Despite having about as hectic a week as humanly possible, I couldn't resist the temptation to start my own Blog.  This weeks highlights of my life include changing companies, Christmas shopping and decorating, cleaning the basement and garage, tax planning for 2005 and 2006 and debating whether or not to get our four year-old, Jake, kitten Santa promised LAST Christmas (It was delayed due to the kitchen remodeling which ended nine months ago) among many other things.  But, as usual, my mind is still wandering constantly to sports.  The top five sports topics on my mind at the moment:

1. The Patriots – is it possible?  They played great in Buffalo on Sunday and look better last Sunday when I went up to see them smack the Jets around, but, let’s not kid ourselves.  This Saturday’s contest with Tampa Bay will be a real test as to whether or not they are going to be able to make more than a token appearance in the playoffs.  Also, I have this lingering nightmare that Miami wins their next two and the Pats lay an egg this week and have to win in the Meadowlands the day after Christmas to avoid a winner-take-all game with the resurgent Dolphins in Week 17.

My gut feeling at this point is that the Pats will be a tough out in the playoffs, but I just don’t think they have enough DB depth to defeat the Colts in Indy.  I know we felt that way last year too, but that game was in Foxboro and Rodney Harrison was back there.  It’s amazing how much his loss has hurt.  I went up to the Monday Night game the Pats played against the Colts and I think that game was closer than the route it became, if Corey Dillon doesn’t fumble that ball at the end of the first half and the Pats tie it up, it could have been a real game.  The Pats also play very well in Indy, always have, but it would be an upset that would put Super Bowl XXXVI to shame.  I know the non-Patriot fans are not feeling any sympathy for me or my fellow Pats fans, but the chance to win three Super Bowls in a row isn’t coming around again; in some ways I want this one more than last year.

2. The Red Sox – Buy, don’t Rent! I can’t believe they found a taker for Rent-A-Wreck.  I second guessed that signing from the 2003 season when the Sox tried to acquire him midseason.  An unmitigated disaster.  I have been saying since 1991, that, just because of the rules, American League teams have to be superior.  If Renteria goes to Atlanta and is anything but a bust (does anyone really believe he is anywhere close to 30 years-old?), it will be the final proof of the inferiority of the National League.  The best was his complaining that the Fenway infield was the reason when 14 of his major league-high 30 errors occurred away from friendly Fenway.  It must be Colombian math.  As for the GM brothers, Hoyer and Cherington, I think they are having a great offseason and would love to see then land Tejada for Manny.  I have been thinking /saying that a three way with the Mets getting Manny would be a win/win/win and, finally, the Daily News reported it this morning.

Miggy is all I want for Christmas.

3. BC Basketball – Up in Smoke.   Sean Williams' suspension for marijuana possession last spring is wreaking havoc on the Eagles hoopsters, losing to Michigan St. and Maryland this week.  I went to see the Michigan St. game as part of the Jimmy V. Classic at MSG.  The game was sloppy, but the steak beforehand at Frankie & Johnny’s was first rate.  BC was ranked sixth (now 13^th), but won’t be that good until they get Williams’ back, which may not be until February, as apparently the Boston DA had a say in when he can return to campus as part of his plea bargain.  Up the road at UNLV-Conn, you could be the founder of the Crips and not get suspended for 20 games.  Like a friend of mine said recently, “UConn would let my cat in if he could shoot a three.”

BC sports, in general, have shown a tendency to take us right up until the final minute, game, play before letting their alumni down in earth shattering ways.  Part of me believes that Tom O’Brien and Al Skinner have deals with the opposing coach to let them win as long as they make BC look as good as they can as long as they can.

4. Youth Basketball – Fully Loaded.  I coach fourth and fifth graders coach in a youth basketball league called the Greenwich Basketball Association (GBA).  I should say this year I assistant coach as I have been reprimanded for one season for excess enthusiasm last year (that season, however, did result in a final four appearance for a team that had a regular record of 1-8 in a 15-team league).  The 4^th/5^th  grade league of the GBA is made up of Big East teams and we are Miami (don’t ask me why they are still in the Big East) and have a monster team, almost silly strong.  The teams are supposed to created equal but the evaluators missed how physical our team is (eight of ten of the players are football players) and we are 3-0 on our way to a huge season.  My 10 year-old step son Evan is the key point guard and my nine year-old step son Ryan (all 60 pounds of him) is a nice off guard.  This week: vs. Providence, key games upcoming January 15^th versus Boston College and January 22^nd vs. Maryland (Not exactly up on conference realignment or original alignment), both undefeated .

5. BCS – Best Case Scenario.  I think the solution to the BCS is staring everyone in the face, we are just too blind to see it.  The problem is that what we have now tears apart the format I grew up with – when it was unheard of to have anything but the Cotton, Sugar, Rose and Orange Bowls, in that order, on New Year's Day - and loved as a kid, but isn’t enough of a playoff system. By adding two more games to next year proposed championship game, we can have both.  Go back to the Rose Bowl matching up the Pac-10 and Big 10 champions, the Fiesta Bowl the Big 12 winner vs. a wildcard, in the Orange Bowl, the ACC champ vs. a wildcard and the Sugar Bowl, the SEC vs. a wildcard.  The wildcards are the three best teams in the country under the current ranking system, no matter if you are from South Bend or South Dakota, with the best of the ACC/Big 12/SEC champs playing the weakest wildcard and so on. 

I’d love to see all four on New Year’s Day, but that’s really not important to my scheme.  The four winners move on to the National Semi-Finals based on either geography vs. the best rated vs. the 4^th best and so on the NFL’s wildcard weekend (Sunday and Monday Nights) and the Championship game the weekend of the NFL off week before the Super Bowl.  If anyone talks about these “scholars” missing class, I’ll smack you.  The cities for the semi-finals and finals are irrelevant to me, but could help to fill some of these billion dollar elephants we are building for 10 to15 games a year.

Under this scenario, the BCS match-ups would be as follows:

                Rose Bowl – Penn St. vs. USC

                Fiesta Bowl – Notre Dame vs. Texas (is Earl Campbell available?)

                Orange Bowl – Ohio St. vs. Florida St.

                Sugar Bowl – Oregon vs. Georgia

Potential semi-final match-ups include Oregon-USC and Ohio St.-Texas rematches.

Just some warm thoughts on a very cold New England day.  Not like BC football, going to Boise to play on Blue turf!

Greg