Now that we know the NFL's final four I no longer have to weigh the relative merits of each team or make decisions about whom to root for. I just want to see one team win it all: the San Diego Chargers. This has been one of the worst NFL seasons I can remember, and a Super Bowl victory for San Diego is the only thing left that could redeem it. Some people may have problems with the maturity levels displayed by certain Charger players, but I don't care. I feel for the true blue Charger fans who've suffered through years of incompetence with them. They've had their brief flirtations with success, such as the "Air Coryell" era and the mid-90's, but you'd have to go back to 1963 to find the last time the Chargers reigned supreme in their league. Most of their fans probably weren't even born when that happened. Despite their reputation as bandwagoners, I know there are lots of Charger fans who want a Super Bowl title more than anything, and those fans deserve it.

Why am I so dead set on the Chargers? In addition to having liked them for a long time (not as a primary team, but on the side), I despise the other three teams remaining in the Playoffs.

First there's this year's odds-on favorite, the New England Patriots. What else is left to say about them? They've gone undefeated and left a trail of enmity behind them. If they win the Super Bowl the only people who'll look back on them with love will be Patriot fans. Perhaps in 20 years kids who study the history of football will read about their success on the field and be in awe of them, but those of us who lived through their reign of terror will remember what a loathsome bunch they were.

There's been some bad blood between the Patriots and Chargers in recent years. After the Patriots won last year's Playoff meeting to end San Diego's dream season the Chargers were left with a bitter taste in their mouths. LaDainian Tomlinson even had the guts to call out the Patriots on their lack of class in victory, as several Patriot players taunted them while the clock ran out. If Tomlinson's team can avenge that loss to end the Patriots' perfect season it'll be poetic justice. The Chargers have injuries to deal with, but it's my hope that they can overcome them with a desire to win.

Coincidentally, the two teams playing for the NFC Championship also happen to be the two NFC teams I hate the most.

As a Chicago Bears fan it's part of my job to hate the Green Bay Packers, but there's more to it than that. Those fans who wear dairy products on their heads are some of the most annoying in sports. Most of them, as well as many other football fans, have been brainwashed into thinking Brett Favre is some sort of god. He does crap all the time that shows he's not the perfect guy so many make him out to be, but he always seems to be above criticism. After all, he's the "ultimate gamer" and whatnot. It makes me sick. The Packers already get all the respect in the rivalry with the Bears, and I don't think I could stomach Packer fans bragging about another Super Bowl victory.

Finally, you have the New York Giants. I've always hated the Giants just because they were from New York, although New York hasn't seemed that bad to me since the emergence of Boston as America's most annoying city. Still, I've had a special dislike for the Giants ever since I met a guy in college who was a Giants fan as well as a complete jerk. Seriously, this guy disgusted me like few people I've ever met in my life. If the Giants won the Super Bowl I'd imagine people like him celebrating. Yes, I realize that every team has its share of jerks as fans, but when you've met them personally you're more likely to associate those jerks with the team. Besides, Eli Manning spurned the Chargers in favor of the Giants, and it'd be further poetic justice if the Chargers won the Super Bowl before he did.

I know that life isn't fair and that sports will often disappoint me. Still, the more I think about it the more I'm convinced that this Chargers team needs to win the Super Bowl. They need to win it for all us fans who are tired of the NFL's glory franchises. They need to win it for all the people who've called their franchise an inherent loser. They need to win it so that this season will have a story worth talking about. Anything less just isn't enough. In fact, I won't even watch the Super Bowl unless the Chargers are in it, because my only option otherwise will be an unhappy result. Chargers, it's up to you to save this season.

Last night I went with some friends to watch the Norfolk Admirals take on the Hartford Wolf Pack at Scope Arena. I'd heard that hockey was a game best experienced live, so I thought I'd see for myself what it was like. I wasn't quite sure what to expect, but I had a feeling it would be interesting.

We got seats in the upper level. I didn't know how good the view there would be, but it turned out to be fine, as the Scope isn't very big. I could read names on the jerseys easily. The seats were a bit small, but we were able to squeeze into them. I saw several different jerseys among the patrons there. The Hampton Roads area has many non-native residents, so apparently Admirals games are the only place where all the relocated hockey fans can congregate. The woman sitting next to us was actually wearing a Red Wings jersey and a "Wing Nut" hat, and there were plenty of trash-talkers around us to add atmosphere.

I realized the full effect of being at a hockey game the moment the first body check echoed throughout the arena. From then on I knew that we were going to see a lot of action. The great thing about hockey is that it's both fast-paced and a constant battle. The on-the-fly substitutions happened so quickly that I hardly noticed them at first. It was hard to be bored.

The Wolf Pack scored three goals in the first ten minutes, which disheartened the Norfolk crowd. In all honesty, the Admirals didn't show much aggressiveness at first except for the fights that kept occurring. They finally scored a goal at the end of the First Period during a 5-on-3 power play, which brought the crowd to their feet.

During the first intermission they had a contest where three people tried to shoot a puck at the goal through a slot in a board placed in front of it. One person actually made it, which seemed to surprise the people sitting behind us. Some venue employees also drove out a small vehicle and attempted to shoot t-shirts into the crowd, but the gun didn't work. It was kind of funny. After that we got to watch the captivating show of the ice resurfacer. I'd never realized how much the ice got beat up during a period.

Each team scored another goal during the Second Period. The Admirals' second goal of the game was beautifully executed on a breakaway, and it gave us some hope that the Admirals could chip away at the deficit. There weren't any fights during the Second Period, but the Admirals started getting the puck into their offensive zone more, which we took as a good sign. By the time the period was over everything had gone by so quickly that I couldn't believe we were already two-thirds of the way through regulation.

During the second intermission they had the "Chuck a Puck" contest, where people threw orange pucks onto the ice and the winner was the person whose puck landed the closest to the center. They also brought the small vehicle back out to shoot t-shirts and this time the gun worked. The ice resurfacer wasn't quite as efficient the second time around, but it still got the job done in plenty of time.

The Third Period was especially frustrating. The Wolf Pack played very aggressively, and they were constantly called for penalties. Unfortunately, the Admirals couldn't capitalize on them. When the Admirals wasted a two-minute 5-on-3 power play late in the period we all pretty much knew it was over. The final score was Wolf Pack 4, Admirals 2. It would've been nice to see them win, but at least we had fun.

Do I think hockey is better live? I think it definitely holds your attention better. When you can hear the sounds and watch the action firsthand you feel more a part of the game. If you're one of those people who thinks hockey is boring, I'd suggest attending a game sometime. You might be surprised.

For the past nine years longtime relief pitcher Rich "Goose" Gossage had been an annual debate when it came to the Baseball Hall of Fame. Today the debate ended, as he received 85.8% of the BBWAA's vote to earn his induction. From 1975 to 1985 he was one of the most dominant relievers in the game, making nine All Star appearances, finishing in the top ten in Cy Young voting five times, three times leading the league in saves and only twice finishing with an ERA+ below 155. Outside those prime years he wasn't quite as dominant, but he was effective enough to play until he was 43 years old, finally retiring after spending the 1994 season with the Mariners.

The Goose was just before my time, as I didn't start following sports closely until 1995, but as someone who has always studied the history of the sports I follow I think his enshrinement is well-deserved. Those numbers during his prime years are incredible to look at, especially when you consider that he pitched in an era when closers usually had to work more than one inning. Congratulations to old number 54, and may other deserving candidates receive their election in 2009.

The three guys who finished second through fourth in the voting have all been debated for years as well: Jim Rice, Andre Dawson and Bert Blyleven.

Rice has the strongest case of these three in my opinion. He was a consistently productive slugger for about 12 years before he faded away. I wouldn't put him in the all-time top tier of sluggers, but I think he was good enough to deserve a plaque in Cooperstown.

As a Cub fan, Andre Dawson was one of the first players I learned as a kid. While his counting stats are impressive, his career on-base percentage of .323 takes some of the luster off them. As much as I like Dawson, I'm not so sure that he deserves to be in the Hall.

Blyleven is an interesting case. At first glance he appears to be a good-but-not-great pitcher who stuck around long enough to rack up some decent counting stats, but I've read several arguments for his induction (there's even a website dedicated to the cause). Overall it seems that he was a very good pitcher who hit a few rough patches in his career. Based on what he did during his good years though, I think he'd be a worthy selection.

There's only one thing about this year's Hall of Fame voting that I can't figure out: Who cast that vote for Todd Stottlemyre and why?