Okay I get it...most of you don't like O.J. Simpson. To many of you, Orenthal James Simpson is a murderer and a thug who breaks the law like the Seahawks drop playoff passes. Anyone who is under the age of 25 has seen photos of him in handcuffs or a courtroom more than in any other pose.

But for those of us with just a few more years under our belt, we remember when O.J. was magic on Sunday and one of the most prominent faces of the NFL in the 1970's. The man running through the airport jumping rows of seats in the Hertz commercials. The man every one of us wished we had on our team. The best Buffalo Bill player to EVER take the field.

Some of you will come at me with Bruce Smith. He IS the career sack leader in the NFL with 200 (two more than the legendary Reggie White, but Reggie did it playing 47 fewer games). He is an 11-time probowler and 8-time All-Pro; and was also a first pick by the Bills in 1985. But his was more of a career of being consistent for a long time time than being spectacular. His 19-year career was extremely long for NFL standards (279 games). He amassed the numbers he did because of the sheer number of games that he played. He never led the league in sacks averaged 10 1/2 sacks per season for his career. He was a great guy off the field too...but not the best to ever don the Bills uniform.

Jim Kelly, some of you will say, is the greatest Bill ever. After all, this H.O.F. QB did lead the Bills to four consecutive (albeit losing) SuperBowls and ranks 14th all-time in passing yards and 18th in TD's thrown. He went to the Pro Bowl 4 times and was 1st-team All-Pro once. But, he also never led the league for passing yards for any season, led the league only one season for most TD's (31 in 1991) and then followed that year up with a season in which he led the league with 19 interceptions thrown. Is known as a great guy off the field, role model, father, friend, better than average sportscaster and all around good guy - bust not the best to lace em up for the Bills.

Some will throw Thurman Thomas at me. His career rushing numbers were better than Simpson (12,704) and he ranks 12th all time in career rushing yards and also has 12 more touchdowns than O.J. and only trails Orenthal by one Pro-Bowl appearance. He is also now (2007 class) a Hall of Famer. But you have to compare him to his contemporaries at the time that he played. He never led the league in rushing yards or TD's in any season during his career and was only 1st-team All-Pro once.

Maybe your favorite is Andre Reed; the 7-time Pro-Bowl wide receiver. He ranks 8th in career receiving yards and 5th in career receptions. However, he was also never selected to be a 1st-team All-Pro during his career and never led the league in receiving yards or touchdowns in any season. Great guy with a great career - but not the greatest to play for Bufallo.

Now, let me make my case for the greatest Bufallo Bill of all; one, Orenthal James Simpson:

In only 2 years at USC, he rushed for 3,423 yards, scored 36 TD's andled the Trojans to a 19-2-1 record. USC won the National Title behind him in 1967 and he won the Heisman Trophy with the highest vote total (2,853)ever after finishing a close 2nd the year before.

He was then drafted as the first pick by the Bills in 1969 and went on to becaome a 6-time Pro Bowler & 5-time 1st-team All-Pro. He led the league in rushing four times and touchdowns twice in his 9 years with the Bills.

In 1973, he broke Jim Brown's seemingly unbreakable record of 1,853 yards in a season with 2,003 of his own. When he retired, that ranked as first all time and now still ranks as 5th.

He was selected to the NFL Hall of Fame in 1985; his first year of eligibility. When he left the league, he was the 2nd leading rusher of all time behind only Jim Brown. He now ranks as 14th.

His contemporaries at the time are mostly all hall of famers which makes his records even more improbable and impressive; Gale Sayers, Earl Campbell, Walter Payton, Tony Dorsett, Franco Harris, John Riggins and Larry Csonka all played during Simpson's NFL tenure. Each of these are on the short list of the best that have ever played and O.J. bested them all.

The facts in this post don't mean that I like him or would like to play golf with him, but, based on his place in the recordbooks and performance against his contemporaries, I believe O.J. to be the greatest player ever to put on the Bills uni.

What'ya think out there?

How's your final four now?

Last week I dutifully filled out my bracket and just knew that I had the insight that no one else had and that I was well on my way to winning the bracket challenges and office pool.  Sound familiar?  I think we all did. How is your bracket doing now?  Having second thoughts about putting Duke into your final four?  Wishing you take back the glowing reviews you were giving Georgetown going into the tournament? 

Well here is your chance at a do-over...Time to pick a NEW final four.

Here are the rules:  They say confession is good for the soul, so you have to own up to your original picks and either defend them or change them and give the reasons why your new pick is the one to make the trip to San Antonio.

I'll start:

My original pick from the East was North Carolina - in fact I picked them to win it all against Texas.  After impressive wins over Mt St Mary and Arkansas, the Tar Heels look as strong as ever - albeit against subpar competition.  I don't think Washington State will give them any more of a challenge than their first two opponents. Louisville makes me nervous in this bracket.  Even though I am a devout Tennessee fan and love coach Bruce Pearl, I have trouble envisioning them getting past Louisville.  In fact, if it weren't for early-season injuries to the Louisville squad, they may be the #1 seed in the tourney right now instead of North Carolina.  Pitino's team matches up well against Carolina, are one of the hottest teams in the country and just dismantled Oklahoma by 30, while at the same time holding them to a season-low 48 points. Regardless, I'll stick with my original pick of North Carolina and hold out a faint hope that I am wrong and my Vols do the impossible and make it through this part of the bracket to the final four.

ORIG NOW

My original pick from the Mid-West was Georgetown.  In hindsight - not one of my more sterling predictions.  After watching the first two rounds, I have to say that I have been surprisingly impressed by Wisconsin and think that they will handle the Curry-led Cinderella squad from Davidson.  Even more impressive, though, has been Kansas.  As long as they can keep the tempo up and not let Wisconsin slow them down into a low-scoring half-court game,  my new pick for this region will have to be Kansas.

ORIG NOW 

My original pick for the South was Texas.  I picked Mississippi State to knock off Memphis; and they were a late bucket from doing just that.  Memphis cannot shoot free throws and sooner or later in the tournament that always comes back to bite a team in the nether-regions.  I think that they will make it past Michigan State by simple out-manning them, but will not be able to handle D J Augustine and the Longhorns.  It's gonna be a close game and Texas can hit from the charity-stripe late in the game.  My pick stays with Texas.

ORIG NOW

My original pick for the West was Duke. Yeah...'nuff said.  With who is left in this bracket, I think that UCLA is the odds on favorite, but that Xavier is the best team; and in spite of all of that, West Virginia will win it.  Bob Huggins has a score to settle with UCLA dating back to when he was bounced early from the Tourney by them when his Cincy team entered the tournament as an overall #1 seed.  He knows how to coach at this time of the year and by the looks of his players  and the defense they played in the second half of the Duke game - they are buying what he is selling right now.  My new pick from the West is - believe it or not - West Virginia.

ORIG  NOW

 

I still think the final is going to be North Carolina vs Texas with the Tar Heels taking it by 7 points.

  76     V.S.    69  

Now it's your turn...what are your picks?

Well Ohio State fans, the time has come to enjoy some crow.
LSU 38 - OSU 24...sigh.

It has been said that revenge is a dish best served cold. Some have said the same about crow, but I disagree. So...just because I care - I have provided you with some recipes that may help you stand the bitter bird just a bit easier.

Having been a life-long Dallas Cowboy fan, I have had several long stretches in which I have had time to perfect some of these recipes.


CROW CASSEROLE (January Buckeye Pie)

1/2 dozen crow breasts 1/2 dozen strips bacon
1 qt. sauerkraut 1/3 c. chopped onion

In skillet brown the crow breasts, then place them on a 1 1/2" layer of sauerkraut in bottom of a casserole. Cover each piece of meat with a strip of bacon and sprinkle the onion over them. Cover the breast with another layer of sauerkraut and pour sauerkraut juice over it. Bake two hours in oven heated to 350 degrees.

*Tip: Since your tears are naturally salty, crying a bit over the casserole, after removing from the stove, can add just that extra bit of needed seasoning that makes the dish special.

Crow and Mushroom Stew (Button and Buckeye Stew)

3 crows 2 Tbsp cream
1 Tbsp lard/shortening 1/2 cup mushrooms
1 pint stock or gravy salt and pepper
cayenne pepper
(this should be easy to find in Lousianna - may even be on the table)

Clean and cut crows into small portions and let them cook a short time in the lard/shortening in a saucepan, being careful not to brown them.
Next, add to the contents of the pan, the stock or gravy, and salt, pepper and cayenne to taste.
Simmer 1 hour, or until tender, add mushrooms, simmer 10 minutes more and then stir in cream.
Arrange the mushrooms around the crows on a hot platter.

*Note: The pieces are big for a reason - it is supposed to be hard to swallow. For some reason it is easier to pallete when eating it with friends and making excuses about the referees costing us the game - so be sure to invite your entire National Championship party entourage over for some.

Potted Crow: (BCS Buckeye Surprise)

6 crows 1 diced onion
3 bacon slices 1 diced carrot
stuffing of your choice chopped parsley
hot water or stock 1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup shortening buttered toast

Clean and dress crows; stuff and place them upright in stew-pan on the slices of bacon. Add the carrot, onion and a little parsley, and cover with boiling water or stock.
Cover the pot and let simmer for 2-3 hours, or until tender, adding boiling water or stock when necessary.
Make a sauce of the shortening and flour and 2 cups of the stock remaining in the pan.
Serve each crow on a thin slice of moistened toast, and pour gravy over all.

*Tip: if you soak buckeyes in water for about a week, you can get this great bitter horse-chestnut sauce, pictured below, to pour over your dish. This reason is that you don't want to actually enjoy this dish - or you could be in danger of being the next Notre Dame.

TAKE HEART BUCKEYE FANS

On the upside, you can see that Ohio State will probably be better next year than they were this year. The 2006 recruiting class is starting to come into its own and may be good enough to win it all in spite of idiotic defensive coaching decisions made on their behalf. Only time will tell.

This is the time that I am supposed to say "better luck next year." - But I won't - because I don't mean it.

One last thing. This is for a few special people - YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE - SEC is 7-2 in bowl games this year. The Big Ten? 3-5.

...next!

How did your wildcard picks hold up?  In a week where Eli Manning became the man in New York and the Redskins went down with nary a whimper, I am 3-1.  That has changed the matchups a bit because now the Giants, being the lowest remaining seed in the NFC, will face the Cowboys for the third time this year instead of the Packers.

Let me know how your picks did and register your picks for the next round.  Remember, you can't say "I told you so", unless you told us to  begin with.  Two of my pre-season picks in the NFC are still in it, the Giants and the Cowboys.  Three of my pre-season picks for the AFC are still in it.  That's my best year ever so far.

The following 3 brackets are my pre-season picks and my picks just before Week 12 and my final picks. My week 12 picks were pretty close to the final match-ups. ;) 

 

Week 1 Results and Week 2 Match-Ups:

Wildcard:  My record in this round is 3-1.  How did you do?

NFC:  N.Y. Giants vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 
The Bucs have been surviving by the sheer will of their defense since Garcia's injury.  The Giants played with a new intensity against the Patriots and they have lost only one road game all year.  This will be a low scoring game and I think the Giants win a close one

GIANTS 24-14 - I picked this one.

NFC: Seattle Seahawks vs. Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins have a quarterback who has been on fire the last four weeks and the Seahawks have seemingly removed all of the running plays from their playbook.  This one won't be a war of attrition, rather an air show.  The Redskins win in a high scoring contest.

SEAHAWKS 35-14 - This one went nothing like I envisioned. 

**Dwindy, fridayharborgal, DezzNutz, onesouthernlion, harebear, racer256 - It is duly noted that you got this pick right.  I am having my crow with some fava beans and a nice chianti.** 

AFC: Pittsburg Steelers vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
The Jaguars are the best team that has been flying under the radar all year.  No one has wanted to meet this Jags team in the Playoffs.  The Steelers have key injuries and don't look to get healthy before next week.  Big Ben has a good game but succumbs to the Jacksonville defense by at least a touchdown.

JAGUARS 31-29 - Pittsburg put up more of I fight than I expected.  Close game, but I got the outcome right.

AFC: San Diego Chargers vs. Tennessee Titans
The Titans squeaked into the playoffs against the Colts in a game that Peyton Manning only played one quarter and Marvin Harrison stayed on the bench to heal a little more before coming back.  With a healthy Albert Haynesworth they might be able to stuff the running game of the Chargers.  With Haynesworth operating as he is now, at about half capacity; they are no match for LaDanian Tomlinson and the Chargers.  Chargers, quite literally, run away with this one.

GIANTS 24-14 - I picked this one.

2nd Round:

NFC: New York Giants  vs. Dallas Cowboys
Eli is having his coming out party in the last two weeks.  He is finally delivering what those in the Giants organization thought he could when they traded the farm to San Diego for him a few years ago.  The Giants are playing inspired football in the last two weeks since their close loss to New England.  After losing twice to Dallas this year, New York will key on the receivers that have been the source of their demise in the past two against Dallas. This will open up  Barber for a huge rushing game.   Romo has matured a lot as a football player since last years playoff goof-ups.  Where he cracked under pressure last year, this year that is when he is at his best.   Dallas by 10.

NFC: Seattle Seahawks vs. Green Bay Packers
 Which Seahawk team will show up.  In a year where they have been notoriously inconsistent, that will be the determining factor to how close this game gets at the end.   Green bay will be be able to key on the passing game, because the Seahawks have no running game to speak of.  They do, however, have a decent secondary.  Green Bay will run the ball well in this game and that will make the linebackers have to cheat up a bit, opening up the middle for some big pass plays.  Brett Favre is his best in the playoffs and I don't see this game as an exception. Packers by 7.

AFC: Jacksonville Jaguars vs. New England Patriots
Indianapolis, Philadelphia and New York showed that you can almost beat this Patriot team.  Jacksonville will be the one to close the deal.  When most teams come after Tom Brady, he has the quick outlets to Faulk and Moss coming back to bail him out.  Jacksonville has the speed in their defensive ends and line-backing corp to take away these outlets and make  Brady have to move out of the pocket.  Jacksonville also has the power running game with Fred Taylor to keep the Patriots secondary honest and allow Garrard to throw the short routes he has been so successful with all year.  In a shocker, Jacksonville by 3.

AFC: San Diego Chargers vs. Indianapolis Colts
Indianapolis' defense that was absent for most of last year until the playoffs is alive and well in 2007.  The defensive line of the Colts will stuff the run and force Phillip Rivers to beat a secondary which features one of the best DB's in the league in Sanders.  Peyton Manning will have a big game against the Chargers.  Indianapolis by 14.
 

Conference Finals:

NFC: Green Bay Packers vs. Dallas Cowboys
If you saw the game between them earlier in the season, I think this game will be more of the same.  The Packers can't rely on the home-field advantage of their frozen wasteland of a field and they have a horrendous record in Dallas; in fact, Favre has never won there.  Look for T.O. to burn the Green Bay secondary yet again and Jason Witten to have a big second half when the Packers make adjustments to keep T.O. from beating them during halftime.  Favre and his mini-me Romo will both have good games, but I think Dallas' receiving corp will prove to be better. Cowboys by a touchdown.
 

AFC: Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Indianapolis Colts
This is going to be a tough game.  The Jaguars will just be coming off of a week in which they ended the Patriot's hope for an undefeated season, but will have no trouble with a let down for this game since it decides who plays Dallas in the Super Bowl.  Indianapolis will be trying to earn their second consecutive trip to the SB behind the arm of Peyton Manning.  Jacksonville will apply pressure to Manning, but I think Manning will have prepared for it.  Jacksonville WILL be able to run on Indianapolis and will methodically work the ball down the field.  I think Indy will go up early, but Jacksonville will make it close in the second half as their offense wears down the Indianapolis defense.  There won't be many punts in this game.  I almost had to flip a coin on this one.  Indianapolis wins this one by 7.

Super Bowl:

Dallas Cowboys vs. Indianapolis Colts
These two teams are more evenly matched, I think, than people have previously thought.  Manning, of course, is the better quarterback.  He has all of the same intangibles as Romo, but with a better arm and better mind for the game.  Dallas defense is stronger than Indianapolis, with the exception of the secondary.  Dallas does have a receiver that can outrun the Colts DB Sanders in the cover two - Terrell Owens.  I think this game will go down to the wire and, once again, Indianapolis will be beaten in a big game by a kicker.  Dallas by a field goal.

Well, THERE ARE MY PICKS!

***I hate to have to add this, but considering the kind of stuff that has been showing up lately:
Please keep your comments above board and intelligent.  Remember that the season is not over, so everything at this point is simply yours or someone else's opinion.  Respect the opinions of others and yours will also be respected.  Incindiery, vulgar or crassly offensive comments have been and will be deleted.***

How do you like me now? 

That has to be what every blogger who has defended the SEC conference against the claims of being "overated" wants to stand on his pick-up truck and shout.  In one of the craziest years in recent history in which ranked teams were falling as fast as Britney Spears inhibitions, the SEC beat each other up in their conference schedule.  But the teams have come through when it comes to matchups against their non-conference foes in the bowl games.

The SEC had nine teams earn a place in bowl games which is more the Big Ten, Big 12 and ACC.  Of those nine games, eight have been played with the SEC member team coming out on top in six of those contests. 

The only two losses being Arkansas - to a Missouri team playing with a huge chip on their shoulder after being snubbed by the BCS for one of their bowl games and Florida who was beaten by an inspired Michigan team wanting to send their coach, Lloyd Carr, out into retirement on a winning note.

Neither loss was that huge of a surprise.  Missouri plays in the Big 12, who historically has handled SEC teams pretty well and Arkansas has never regained their early-seaon defensive intensity since their big loss to Tennessee in their 10th game.

Lloyd Carr is 5-2 in his career at Michigan against SEC teams, but this was still a bit more surprising, with Florida having the ultra-mobile Tebow at quarterback and several good targets for him ot throw to.  Michigan used their size and ability to get off on the snap to put major pressure on Tebow causing him to have to take his eyes off of his receivers to salvage yardage and protect the ball.  They negated Florida's speed advantage on offense with a good zone scheme in the backfield and constant pressure at the line.  Lloyd Carr did a masterful job of coaching this game - Michigan WILL be sorry they dismissed him the way they did.

So here is a breakdown of how the conferences have shaped up in the Bowl Games with one game left to play on Monday Night.  No matter how that game turns out {LSU Wins}, the SEC will still hold a decided edge {OSU loses} in the bowl matchups from this year.

Conference-by-conference bowl records
How each has fared during the 32 postseason games:

Conference Schools Record Percentage
Sun Belt (1) Fla. Atlantic 1-0 1.000
MWC (5) AF,BYU,NM,TCU,Utah 4-1 .800
SEC (9) Ala,Ark,Aub,Fla,Ga,Ky,LSU,MissSt,Ten 6-2 .750
Pac-10 (6) ASU,Cal,Ore,OSU,UCLA,USC 4-2 .667
Big East (5) Cin,Rut,UConn,USF,WV 3-2 .600
Big 12 (8) CU,KU,Mis,OU,OSU,Tex,TexA&M,TT 5-3 .625
Big Ten (8) Ill,Ind,Mich,MichSt,OSU,PSU,Pur,Wis 3-4 .429
ACC (8) BC,Clem,FSU,GT,Mary,UVa.,VT,WF 2-6 .250
WAC (4) BSU,FresSt,Haw,Nev 1-3 .250
C-USA (6) EC,Hou,Mem,SMiss,Tul,UCF 1-4 .200
Independents (1) Navy 0-1 .000
MAC (3) BallSt,BG,CMich 0-2 .000

Records through 1/5

Georgia 41              Michigan 41              Missouri 38
Hawaii 10                Florida 35                  Arkansas 7

Tennessee 21       Mississippi St 10     Alabama 30
Wisconsin 17        UCF 3                         Colorado 24

Kentucky 35           Clemson 20              LSU
Florida St 28          Auburn 23                  Ohio State

That's it: My two cents worth.  No bravado - just proof by the numbers.