Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

“Jesus paying for the sins of everyone is an insult to those who paid for their own sins.”

Hot air and ill-informed banter

I did not have telepathic declassification on my 2022 bingo card.

Optimism opens the door to great things.

Historically it was a little unusual for the president to be an incoherent babbling moron.

Republicans are the party of chaos and catastrophe.

Impressively dumb. Congratulations.

Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gives a damn.

JFC, are there no editors left at that goddamn rag?

We’ve had enough carrots to last a lifetime. break out the sticks.

Sitting here in limbo waiting for the dice to roll

I’m pretty sure there’s only one Jack Smith.

Incompetence, fear, or corruption? why not all three?

All your base are belong to Tunch.

John Fetterman: Too Manly for Pennsylvania.  Paid for by the Oz for Senator campaign.

I’d like to think you all would remain faithful to me if i ever tried to have some of you killed.

Peak wingnut was a lie.

And we’re all out of bubblegum.

They fucked up the fucking up of the fuckup!

The GOP couldn’t organize an orgy in a whorehouse with a fist full of 50s.

It may be funny to you motherfucker, but it’s not funny to me.

Technically true, but collectively nonsense

Despite his magical powers, I don’t think Trump is thinking this through, to be honest.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / College Bowl Game Open Thread

College Bowl Game Open Thread

by | 106 Comments

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Happy New Year, everyone. I hope you all are recovering nicely from last night’s festivities, and if you’re not, now’s a great time to get to know your sofa better. Lots of good games on today:

2013-2014 bowl games - 1231 update

Unfortunately for me, the three I’m most interested in are all on at the same time. Time to put new batteries in the remote.

It’s raining cats and dogs in my neck o’ the woods. I’m glad I didn’t purchase Outback Bowl tickets.

Open thread for sports talk or anything else.

Reader Interactions

106Comments

  1. 1.

    raven

    I’ll have to bail on the thread since I’m off to a party for an hour or so and then back for the DVR of the Dawgs. Yesterday I watched the Illini beat Indiana and wanted to see a clean copy of the Hokies (turned out to be a disaster) but I knew they’d be running the score on the scroll. Solution? I cut a yardstick to fit on the bottom of the screen so I couldn’t see it! Woof!

  2. 2.

    Aji

    Send us some of your rain, wouldja? Or, better yet, turn it to snow by the time it gets here? I’m really starting to worry about what kind of drought conditions we’re gonna have here this year.

    Rose Bowl for me at 3PM. Hard labor until then.

    Happy New Year, everybody!

  3. 3.

    The Dangerman

    Three best days of the year for Sports Junkies; New Years Day and the two day Round of 64 for March Madness.

  4. 4.

    SiubhanDuinne

    This has nothing to do with sports, and you (Betty) likely don’t know the answer — but I’ve been wondering whether there is, in fact, going to be a Pets of Balloon Juice calendar for 2014.

    Anybody know anything?

    I like them because they have nice photos of animals belonging to/ruling over people I “know,” and because sales help support a good cause. There are lots of better ways to figure out what day it is. So I would still purchase a 2014 calendar even though the year is well underway.

  5. 5.

    Phylllis

    Enjoying the quiet for a little while longer. Hubby will likely emerge from his mancave around noon-ish to crank up the games. Had to bail on the T A&M-Duke game last night, although I hated to. That and the Mississippi State-Rice game were certainly barn burners. Hoping the Gamecocks don’t disappoint today. Other than that, 43 days until Braves pitchers and catchers report.

  6. 6.

    Mike in NC

    Don’t know exactly what I drank last night but it gave me a hangover yet also cleared out my stuffed sinus cavity.

  7. 7.

    donnah

    Quiet New Year’s Eve at our house. I’m hoping that 2014 is a better year for everyone. We’re hoping we can use our new health insurance to keep ourselves well. And we hope we can afford the big monthly payment.

    Happy New Year, fellow Balloonians! Not a big college sports follower, but looking forward to seeing my Bengals in the upcoming playoffs!

  9. 9.

    Betty Cracker

    @raven: LMAO at the yardstick solution. Genius. I can’t do the DVR thing myself; I’ll sometimes record a game for later viewing, but I must know the score as it happens. Just a weird personal quirk, I guess.

    @SiubhanDuinne: I have no clue about the calendar. Wasn’t it a bit after New Year’s last time as well? I don’t remember. I’m too damned disorganized to submit my animals’ pictures or order a copy. Sorry I’m no help!

    @Phylllis: Go Cocks! Er-er-ER-er!

  10. 10.

    Punchy

    I see another loss on yer sked, as you’ve incorrectly picked LSU to beat Iowa. Which wont happen.

    Go Hawks!

  11. 11.

    eric

    Until Texas hires someone other than Charlie Strong, i will not be able to watch sports for fear of hearing that they hired him….or i can just leave the sound down…woohoo for technology

  12. 12.

    Botsplainer

    @eric:

    Charlie has a home here in Louisville as long as he wants it, with an outstanding pay package.

    There’s the added part about Texas football not being all that.

  13. 13.

    Betty Cracker

    @eric: Lou-uh-vull fan? Don’t worry — Texas won’t hire him. Florida will fire Muschamp and make Strong head coach of the Gators instead. (ETA: In my dreams, that is. I don’t really think this will happen.)

  15. 15.

    Botsplainer

    @Betty Cracker:

    I can’t help but think that very mild speech quirk he has (it really doesn’t rise to an impediment) hampered him in the past as to getting a head coaching job.

    That mistake won’t happen again.

  17. 17.

    burnspbesq

    @The Dangerman:

    Three best days of the year for Sports Junkies; New Years Day and the two day Round of 64 for March Madness.

    There are those who would argue that one of the best days of the sporting year is coming up this Saturday: the third round of the FA Cup.

  19. 19.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    I’ve heard rumors that there’s some kind of game associated with the Rose Parade, but I don’t think I’ve seen it in years.

    And, yes, by all accounts the Rose Parade was created to say, Hey, you suckers on the East Coast, it’s 70 degrees in January out here! How ’bout them apples? Weather bragging has a long tradition here in So Cal.

    Happy New Year to all!

  21. 21.

    Glocksman

    There’s an old joke about bowls from back in the day.

    Q: What’s the difference between Cheerios and Notre Dame?
    A: Cheerios belongs in a bowl.

    That said, I’m an old stuck in the mud traditionalist that cares only about the traditional bowl games, not the West Bumfuck Chick-fil-tract-A Bowl held in the Quitman, MS high school stadium and others of that ilk.

  24. 24.

    eric

    @Betty Cracker: here is the thing. Strong could NEVER get fired at UL. Never. he would make the same as any other school within 10% or so. I do nto see why he would leave. i understand it likely will, but i dont get it. 9-3 at texas for three years gets you fired at UL not so much

  25. 25.

    Corner Stone

    @burnspbesq:

    At least nobody is talking about David Cutcliffe for the Texas job.

    They probably don’t want to have to deal with the hassle of taking him down off that cross you’ve put him on.

  26. 26.

    Corner Stone

    @raven: Man, it’s like I don’t even know you anymore.
    Miss a Dawg’s last game of the season in realtime to attend some artsy party?
    Sheesh.

  27. 27.

    burnspbesq

    @eric:

    I don’t think he’d be interested. In his mind, there is still work to be done at Duke. And Duke can match whatever financial package Penn State could offer (which wasn’t always true).

  28. 28.

    Corner Stone

    @Betty Cracker:

    Lou-uh-vull fan?

    Thanks, Betty. I’ve now just realized I pronounce the name of the city Louisville differently than I pronounce the name of the college/sports team Louisville.

  30. 30.

    eric

    @burnspbesq: He seems like the guy that can fit the Paterno traditionalists and it is Penn State with pennsylvania recruiting. he would be my first choice were i them. (of course they need to keep their hands of Strong too)

  32. 32.

    Corner Stone

    @Mike in NC:

    Don’t know exactly what I drank last night but it gave me a hangover yet also cleared out my stuffed sinus cavity.

    So…on balance? Good thing, bad thing, or just about right?

  36. 36.

    Corner Stone

    Man, I absolutely love the fro Dante de Blasio is rocking. That thing gets better with every viewing.

  39. 39.

    pseudonymous in nc

    @burnspbesq:

    There are those who would argue that one of the best days of the sporting year is coming up this Saturday: the third round of the FA Cup.

    And there are those who would argue that the FA Cup has been steadily watered down over the past decade or so, down to Coppa Italia / DFB-Pokal levels. There’ll still be some upsets and some early exits for big teams, but it’s not the same as it once was.

  40. 40.

    Corner Stone

    Huskers bringing the D so far. McMullen basically just punched the Georgia QB and knocked him down.

  43. 43.

    Punchy

    I think Texas should hire Lou Holtz. Get his incomprehensible slurred-assed delivery off my ESPN and into the recruits’ homes where he can literally shower them with praise.

  47. 47.

    Corner Stone

    I expected Oregon to win their game v Texas, but Texas just put up a vomity performance.
    Not really sure what a new coach there has to work with for the next couple years.

  49. 49.

    Corner Stone

    Not sure why ESPN can’t find a nice assisted living facility somewhere for both Sweet Lou and Corso.

  50. 50.

    Gator90

    @Betty Cracker: I hope/fear that if the team stays reasonably healthy, Muschamp and the new OC will do just enough next year to remain in their jobs. The powers that be at UF seem to love Muschamp.

  51. 51.

    Botsplainer

    @eric:

    @Betty Cracker: here is the thing. Strong could NEVER get fired at UL. Never. he would make the same as any other school within 10% or so. I do nto see why he would leave. i understand it likely will, but i dont get it. 9-3 at texas for three years gets you fired at UL not so much

    A consistent string of 9-3 here at U of L with the occasional victory in the PetSmart Bowl will get him a downtown statue, bridge and expressway named after him.

  52. 52.

    p.a.

    Almost forgot! 1,2,3 hockey! hockey! hockey! Good thing I’m a guy therefore I spend more time channel surfing than watching. Almost forgot about the classic!

  56. 56.

    Mr Stagger Lee

    Shaw would be a fool to go to Texas other than the money, that place is unforgiving if doesn’t get the Big 12 title in a year and a National Championship in two. Speaking of which is there any howling for Bob Stoops to start upping his game, I mean it has how many years since Oklahoma has won a championship?

  61. 61.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym (JMN)

    I know that people romanticize outdoor hockey as if it somehow connects us to our roots or something else warm and fuzzy. Me, I like watching hockey games where the puck actually slides along the ice rather than getting lost in a snow bank.

  62. 62.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): I had moved away from Chicago by then, but I do remember a wicked three-week stretch in the early ’60s when it never once got above -20. Some days it was way lower than that, and of course, wind chill. I was at Northwestern at the time, and hiking around that lakefront campus was no fun.

    Three.Solid.Weeks.

  69. 69.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym (JMN)

    @SiubhanDuinne: There have been exactly zero days in the recorded history of Chicago when the average temperature was lower than -18 degrees. There was no year in the 1960s when the low temperature was less than zero for more than nine consecutive days.

  75. 75.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym (JMN)

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): Wind chill does not count as air temperature. I have definitely lived in Minnesota long enough to know that. So the clarification is great but they really aren’t the same.

  78. 78.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym (JMN)

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): You can repeat it all you want but air temperature and wind chill still aren’t the same thing. Yes, if you stand outside naked they will have the same effect, but bundling up blunts the effect of wind chill faster than it does air temperature, so the effects on exposed skin do not mean that they are synonymous.

    If I stay inside, air temperature makes it harder to keep my house warm but wind chill doesn’t have much effect. The same is true in my car.

    So while in limited circumstances the wind chill can have the same effects as air temperature of the same figure, a cold air temperature is much more pervasive than wind chill is.

  79. 79.

    p.a.

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): worked here in S.E New England with a Wisconsin native. We’d be in 4 layers (remember damart long johns?) while he wore a light hooded sweatshirt and a Kmart 3/8 inch thick poly vest.

  83. 83.

    Mr Stagger Lee

    Well Bo Pelini survives I wonder if Mark Richt is screwed?At last a Bid Ten team wins!

  84. 84.

    Mr Stagger Lee

    Well Bo Pelini survives I wonder if Mark Richt is screwed?At last a Bid Ten team wins!

  91. 91.

    Corner Stone

    @Betty Cracker: I hope the Texans trade off their 1st pick. We need CB’s and a safety much more than a D lineman or such a high risk/reward QB at that spot.

  95. 95.

    Betty Cracker

    Who the hell sang the national anthem in the Rose Bowl? I was frying eggplant in the kitchen and could hear but not see.

  98. 98.

    Betty Cracker

    Thanks. All extremely talented ladies, but I thought they were awful. Not Ashlee Simpson at the Orange Bowl bad. But not good.

  101. 101.

    Fluke bucket

    Great call on the Stanford game. It was a joy watching Michigan State play REAL defense.

  102. 102.

    Corner Stone

    I knew Stanford was fucked when Corso switched his pick at halftime from MSU to Stanford.
    Death Knell, bitches.

    On the whole, a thoroughly enjoyable game. A couple of nasty defenses and MSU overcame some sloppy turnovers.

  104. 104.

    Corner Stone

    All I know is, Connor Shaw from the Cocks may or may not get drafted. But I’ll bet some team will sign him undrafted and be pretty happy about it.
    Very accurate, good legs when needed and doesn’t make a lot of sloppy turnovers.

  105. 105.

    Corner Stone

    For my Texans, my focus is completely on drafting or acquiring the best athletes to play CB.
    We already have the ability to pressure the QB but if they know they can use an extra TE or RB to chip/double our D line then our secondary is amazingly bad.
    We absolutely have to get a good CB and a decent Safety.

  106. 106.

    2liberal

    @raven:

    running the score on the scroll. Solution? I cut a yardstick to fit on the bottom of the screen so I couldn’t see it! Woof!

    if you have HD zoom feature you can get rid of the annoying scroll by going to the ZOOM picture

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