Goodell? Good God!

So, I think now that we've spent some time in the Roger Goodell era of the NFL, it might be the time to take a look at how it's affected both our favorite team, and the league as a whole. (Dav, I don't want to hear about the 'Skins. Ian, you're excused.)

Tagliabue had gotten a pretty bad rep there at the end, and the league itself, as Bengals fans well know, had devolved into day care for millionaire man-children behaving badly. Drunken boating, smoking pot and screwing around with teenagers, establishing and running vast dog-fighting networks in the greater-Atlanta area, eating only McDonalds in the offseason (I'm looking at you, Ocho-Cinco). These are all things that all of us would love to spend our time doing, but we don't. Because it's not appropriate or even moral. I think it's safe to say we left all that behind in college, right? But not NFL superstars.

So in comes the new sheriff, and while things haven't calmed down entirely, there are certainly less reported incidents. But wait, there's bad news.

The bizarre, off-field antics have been muted somewhat, in favor of odd, totalitarian 1984-esque "the rules are the rules and I reserve the right to change the rules at any time without notice" power plays by the upper-management of the sport. Here's a Deadspin post that goes into it slightly. Everyone gets fined for everything, no one knows what's ok and whats verboten, and Hines Ward gets two fines for normal hits, but NOTHING for a career-threatening shot on Bengals rookie LB Keith Rivers. They say the hit was clean, which I think is debatable.

That isn't the only example, obviously. Justin Tuck, Adrian Wilson, and this bizarre episode that's also chronicled in the Deadspin post, wherein Andrew Whitworth and John Henderson are fined equally for an episode that pretty clearly started and ended with Henderson:



So what's the deal? Have we exchanged an ineffectual doormat of a commissioner with a mad despot who rules the league with all the stability of Kim Jong-Il? Or is this just part of the transition from lawless Mad Max wasteland NFL to an Aldous Huxley sports league?

I'm putting the question to the House. I believe that part of the NFL's appeal is its reputation as the "Wild West" among major sports (sorry, hockey), and Goodell is trying to introduce order into a situation which is always going to reject it. Do you guys think we're going to see major changes? Or is Goodell's entire tenure going to be known as the period of arbitrary fines and confused players taking their frustration out on each other?

Sub-question: Has Goodell helped or hurt the Bengals, or were they always destined to collapse like this?

Umm, for serious?

Lane Kiffin is awesome. Fast forward to about the 1-minute mark.

Uh Oh.

"I cannot stand the Buckeyes. ... It's amazing to hear what those guys think about that university and what they think about that football program and Tressel and all the crap I gotta put up with being back there."

D'oh!
So who's the face of the team now? Nobody can stand 85, Carson has maligned the Bucks and T.J. is a secret muslim (he was educated in an Indonesian madrassa! That may have been someone else).

Run, that knee's got to feel better by now, boy, run!

Do we think this is all that damaging? I think it is if they keep losing.

Duke's Day in Court

Five years ago, Duke and Louisville entered into a contract to play four football games together over the next decade. After a 40-3 drubbing in September 2002, the Duke Athletic Department decided to renege on the deal, canceling the last three games. Part of the contract called for either team to pay a penalty of $150K per game if a "team of similar stature" could not be found to fill the date. Louisville sued Duke for $450K plus any and all applicable ancillary costs.

The trial hinged on the meaning of a "team of similar stature". In my opinion, a top-tier program like Louisville schedules a Duke to be a cupcake on their relatively hard Big East slate. Duke however, made the opposite argument. They stated that since the program is 6-45 over the past five years, literally any team in Division 1 would be a "team of similar stature". After arguments from the Duke lawyers laying the case that its team was the worst program in Division 1, the judge agreed:

"At oral argument, Duke (with a candor perhaps more attributable to good legal strategy than to institutional modesty) persuasively asserted that this is a threshold that could not be any lower. Duke's argument on this point cannot be reasonably disputed by Louisville."

Say what you will (and we can) about the big money issues of college football scheduling, I find it hilarious that Duke went to court to prove that their football team is horrible. I would love to see the transcript on this one.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=3455278

Memo to the BCS

To: Acting BCS President; BCS Conference Commissioners, BCS Conference AD’s, BCS Conference School Presidents

From: Dav

Re: Winter Madness

Here are my findings from our 11/19 meeting in which you put me on retainer to find a solution to the quagmire that is major college football. After a full review of past history, financial implications and the burdens on our student-athletes, I’m ready to put forth for your consideration a proposal – a ten team playoff dubbed Winter Madness.

Consider the current BCS Standings.

The top ten teams are:

1. Ohio State (Big Ten Champ)
2. LSU (SEC Champ)
3. Virginia Tech (ACC Champ)
4. Oklahoma (Big 12 Champ)
5. Georgia (SEC At Large)
6. Missouri (Big 12 At Large)
7. USC (PAC 10 Champ)
8. Kansas (Big 12 At Large)
9. West Virginia (Big East Champ)
10. Hawaii (WAC At Large)

Opening Round:

You asked me to preserve the importance of the regular season. In meeting this goal, conference champions will be afforded a first round bye in Winter Madness. The opening round of Winter Madness will be the third Saturday in December, after first semester final exams have concluded. These games will be home game sites for the higher ranked team. This year, #5 Georgia will host #10 Hawaii and #6 Missouri will host #8 Kansas, on Saturday, December 15^th.

The two losers will be placed into the Cotton and the Outback New Year’s Day Bowls, based on a pre-determined selection order.

The winners will move on to the next Round.

Round of Eight:

You asked me to preserve the importance of the four BCS bowls. In a rotating order, the four BCS bowls will have their selection in choosing the matchup they would most want to host. Assuming the favored hosts win in the play-in round, the round of eight would look like this:

1. #1 Ohio State v. #9 West Virginia (Rose)
2. #2 LSU v. #7 USC (Sugar)
3. #3 VaTech v. #6 Missouri (Fiesta)
4. #4 Oklahoma v. #5 Georgia (Orange)

I would bet that the Rose would love to snatch up OSU, as they haven’t played in the Rose Bowl in ten full years. Additionally, perhaps the Sugar wants the local Tigers to fill the Superdome.

National Semifinals:

These games would be played on a rotating basis at two of the four BCS sites, held on the second Saturday after New Years Day. Every other year, rather than one year in four, would the four marquee bowls get to host of game of national importance. You asked me to respect the schedules of the student athletes. National Semifinals will conclude before the start of second semesters. My predictions in the above games would be as follows:

1. #9 West Virginia v. #4 Oklahoma
2. #2 LSU v. #6 Missouri

National Championship:

You asked me to create an event that would combine the passion of America's favorite tournament (March Madness) with America's favorite day (the SuperBowl). Ideally held during the bye week between the NFL Conference Championships and the SuperBowl, college football has its pinnacle event. Use the SuperBowl /Final Four model, rotating the game between warm weather destinations and stadiums fit to hold 60,000+ fans. Create a week for showcasing all that is good with college athletics.

1. #4 Oklahoma v. #2. LSU

Additional points:

1. Cut the regular season down one (or even two) games. There is no reason that teams should play 12 regular season games.

2. Limit August practice substantially. With the new NCF season extending into mid January for a handful of teams, the start of the season should be moved back. Teams won’t have to be worried that an early season loss will kill their national title hopes.

3. When you do finally agree to set up this Winter Madness, agree to pay the architect, Dav, one-tenth of one percent of the television contract. With this, I will comfortably retire from professional work and bring my problem solving skills to the quagmire in the Middle East.

The Roof Has Caved In

It's official. The Roof era is over at Duke University.

With the 20-14 OT loss to rival North Carolina on Saturday, Duke AD Joe Alleva decided to part ways with embattled head coach Ted Roof. Roof's tenure with the Blue Devils concludes with a 6-45 record over 4+ seasons, including winning only 1 of his final 32 games.

Now, we move on to the ignominious task of searching for a new head coach for arguably the worst program in the BCS conferences.

Four years ago, I argued loudly and publicly to anyone who would listen that the Devils should make their move for a former Duke coach, one who was struggling in the NFL and looking for a return to college. I stated that Joe Alleva should have driven straight to Washington and make the ole ball coach Steve Spurrier the highest paid coach in college football history. Alas, this did not happen, as Duke went in-house and hired the retread defensive coordinator. Spurrier, on the other hand, went to South Carolina, a program with nearly as much futility as Duke, and built it into a national program in three short years.

Now, Duke stands at another crossroads. There is momentum to hire either the offensive or defensive coordinator as to not shake up the current chemistry and players. I dare them to do this. Tired ideas get you nowhere.

Here's an idea. How about the hottest coach in the country, one with NFL experience, and a unique mindset towards running an offense. Duke should make a move for Hawaii's June Jones.

While it may be tough to lure Jones from Hawaii to North Carolina, Jones is losing star QB Colt Brennan after this season and is itching for a chance to prove that his system can work at a major level. Moreover, I think Jones could take an athletic QB like sophomore Thaddeus Lewis and work wonders.

Will Duke make the bold decision? Or will they make the 'safe' choice?

If You Have a Free Weekend in November...

Contributors Dav and Hankles recently completed the first official field trip for The Norwood House. Let’s break down the trip, by the numbers:

46: Pictures taken by TNH’s photographer

1/3: Fraction of flyers on our flight enroute to Dallas for the Skins-Boys game dressed in jerseys, performing cheers at 7:00am.

80: Number of sent and received texts by Hankles

4: Tollbooths on the Indy Turnpike

75: Minutes spent in the ND Bookstore

1987: Jimmy Clausen's Birth Year

3-0: Final Score of the Notre Dame-Loyola Women’s NCAA Soccer Game

$5: Price for a Pitcher at Corby’s Irish Pub

2-0: Dav’s record over Hankles on the Felt at Corby’s

10: Miller Lites

4: Old Styles

10: Size (in ounces) of the sirloin steak sandwich sold by the Knights of Columbus

43: Temperature at Kickoff

38: Temperature at Final Whistle

5: Hankles' Lower Body Layers

6: Hankles' Upper Body Layers

11: Times hearing the Notre Dame Victory March (approx.)

80,975: Attendance at the Stadium

1: Wabash Knit Caps

115: Robert Hughes Rushing Yards

3: Irish Passing TD’s

3: Duke Fumbles

28-7: Final Score

5: Time Changes by TNH crew (East to Central to East to Central to East)

4: Wrong Turns leading to Poor Directions and Being Lost

3: Real Celebrity Sightings (Mike Scioscia, Mike Golic, Tim Hardaway)

2: Celebrity Dead-Ringers (Curt Schilling; Dusty Baker)

2: Irish football season wins

1: Touchdown Jesus

Countless: Memories shared between great buddies