KotH Week 7 Notes

-- Dude! I can't believe I forgot to tack this line onto the Monday night email. When I was preparing the notes in my head at the bar, it was my favorite one! And now the window of comedy might be closed on it forever. But, just in case it still gets a chuckle from someone, I'm going to throw it out there anyway: So, do you think Matt Leinart and Brian Urlacher hung around after the game and traded "How I Nailed Paris" stories?

-- Seriously, though, I wouldn't want to be the Raiders this week. And I mean this week more so than usual. And not just because I'd be in Oakland.

-- Realistically, the BEARS probably would not have gone undefeated even with Mike Brown. But I'm going to predict that in his absense, they will lose at least one game that they otherwise would have won.

-- Hey, Juan Uribe: Just because your team's fans are criminals doesn't mean you have to be.

-- Lou Pinella? Are you serious? On top of being older than lines like "and not just because I'd be in Oakland", he doesn't have the temperament to manage a bunch of coddled multi-millionaires to the postseason. Bob Brenley was available. Joe Gerardi was available -- and will make his mark somewhere else, because that guy can flat-out manage. Pinella's antics crossed the line from comedically motivational to disturbingly embarassing years ago, right around the time he had to maintain an anger-meter reading of "furious" for like an hour and a half to get that stupid base out of the dirt. I'm opposed to the whole thing. In fact, I'm damn opposed. Damn, damn, damn opposed!

-- Unless he brings A-Rod with him. Then it would be OK.

-- So the Cardinals are in the World Series, and I can't help thinking, that's still a division that the Cubs could have won. Go, Tigers!

-- So ... Mike Tyson wants to fight a woman in the ring. That's plain creepy. Normally there's not much harm in two professional boxers, fully aware of the danger, deciding to face off, even if they are different genders. It has been done before, and it's a gimmick at worst. But to involve Tyson, who has gone to jail for punching women who could not fight him back, takes a lot of the humor value out of it. I think Tony Kornheiser got it right when he said the next time Mike Tyson gets into a boxing ring he should be fighting a lion.

-- Oh big whoop, Michigan State came back from 35 points down against Northwestern. Now everyone's talking like this is the greatest comeback ever, forgetting all about the true greatest comeback ever even though it happened only five days previous. And that punk John L. Smith is still going to get fired. Coaches can get fired just for losing to Illinois no matter how many 35-point comebacks they pull off, especially if they have to come back from 35 points down a lot.

-- Lastly, I want to mention to all of you that I've started a blog to expand my thoughts on sports. I very much enjoy writing these notes, and I hope that shows through. The blog will focus on the Chicago sporting scene, and you can check it out at http://sweethomesports.blogspot.com. I'm still figuring out the site mechanics, so you have to click on "October 2006" under "Archives" to see the whole thing. If you like it, tell your friends. If you think I suck -- well, you should probably tell your friends anyway, because if they're like my friends they like to laugh at things that suck. I'm going to post the KotH notes there (unadulterated for at least the first few weeks, to see how they translate from email to blogosphere) but will probably also continue to email them every week, because, well, I'm just that egotistical about my writing. Hope you stop by the blog!