Sure, this would mean occasionally celebrating New Year's Eve on Christmas night, but the benefits far outweigh the negatives. Taking Friday off and then having Monday as a legal holiday allowed me to sit on my couch and watch approximately 48 hours of college and NFL football over the course of my four-day weekend.

It all began Friday at noon. Not having any plans for the day, I noticed that a couple of college games were on, so I figured why not relax a bit and watch some football? It had been a busy year, what with Sports in a Can taking off and needing near round-the-clock attention and all. So I thought some R&R was well-earned. Little did I know that 29 hours later the Missus would literally need to drag me off the couch so that we could attend our New Year's Eve festivities.

I was completely down on the bowl system because, as you've heard me preach before, there's no playoff system. But this was before I had four days with nothing else to do but enjoy the bowl games. And now? I think I'll have to get down from the pulpit for a moment. I'd seen the highlights of that game in Boise on the blue field and the unbelievable finish to the Nebraska-Michigan game, but nothing prepared me for the corporate-sponsored glory about to come.

As soon as the Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl ended with an interception in the end zone that thwarted a comeback bid by Minnesota, I flipped over to the Vitalis Sun Bowl and watched UCLA beat Northwestern in a game that featured over 1,000 yards of offense and two onside kicks run back for touchdowns-by the same player. It ended with enough time for me to catch the end of the thrilling Independence Bowl. (No corporate sponsor for that one? Why not the Manulife Financial Independence Bowl?). Thank goodness LSU made mincemeat of Miami in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl, otherwise I might never have eaten or gone to the bathroom.

Saturday brought three more exciting bowl games and two NFL games. And, as if on cue, the Giants-Raiders game ended just in time for me to catch the New Year's Eve countdown. But I had my own countdown going: 13 hours until I could watch more football. Sunday ushered in the conclusion of the NFL season with a decent slate of games and four teams winning must-win games to clinch playoff spots. Whoever penned "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year" was off by one week.

Monday brought six more bowl games and a permanent indentation in my couch. I was actually considering calling in sick for work on Tuesday-until I heard that the bowl games didn't resume again until that night. So I went to work, put in my time, and then nearly got a speeding ticket rushing home for the triple-overtime FedEx Orange Bowl thriller. I duplicated the feat on Wednesday as Vince Young and Texas upset USC in The Rose Bowl Game Presented by Citi, one of the most exciting college games I've ever seen.

I have to admit that yesterday was hard. Knowing that after a long day of work there was no football waiting at home nearly sent me into a state of depression. Watching Jerry Rice and Kenny Mayne on Dancing with the Stars just didn't cut it. But now that it's Friday there's just one more day to go until the NFL playoffs begin and I can spend some more quality time on the couch.

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