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Monday Morning Sports Report

Colts defeat Jets

In spite of every ESPN talking head out there playing this one up as a possible close game or even Jets win, it's no surprise that the Colts not only won, but dominated. the Colts had twice as many first downs, more total yardage, more rushing yards and more passing yards. Take away a gadget play touchdown and the margin of victory is nearly 3 touchdowns. The Jets were dominated.

Even down 17-6 just before the half, it never really felt like they were in trouble. I had a one moment where I thought maybe destiny was guiding the Jets and then Manning does his thing gets them a TD just before half time. At that point, I knew the game was over.

Games like these bug me the week before they are played. I understand ESPN has to fill programming 24/7 and needs to have the tension of opposing views, but it's just annoying when you know that one team is so much better than the other. I'd hate to be those ESPN guys who had to take one for the team and act like the Jets were something to worry about.

Saints in First Super Bowl Ever!

I'm very happy for the Saints. The city of New Orleans really deserves this. It's been a tough few years for them and this is a celebration I know they enjoyed. Add to it the fact they've never been to the dance and they're leader, Drew Brees, is as good a human being as he is quarterback, it's hard not to be happy for them.

That said, if the Colts roll up 500 yards of offense on them like the Vikes did, it will not be pretty. If the Vikings hold on to the ball, they get blown out. So, there is lots of work for Payton and crew if this is to be a competitive Super Bowl. Anything short of a Peyton Manning voodoo doll probably will not be enough.

Bret Favre

I hated to see him go out like this. Especially in a game where he was beaten and battered and kept getting up and coming back out to play. Say what you want about Favre, but he is one of the players that comes closest to earning every penny of the ridiculous paychecks these guys get. He's 40 years old, plays every play, and plays every one of them hard. I respect that. You can blame the loss on him if you wish. But if those 3 fumbles don't happen, and the penalty just before his final interception, we'd probably have seen a different outcome. That's not to even mention the illegal shot he took to the legs on the first INT.(it's the rule, like it or not)

He's had an amazing career and should probably call it quits. But if he decides to come back, I ain't mad at him and you shouldn't be either. Once he actually retires, that is it. He never gets to do the thing he loves ever again. Imagine losing the thing you love to do most at the age of 40 or younger.

All that said, unless you are a die hard Packer fan who bleeds green and yellow, your hate for the guy is irrational but I expect it will continue to flow in his direction.

UT Men's Basketball

I said last week they were due a loss and Georgia took them to the woodshed. Coming off an emotional home stand down 3 players and knocking off #1 to start that run, it's not surprising a road game at Georgia got them. The Bulldogs played a great game and that crowd was really into it.

I think they'll be fine, but ultimately, the loss of Tyler Smith is going to cost them a deep run in the NCAA Tournament.

NFL Local Coverage in East Tennessee

I am convinced I live in the worst area of the country for NFL football. The local games here on a Sunday afternoon always include the Tennessee Oilers, er Titans (not a fan) and the Carolina Panthers (really not a fan). Not only am I not a fan, these are two of the MOST BORING teams in the league to watch. And to endure them week in and week out is just plain horrible.

I can't wait till the Oilers get ticked off and move again.

Still Can't Believe It...

18-1*

I have to say that I enjoyed last nights game as much as any Super Bowl I've ever watched. Seeing the "Mighty" Patriots perfect season ended by a Manning seemed like justice for some reason. And that fourth quarter was just awesome.

As a Dad, I kept thinking of Archie Manning. Can you imagine the pride that man has in his kids? His sons win the Super in consecutive years AND are the MVP's of their games.

And I loved the shot of Peyton when the Giants had the victory in hand. He was so happy for his little brother. For all of you Manning haters, there's one more reason to like him. :)

So here's to Eli and the boys in blue. Thank you for sparing us all the lofty talk we'd have to endure had the Patriots, their surly coach, and their pretty boy QB won the game. For that reason and that reason alone, I will forever root for the Giants when they are not playing one of my teams.

Technorati Tags: Super Bowl XLII,New York Giants,New England Patriots,Eli Manning,Archie Manning,Peyton Manning,NFL

Help Decide the Fate of #756

Fashion designer Mark Ecko bought Barry Bonds 756th home run ball and is now letting the world decide it's fate. There are 3 options.

1. Send it to Cooperstown

2. Brand it with an asterisk and send to Cooperstown

3. Blast it into space

Click below and vote! 

For The Record...

Technorati Tags: Barry Bonds, 756

Sports Scandals: Why Are We So Surprised?

I haven’t said anything about the numerous scandals in sports, but I finally decided to break my silence. As a life long sports fan, I have been disgusted by what we’ve seen recently in the world of Pro sports. For those who haven’t heard or have forgotten…

• Barry Bonds and baseball’s steroid scandal.
• Michael Vick’s federal indictment on dog fighting charges.
• The NBA Referee/Gambling scandal.
• Doping in the Tour De France.
• Doping in Track and Field.

These are the big ones, but there are others. It’s very disheartening and extremely sad. But here is where I am going to come down on it: Why are we surprised? I remember the first time an athlete that I adored fell. My Brother and I were huge Dwight Gooden fans. The first time he got busted for drug use broke my heart. So the stuff going on now is not new.

For some reason, we tend to think that those who are famous, have lots of money, and are in the public eye will somehow rise above and not have the same kinds of problems that rest of have. Money does not change who a person is. Fame does not either. We are all capable of ugly stuff. Given the opportunity, lots of us would lie, cheat or steal to get ahead or to gratify ourselves and feed our egos.

On sports talk radio you hear questions like this: How could a guy throw away a 130 million dollar contract that way? I respond to this with a question or two of my own. When has money ever cured a person of their sinful nature? When has fame made them a better person all by itself?

So while I mourn the fall of professional sports recently, I am at least aware that these guys and gals are not immune to bad things simply because they stand a little higher than the rest of us in money and social stature.

Here’s hoping and praying all these leagues and organizations come through this dark time.

My Boy's First Baseball Game

Last night was a big night for the Wagner's as Ricky took the field for his first real game. I think I was more nervous for him than I ever was for myself. It went very well. Ricky batted led off and his box score looked like this...

AB R H RBI

3    3  3  2

Not bad. Not bad at all. I was really proud and it was fun hearing Evette being a loud, cheering, supporting Momma. They won their game 12-10 to start the season. And as any self respecting father would, I have pictures. Enjoy.

Schilling Says Sorry

Curt Schilling has a big mouth. It's a point of public record. He loves to talk to the media and he sometimes says too much. A few days ago, in a radio interview, he talked about Barry Bonds admitting to steroid use, cheating on this wife, cheating on his taxes, and cheating on his team. I don't care much for Barry, but there was a problem with Curt's statement. Barry has never admitted to any of those things.

I was so disappointed. Schilling looked very hypocritical. He has complained about folks getting things straight when speaking about him, and then this happens. He's also a Christian so it was a double whammy for me. None of us are perfect, but it always stings when someone so high profile stubs their toe.

But yesterday he came through with what I thought was a very good, honest apology on his blog. I was so glad to read this and he really swallowed some pride. It takes a big man to do this.

Some will say it wasn't real. Others will say he's only trying to keep things on an even keel so he can continue to be so outspoken. Maybe that's true. I just know that what he did was tough and I appreciated it.

Colts Win!!!

I have not been a life long Colts fan but when they drafted Peyton Manning 10 years ago, I became one. Being a Tennessean and a life long fan of the UT Vols football team, it only made sense that I'd be a fan a of the Vols most popular player of all time.

Peyton has had great success in the NFL. He already has many records and will hold most if not all of the all time records.

But he hadn't won a championship. And that is what QB's are ultimately judged by. I had grown so tired of the "can't win the big one" arguments. I think we all knew he had it in him.

So I am very happy today. It's awesome when one of your teams wins a championship. It's even sweeter when you see one of the good guys, like Peyton, finally get his.

It was also good to see the Colts go out and play with a lot of class. The Bears defense turned into cheap shot artists towards the end and were getting a little chippy (what do you expect when they let a guy like Tank Johnson play?). But the Colts were on a mission. They didn't fall for that stuff.

So here's the to the Colts, Peyton, and super good guy Tony Dungy. Let's get another one next year!

NFL Tells Church No!!! Heathens!!!

The big bad mean NFL told a church they couldn't have a super bowl party in their building. Can you believe that! I hope Jerry Falwell is at his PC (he'd never use a mac, only slackers and weirdos use macs ya know) right now typing up his latest Falwell Confidential. Anyway, here are a few quotes from the above referenced article at Cnnsi.com and my comments.

NFL officials spotted a promotion of Fall Creek Baptist Church's "Super Bowl Bash" on the church Web site last week and overnighted a letter to the pastor demanding the party be cancelled, the church said.

Initially, the league objected to the church's plan to charge a fee to attend and that the church used the license-protected words "Super Bowl" in its promotions.

First question... Why in the world were they charging for this event? That is probably the most disturbing thing to me I think. It's common sense that type thing is against the law. But even more, charging for a church event? Seriously?

The church will likely abandon its plans to host a Super Bowl party.

"We want to be supportive of our local team," Newland said. "For us to have all our congregation huddled around a TV that is big enough only for 10 or 12 people to watch just makes little sense."

I'm glad you want to support your local team. Hey, here's an idea. Why don't you disperse in groups of 5 and 10 and go watch with coworkers, neighborhood friends, and public places where it legal to gather and there may be people who don't know Jesus? Course you may run into a beer or two. And that stuff sends you straight to hell. Not everyone has kids that they have to take out to the viewing.

The thing that frustrates me about this kind of situation is that the NFL only wants people to follow the law, one that protects their business (see the article). But this will spread like wildfire throughout the Christian community and be used to show how we are so persecuted here in the US. Those evil secular business men (you know, the ones that so much worse than many of the Christian versions) won't let this little group have a party.

It's situations like this that really drive home to me how we need to rethink how we will "be the church". It's not about have a big party at church, projecting a game against wall, and charging for people to get in. Enjoy the game, but for goodness sake, use it to disperse, not to huddle in together and do our own little thing. It's the biggest TV event of the year. You though the Passion was a good opportunity? We get this one every single year.

This one event allows very different folks a rare night of commoness (probably not a word). This is the kind of event that can be the catalyst for a relationship that may otherwise have been impossible.

I want so bad to go watch the game at a sports bar now. I may have more to say about this later...