but they go out as underdogs, knowing many of their fellow countrymen root against them and they bust their asses- the effort and emotion they put into it is unquestioned. Correct me if I'm wrong Schiv, but with the exception of jackasses like De Rossa who play for other countries, when USA Soccer comes calling, people don't turn it down.

Here's a list of some NBA guys who refused to represent their country in the Olympics at some point in their careers: Shaq, Kevin Garnett, Jermaine O'Neal, Vince Carter, Ray Allen, Jason Kidd, Tracy McGrady, Richard Hamilton, Rashard Lewis, Jared Sullinger, Kendrick Perkins, and Tayshaun Prince.

Here's a list of MLB players who wanted no part of representing their country in the World Baseball Classic: John Danks, John Lackey, Tim Lincecum, and Joe Mauer. I understand the World Baseball Classic is new and not that important but these are all young, well-liked guys, and they wouldn't play for USA.

So along with trying to portray Lebron in a little bit of a positive light, has the greatest honor for an athlete ever been to compete for one's country? If so, why do so many guys turn it down? You'll never convince me of a good reason not to play for your country. If you're injured, they won't want you.

Refusing to play for your country is worse than any "Decision" or stupid tweet one can have.

If Lebron turns down Coach K in a few years, I'll hate him too.

Blazers Baseball

Baseball With the Blazers, 2011 from Bethesda Academy on Vimeo.

Enjoy. 2 days.

1: BC 40 SHS 37

BC vs SHS @ Ron Love Athletic Center Jan 2004

In lower classifications, an off night against a more talented opponent usually results in a double digit loss. Hell, Calvary beats teams by 20, even 30 some nights. Earlier in the season Savannah High beat us by 50 at Benedictine. Up 40 with 2 minutes to go, they kept the press on. Losing like this builds character. It prepares you for the real world. If you weren't smart enough to go to Harvard, you still compete against Harvard grads in the job market. BC should play the best to prepare our young men for the real world. If you don't give great effort, are missing players, and don't come to play, you deserve to lose by 50. We learned a lot about ourselves that night.

Fast forward 5 weeks. Franky and Mike Hill are back. We are much more competitive taking Bradwell and Glynn to overtime. Guys begin to buy in and believe we might knock off one of the big boys. In no way am I saying we expected to win that Tuesday in January. But we knew we were going to compete and we were there to play.

Hinchey played his ass off. I will be forever indebted to him for his effort that night. A 6'0 doctor's son who played in SPAL stood toe to toe against a frontline with a 7 footer and a team with a total of 6 college basketball players. Mike Hill hit some big shots and Barker played solid D on a guy who was just a sophomore but was already their best player. That player was Casey Mitchell. I think there were 20 cadets there: 10 basketball players and 10 fans.

We did the unthinkable. Im still not sure when the last time BC won at SHS before we did, and I don't know how long it will be until it happens again. What I do know is that you remember games like these forever. Cannon shook each one of our hand's after that game, and they turned out the gym lights before we could exit the gym. I wouldn't have it any other way.


BOYS' ROUNDUP
Region 3-AAAAA
Benedictine 40, Savannah High 37

Benedictine posted its first Class AAAAA (A) win by stunning Savannah High 40-37 at the Ron Love Athletic Center.
The Cadets (3-11 overall, 1-6 subregion) made 7 of 10 free throws down the stretch to clinch the victory. Donnie Bell and Michael Hill led BC with 12 points each.
Savannah High (11-5, 6-2) was led by Kevin Parker with 11 points. The Blue Jackets fall out of a three-way tie for first place in the subregion with the loss, a game behind Groves and Glynn Academy.
BC (40)
Hinchey 1, Barker 7, Jackson 8, Donnie Bell 12, Michael Hill 12.
SHS (37)
Kevin Parker 11, Mitchell 7, Smith 6, Brown 10, Tambon 2.
Halftime—SHS, 14-12. Records — Savannah High 11-5 overall, 6-2 Class AAAAA (A); Benedictine 3-11, 1-6

2: BC v. Windsor 2003

BC vs. Windsor @ Cannon Court Dec. 2003

Losing to Windsor in the region playoffs my junior year still haunts me. We had beaten them 3 times that year, all double digit wins, and they ended our season in a shocker at Groves. We played too tentatively and tried to force it down low all game. Windsor was young and athletic- it was their time. The would go on to knock off Wayne and make the state playoffs that year. After the game, they ran around shouting next year is here. I've never felt worse after a sporting event in my life. I doubt I ever would. 18-8 in 3AAAAA is outstanding, but we underachieved. We should have been playing as SSU for the region championship.

The class of 2003 was full of talent. We lost our dominate post player in Brady. We lost our shooting wing, Keenan. Our captain, best shooter, and best defensive player took his talents to GSU intramurals (where he would average 30). Bryan and Matthew were athletic guards who could defend and slash- both were gone. Jermaine's physical presence would be missed. Most of all, the momentum from the previous two years was gone. Worse, Franky was ineligible and Mike Hill was taking a 3 month vacation to start the season.

On the other hand, Windsor had lost nothing. Eron Riley was a year older and stronger. Eric Scott was the 2nd best guard in the city. Mack and Bell were outstanding guards. Our starting lineup was Barker, Hinchey, Lorenzo, Bell and Scott. No Franky, no Mike Hill. No Brady, Shane, Keenan, BG, Matty, or Jermaine. Still, we pulled one out of our asses. Windsor still ended BC's only serious hopes of a region championship the year before, but this game wasn't bad payback.

Donnie Bell led all scorers with 22 points as Benedictine battled past Windsor Forest Friday night.
Eron Riley led Windsor Forest with 13 points. BC is 2-3, while Windsor is 4-2.
WINDSOR FOREST (41)
Eron Riley 13, Scott 8, Bell 7, Lewis 4, Moore 4, Mack 3, Jones 2.
BENEDICTINE (45)
Donnie Bell 22, Hinchey 8, McDonald 6, Scott 4, Barker 3.
Halftime—BC, 24-14. Records—WF 4-2, BC 2-3

BC 61 SHS 50

3: BC vs SHS @ Cannon Court 2003.

After knocking off Savannah High during the summer and losing a hard-fought game to them earlier in the season at Ron Love, the tables were set for a showdown. This was our big chance. We had to beat Savannah High, and we did. The atmosphere at this game will never be duplicated; GHSA rules were altered because of it.

Cannon had been tossed the previous Saturday in a devastating loss at Beach. Kieffer coached us to victory. New had the noodles. Schwarz had the dolls. I still get chills thinking about this game. We controlled the game from the tip. By the 4th quarter, I'd wager 4 out of 5 people in that gym were waiting on us to blow it. But this was our game and we held on. Brady put an exclamation point on this game with a dunk. I'll always respect Thomas Crawford for his actions after the game. The walk back to the locker-room was amazing.

Benedictine 61, Savannah High 50

Brady Cannon scored 19 points to lead Benedictine to a 61-50 Region 3-AAAAA (A) win Tuesday against Savannah High. Three other Cadets cracked the double-digit mark. Keenan Summerlin, Donnie Bell and Bryan Gray scored 14, 13 and 12, respectively.

Savannah High was led in scoring by Thomas Crawford with 14 points. Blue Jacket teammate Michael Wingster chipped in with 13 points.

BENEDICTINE (61)

Brady Cannon 19, Donnie Bell 13, Keenan Summerlin 14, Bryan Gray 12, Jackson 4.

SAVANNAH HIGH (50)

Thomas Crawford 14, Michael Wingster 13, Sandes 8, Brown 5, Tambon 4, Jones 2, Washington 2, Deridder 2.

Halftime -- Benedictine, 26-17. Records -- Benedictine 11-6, 4-3 Region 3-AAAAA (A).

Posted January 15, 2003

Game 4: BC v Camden 2002

I figured I better go ahead and do all of them. Maybe this well get us some Friday traffic. If nothing else, it will give us something to discuss this weekend. Keep in mind, these are the most memorable games to me, not the most important or anything.

4: BC vs. Camden @ Cannon Court 2002.

Backstory:

The previous year we finished 7-17, but we had everyone back except Owens and Holland. The absence of Holland would hurt, but that's for another post. Anyways, we came into the season hoping to have a winning record, and there were whispers of us being as good as the Koncul/Williams team. It was a tumultuous offseason: we had beaten SHS in a summer league game, Brady suffered a collapsed lung, Walden hospitalized me in his one day tryout, and Dotson and Franky duked it out a week before the start of the season.

Significance:

The atmosphere for this first game of the season was electric. Unfortunately, we fell behind by more than 10 in the first half. During half time, the conversation consisted of, let's get our shit together, or everyone is going to think we suck again. The day before the game, Cannon put in a half court in bounds play. We got into that situation, and we executed it flawlessly. We would go 3-0 in the Joe Greene Tournament.

Benedictine 63, Camden Co. 61

Camden County led 15-5 after a quarter and by 12 points at halftime, but BC came back and won when senior forward Brady Cannon converted a layup with 20 second remaining in the Joe Greene Tournament. BC's comeback was headed by Cannon and post player Donnie Bell, who scored 12 of his game-high 17 in the latter minutes of the third quarter and the fourth quarter.

CAMDEN CO. (61)

Charles Williams 10, Johnson 9, Holloway 9, Massey 9, Emerson 8, Small 6, Green 6, James 2.

BENEDICTINE (63)

Donnie Bell 17, Brady Cannon 13, Frankie Jackson 12, Keenan Summerlin 10, Murray 8, Gray 3.

Halftime--Camden Co., 35-23. Records--BC 1-0; Camden Co. 0-1.

Posted November 28, 200

Top 5 Basketball Fridays

For the next 5 Fridays, there will be no Friday Haiku. Instead, I am going to recount the most memorable 5 basketball games played while I was at Benedictine.

5: Benedictine v. Bradwell @ Cannon Court

Why it was significant:

It was the first region win for Benedictine in over 2 years. The previous year Benedictine went winless in region play. The core of Pierce, T West, Logan Sevier, Richard Polote, and Lamar Owens made it a habit to compete in the toughest basketball region in the state and even defeated Johnson in a non-region game. The 02/03 squad saw Owens take a backseat to guards Holland, Jackson, and Dotson. Gray, Summerli, and Murray grew into dangerous wings while Bell and Cannon learned to work together down low.

The atmosphere at this game was unbelievable. It set the stage for next year, and more than anything it proved that our group of sophomores and juniors was already better than the previous year's seniors. This was a stepping stone game. We took our lumps throughout this year, but knowing we could beat- not be competitive against- the big boys made us hungry, and we worked our asses off the following Summer for good reason.

Here's the story from the SMN,

Bell, Cannon ignite Benedictine to upset against Bradwell

Donnie Bell's 12 points and Brady Cannon's 10 sparked Benedictine to a 43-38 upset win against Bradwell Institute in a Region 3-AAAAA (A) boys' high school basketball contest.

BC (6-12, 1-6) recorded its first sub-region win of the season. Keenan Summerlin added nine points for the Cadets.

Romeo Montez led Bradwell (13-6, 7-4) with nine points.

BRADWELL INSTITUTE (37)

Montez 9, Nelson 8, Milton 4, Clay 4, Thomason 4, Green 2, Gillespie 2.

BENEDICTINE (43)

Donnie Bell 12, Brady Cannon 10, Summerlin 9, Owens 5, Jackson 4, Gray 2. Dotson 1.

Halftime--BC, 17-11. Records--BC 6-12, 1-6 Region 3-AAAAA (A); Bradwell 13-6, 7-4.

Posted January 19, 2002

15 Seconds of Fame

Well Ric Starr made his television debut earlier this evening in TNT's Franklin and Bash. I just watched it for a second time and was able to grab some screenshots with my phone but I don't think they do me justice. I'm much more photogenic on television. I will say for such a small role my performance was award show worthy. Nobody's ever played a tailor like that in cinematic history. Not to mention this was less than 2 months after my car accident, which is a made for TV movie in and of itself. Anyways, in case you missed it, or thought I was lying, here you go:

Look at that TV hair...

Congrats, Bryan

Great times in Bourbon.

Perfect place for a party-

Have a good one, Schiv.

Hell of a Way to Start

According to several reports, CMR told the crowd at the Greenville Bulldog Club gathering tonight that the South Carolina game will be a night game on ESPN. Based on his deep religious faith, I would not expect CMR to lie. If this is indeed true, it is shaping up to be a great start to the season (provided we win): 2 primetime nationally televised games against highly ranked teams. This is a great chance to become relevant again (which is sad considering these are games against Boise St. and Carolina). CMR, one piece of advice: don't piss the bed.

A Little Bit of This, A Little Bit of That

Twilight weekend was fun. Friday night was more fun than Saturday night. The new bartender at Bourbon St. is without a doubt the love of my life. The moment I saw her I immediately put her in my top 3 (of course I was somewhat inebriated at the time). I think I made some pretty good headway (hiii ohhhhh?) and I'm pretty sure I was on top of my game but you would have to ask Pmac because my memory is still a little fuzzy. I will say this, when I came back Saturday night and saw her she had a big smile on her face. Any who, I don't expect to see her again to until the football season so I hope she stays a B. St. I don't know how old she is either so she could be around a few years. One of these days I may even catch her name. I also told Chrissssss if Whiskey Bent wanted a war we would sure as hell give them one. I was serious. He thought that was hilarious and said they could kiss his ass. I wish I could go into more detail about this past weekend but unfortunately I cannot. I'd throw it in the W column though for sure. Believe me when I tell ya, this ole boy's still got it.

Not the best picture but you get the point. Winning.

I'll never take the first amendment for granted again. In a related note, I will be off Twitter for awhile:(

Apparently not.

Sylvester Stallone needs to make a sequel to "The Expendables" based on SEAL Team 6 and the kick ass job they did killing that rat bastard raghead OBL.

Hollywood's SEAL Team 6

Georgia runningbacks coach Bryan McClendon received a $110,000 raise. That bumps his salary up from $90,000 to $200,000 a year. Apparently this was done because he was being swayed by other schools. Regardless, I hope a lot of that is due to his recruiting abilities because our runningbacks aren't worth a s***. I don't necessarily blame McClendon for that. I knew CK4 was going to be a bust the minute he set foot on campus. I had hope for Ealey until last year's South Carolina game but now I just assume lump him in with King. Basically, I don't see why he should get a big raise when the position he coaches is one of the bigger disappointments on the team. I have nothing against McClendon, just to be clear.

A huge raise, for this performance? Really?

Sorry Mouse but the Hawks are ruining sports talk radio in Atlanta so I need them to just go ahead and lose these next 4 games. Ok thanks.

I want you to choke. You know how to choke. Make it happen Joe.

The first leg of the Triple Crown is upon us: The 137th Kentucky Derby from Churchill Downs. The odds on favorite at this point is Dialed In at 3:1. I'll make a Wednesday lean towards Twice The Appeal (25:1). On Saturday I'll probably just pick whatever horse is in Gate 4. I remember we once discussed everybody chipping in and buying a horse to race in the Derby. The names of the horses kind of suck this year. If you had a horse what would you name it?

Mint Juleps for everyone. Hooray!

Tragedy

I know this is a little late but I'm sure everybody knows about Trinton Sturdivant's s situation by now. He tore an ACL for the third time. This is indeed a tragedy because of 1) the kind of upstanding person Trinton is and 2) the potential he had to excel at the college and pro level.

While his career was short and perhaps unfulfilled, through no fault of his own, I think he deserves credit for one of the greatest memories in Georgia football history: The Dance!

A Few Things

Rick brought back his Twitter feed Saturday afternoon, and needless to say he delivered (twss). It was suggested today that I give those of you who missed it some of the best tweets, so here goes:

Let me quote my friend damon grandson of hehhee lou jimmmmmyyy lou: freeeeeeeeeeeeedddddddoooommmmm!!! about 24 hours ago via txt

Silence of the lambsssssss (frogskin on face) @damonsmith about 23 hours ago via txt

I would prefer to marry ozzie cuz dogs r loyal unlike some other... 3:31 PM Apr 9th via txt

This fat italian by the pool has chest has chest hair that would make george the 3rd jealous 3:11 PM Apr 9th via txt

@onlyinablog and @amberdupre22 celebration time woooooooo cutting off the excess cass bass and tierney back in play about 21 hours ago via txt

Even a boeing 747 looks small inside of the grand canyon @tripleh @degenerationx about 22 hours ago via txt

Whoever gets in after me is gonna fall out cuz I wore it out woooooooo slic jr!!!!! about 22 hours ago via txt

Steve Hummer of the AJC with an incredible line in his Masters story:

“McIlroy was able to maintain at least a share of the lead until the turn.
What followed was the greatest Irish tragedy since Charlie Weis.”

A great graphic on pl0we's boy Rickie Fowler:



And the new R.E.M. is not terrible – that's two albums in a row. Nice surprise:

See You In Charlotte

Georgia -- Mark Fox in particular -- deserves a lot of credit for its so-called “head-scratching” seed in the tournament. Fox made a point last offseason to assemble a schedule that would give them the best chance to get in -- tough, but not too tough.

It's a lot like when Georgia got surprisingly high seeds those two years Harrick made the tournament, except under Harrick they played one of the most difficult schedules in the country.

The selection committee loves RPI and strength of schedule, and Georgia had both of those things going for it in a big way. No bad lossses, and they got in easily.

I know this was a frustrating season in a lot of ways, because of the close losses and having Thompkins banged up so often, but I think it's important to appreciate where Georgia is right now. Making the tournament in itself is a huge, huge step for this program.

This doesn't happen at Georgia very often. Win or lose Friday, and they get the kind of positive exposure they've not had in almost a decade. (This is a legit tournament team, unlike in 2008, when Georgia wasn't much more than a cute little story.) Win, and you get to play North Carolina in front of the entire country. As long as you don't embarrass yourself there, that's another shot in the arm.

Washington will be extremely tough, but there is one thing I like about Georgia playing them -- I don't think many people nationally will give them much of a chance.

For one, they'll still be talking about how Georgia doesn't deserve a 10-seed more than about their chances of winning. Two, Washington won the Pac-10 tournament, so everyone will expect them to go on a run like they did last year. Again, Washington scares me, but before Arizona today they beat Washington State (which beat them the previous time they played) and Oregon (which isn't any good). It could be worse.

Four more days.

Headed North

Yankees get ready,
Times Square, Broadway, and beyond,
Slic's coming to town!

City that never sleeps huh? We'll see about that!

*Happy 26th Shane! Wish I could be there but I know you'll have a good one!

I hope Baldino's is good this week...

#34 to Monday Night RAW

Herschel Walker was backstage at RAW in Dallas this past Monday. Apparently he's a huge wrestling fan, opting to watch RAW over Monday Night Football.

Oh yeah... and 1 more week! This time next week I should be going to bed, but we all know better.

Who's Wrong?

There are a lot of qualifiers in this piece, but it sounds like Mark Bradley is saying that Georgia has to win two games in the SEC tournament to make the NCAAs.

Bradley's been around a lot longer than I have, so maybe he knows something I don't. But I'm pretty sure everything else I've seen suggests that if Georgia beats Auburn they're in. Two losses to Alabama wouldn't look good, but I'm pretty sure that a top 40 RPI and strength of schedule -- with 'Bama being the closest thing to a bad loss -- should get you in.

Does that seem right, or am I missing something? I wouldn't want to get too excited if Georgia manages to not fall apart on Thursday.

On an unrelated note, 10 more days.

Too Good To Pass Up

Feel free to point out anybody else...

Friday Haiku

While the hate freely flows in the post below (F eminem), here's a Haiku to start your Friday off right:

Now the fun begins.
Election, reception, beach.
Anderson, look out!

My movie comes out today too. Exciting times. Hope to see everybody this weekend.

Top 3 People I Dislike

3.
2.

1.

Anymouse and myself got yall's asses

We're #1

When Is It Going To Be Our Turn?

I'm still waiting while Georgia athletics continues to disappoint. Enough of the excuses about refs, injuries, suspensions, etc. just go out and win games. Take care of business. This goes for all sports. Barring a miracle, this "star studded," "best basketball team at Georgia in awhile" is NIT bound, the football team's troubles are well documented (although I'm cautiously optimistic about 2011, mainly because South Carolina is the front runner in the East and that's just a bad joke), and from what JJBA tells me the baseball team could be just as bad as last year when they gave up 10+ runs seemingly every game. The high school talent available in Georgia in all 3 of those sports provides a built-in advantage 99% of schools and coaches around the country would kill to have at their disposal. I hear over and over again about the outrageous monetary numbers the Athletic Association pulls in year in and year out. Most of the athletic facilities have been upgraded or are in the process of being upgraded. The excuses are drying up pretty quick. Ultimately, the blame lies exactly where it should and that is with the coaches and players. Both groups are under performing to the point where things are just getting downright ridiculous. We need to start delivering the punch again instead of becoming the punchline for other SEC teams.

The good news: 4 weeks (or 28 days) away from the biggest day of the year and nothing can ruin that feeling!
Doesn't get any better than this...


Looking forward to the BC Alumni event tomorrow evening, the Marshall's Election/Reception next weekend, and of course the Triiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnniiiiitttttyyyyyyyyyyyy! Erin Go Brah!

Here's an Arthur's Basement for good measure:

One Year Ago...

... I strengthened my case for immortality.

With that in mind I promise to post more and get back to my "roots" (not kunta kinte or Toby). That starts in Athens this weekend and Savannah the following weekend. That's a Slick Rick guarantee!

'Dinos Evaluation

I ate at Baldinos for lunch today. When they are on, they have the best sandwiches in Savannah. When they are off, they may be some of the worst.

Kind of like Georgia basketball.

If this were football, people would be talking about firing you.

37 Days

Tweets That Aren't By Slicric416

I was following some people's tweets during the Super Bowl earlier when I came across this amazing fake Twitter account for Mark Richt. I would assume this guy will get a cease-and-desist letter by the end of the week, so enjoy it while you can.

A few samples:

“Sending the Gym Dawgs to South Carolina to get us in the mix on this Clowney kid.”

“I can tell Bulldawg nation is really excited for this class. My Barberitos was spit-free for the first time since the bowl game.”

“More like Dick Saban.” “Sorry, that was a text intended for Isaiah Crowell.”

“No arrests this weekend! First time winning the coaches player arrest pool. I always take 0.”

“Is taking recruits to @TaqueriadelSol a recruiting violation? Can someone ask McGarity? Somehow got stuck with Bobo's kids. #FML"

Combo of Price and Barnes

Basketball

- Georgia hosts Florida in the biggest game of the season to date. Gotta get to 4-2 with trips to Kentucky and Arkansas up next.

- Braketology currently has Georgia as a 9 seed playing Cashmere Wright and Cincinnati.

- The 4th leading scorer in the the Big East, Casey Mitchell, has been suspended indefinitely by Bobby Huggins.

- Sundiata Gaines is averaging 5.8 points a game for the Raptors.

- BC's starting center scored 32 against Camden last Friday. He's scored 20+ points in 6 straight games and is the leading rebounder in the quad-county area. BC is 3-14.

- The Spurs are the best team in the NBA by far.

- Ole Miss and Head Coach Andy Kennedy beat LSU on Saturday.

Finally Something Worthwhile Happens in Tennis.

Somebody has to be Good

You'd think the percentages would eventually catch up with Georgia athletics and somebody would be good. The basketball team looked to be better than most, and though it still can be is underachieving up to this point. Message boards are lit up with how the refs cost Georgia an SEC win last night. Though I hate Ted Valentine more than any other official in any sport, the refs didn't cost Georgia. Thomkins being outplayed by a freshman, and the two seniors being the worst players on the floor cost Georgia. Shot clock should've been called, and the over the back was pretty obvious. But Georgia should have never been in that position at home against a team that has lost to a number of inferior opponents in the last month. Maybe I was expecting a little much thinking this was a team that would be fighting for a better seed in the dance come SEC tournament time. Instead, the fight looks to be coming with the bubble.

Right now the Dawgs would be on the outside looking in. Before the conference slate started, 10-6 looked like the number that was needed for a probable tourney birth. Now for that to happen8-4 is needed from here on out. For the sake of outlook I think Georgia needs to run the table at home. 7-0 would be ideal but 6-1 would be okay if that loss is to Xavier. If this was to happen then 2-4 on the road is a minimal requirement. I like the chances of 7-0 at home better than 2-4 on the road given Georgia's recent history away from Athens. But games in Columbia, Fayetteville, and Tuscaloosa are very gettable while trips to Lexington, Knoxville, and Gainesville are long shots imo. The loss last night hurt immensely and makes the Miss State game close to a must win.

Fox knows how important this season is for the greater good of Georgia basketball. Next year will field a team with only 2 starters probably returning and the following year will have a brand new back court. The time is now for this program to get over the hump, especially when the league is as average as ever. Thomkins and Leslie have to raise their levels of play because both were better players last year on a team that finished last.

For those who could care less about basketball, SPD is 57 days away.

WTOC

Happy 2011...

from AmericanHoneyband Chet and myself. Friend him on Facebook if you dare.

Happy Sugar Bowl!