Mississippi Swan-Song

This Sunday will mark the final game in the career of the NFL legend Brett Favre. If you look at his numbers and records on the field you see right away that he will be a first ballot inductee into Canton’s Pro Football Hall of Fame. The sad truth is that many of the modern football fans remember him for the final few years of his career, which were more of a soap opera then anything else.

After years of wavering, a teary eyed retirement and a quick return his presence continued to stunt the growth of QB in waiting Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay. In his final game in Green Bay in ‘08, he threw an interception in the playoffs giving the Giants a trip to the Super Bowl and eventual Lombardi Trophy. That was seemingly his final game, but then he did the unthinkable. A perceived “career Packer” Favre’s interest to play came back in the summer of ‘08, but the Packer’s were ready to turn the page to the Rodgers era. Enter the Jets.

Favre arrived in New York ready to bring the franchise back to the Promised Land. How it ended was with mediocrity, no playoffs and another interception with his final pass. Just this week Favre was fined 50 G’s for an alleged sex scandal with Jets employee Jenn Sterger from back in that ’08 season. Allegedly he texted photos of his slong to the young studio reporter, but there was a lack of evidence and it was two years later, so there was no significant punishment. On to Minnesota.

Favre arrived in Minnesota surrounded by a very talented defense, young athletic receivers and arguably the best runningback in the NFL. Because the Tavaris Jackson experiment failed, Minnesota was forced to give the 40 year old Favre the keys to the car. He did not disappoint. The Vikings finished the regular season 12-4 including two wins over his former team the Green Bay Packers, the second being his first appearance on the frozen tundra since his departure. After a bye week and a home dismantling of “America’s Team” it was on to the Super Dome for a meeting with the Saints. In a tie game late in the 4th quarter and in kicker Ryan Longwell’s comfort range, yet again Favre threw a backbreaking pick to Tracy Porter and never saw the ball again losing 31-28 in OT.

The big top was not yet dismantled as in the summer of ’10 Favre continued to hold the feet of the Vikings over the fire with his indecision. Before the third preseason game he decided to return to the dysfunction to yet again lead his Vikings. It has not gone as planned and has continued to be a circus. First Sydney Rice his best receiver was injured. After that they acquired Randy Moss in the early part of the season only to release him within a month. And then after an embarrassing showing against the Packers, the Vikings owner Ziggy Wilf fired head coach Brad Childress. Only three weeks later after a hit from the Bills Arthur Moats knocked him silly, his consecutive start streak ended against the Giants at 297!

A half-hearted effort to comeback a week later and another sit out last week has led us to week 17. As the Vikings make there way to Ford Field in Detroit to face the Lions most fans are asking themselves, “Is Favre going to give it a go?” Well I for one will be in attendance on Sunday really hoping that Favre finds a way to get on the field and play. This is the dream scenario for me..

It’s late in the 4th quarter and the improved Lions lead the Vikings by a field goal. Favre takes over with two minutes to go and proceeds to drive his team into Detroit territory inching closer to the end zone and victory. With less then a minute to go Favre drops back, improvises to avoid Cliff Avril, reverses his field and slips out of the grasp of Corey Williams. As he rolls he spots Visanthe Shiancoe down the field and fires a bullet as he is absolutely crushed and slammed to the turf by Ndamukong Suh. The ball spirals perfectly and magically through the air and finds its way into the waiting hands of…Louis Delmas.

As Delmas take off down the field and high steps for ten years before sliding to the turf to seal the Lions victory, Favre lays glazed-eyed on the Ford Field turf from the Suh hit. I want Favre to get himself up, shake a couple of hands and leave the field for the final time with his final pass being an interception. I commend Favre on an outstanding unbelievable career and hope that the Packer fans forgive him enough to fill Fawcett Stadium in Canton in five years when he is inducted into the HOF. Being at his final game will be something memorable for me…that is if it is his final game. You never know with the old man!

'The Challenge: Cutthroat' Recap

Now that MTV has said goodnight to another season of ‘The Challenge’ I find myself compelled to look back on yet another successful venture. As the competitors showed up in Prague Czech Republic for ‘Cutthroat’ it was pretty evident that the competition was anybody’s to win. With past stars like Evan, Kenny, CT, Darrell, Wes, and Landon nowhere to be found, it was a perfect recipe for open competition. And then it became a team game, which made it even more up in the air. Here are some of the highlights from ‘Cutthroat.’

Best Moment: Although watching Katie leave part of her face on a platform 50 ft above the water, no moment beats CT’s epic cameo. In the ‘Back Up Off Me’ Gulag long time ‘heavy hitter’ CT was brought in to battle the Gulag nominees. In a moment of epic strength he literally stood up with Johnny Bananas strapped to his back, and ‘Transformers walked’ to the barrels and army rolled them over. It ranks up there as one of the best moments in Challenge history.

MVP: I gotta go with Brad. Hell bent on winning his first challenge in a whopping eight appearances, the game savvy Brad managed to avoid the Gulag and run hand and hand with his wife Tori and get across the finish line. He was able to use and abuse his team and get the right mix of players for his red team for the final challenge.

ROY: With a lack of consistent play from the rookies only one was able to stand out. As I predicted during her season of ‘Real World DC’ I knew that Emily would be a great competitor. Being only one of two team members to get to the final challenge (Jenn) she was able to win in the Gulag twice and was the one that twisted the knife that was in Paula’s back (that will be explained).

Underrated Player: With two wins in the final two Gulags and earning his spot in the final challenge Tyler was a man possessed to win Cutthroat. He knocked out the ever-confident Johnny Bananas by outlasting the grizzly bear CT and then defeated one of the most tenacious players of all time in Derrick. His size, strength and endurance were a big part of the red team’s victory.

Doormat Award: The red team was chock full of underhanded tricks and deceit all season long. They had no problem hanging their own out to dry. Early in the game it was evident that they were going to continue to send in Brandon and Camile to do the dirty work for the brain trust. It was also evident to everyone but my doormat award winner Paula that there was going to be a sequel to ‘The Island.’ She continues to trust her friends and get played by the game. You can add the name Dunbar next to Kenny and Johnny Bananas on the Paula list.

Certifiably Insane Award: Captain Jack Sparrow aka Cara Maria is one of the most insane non-Real World Challengers to compete. She is just off the wall and does crazy things and says crazy things, and it was no wonder that Abe took a liking to her. Her survival to the end was a tribute to her sticking with the gray big gun Abe. As for the men, Ty takes the cake, but probably needs to take the meds. His crazy off the wall antics got him on the bad side of his team and his friends. He was carried out of the Gulag after Brandon knocked him over in‘Pole Me Over’ and he was too physically exhausted to continue.

TJ’s Disappointed Moment – It happens every season on the Challenge. TJ gets so fed up with a person or group of people and their lack of competitive spirit and he lays into them. This year Shauvon’s quitting before going into the Gulag left TJ shaking his head. TJ’s disappointment came awake again when Brandon was voted into the Gulag for a 4th time after winning his first three. TJ was extremely disappointed in the red team.

Impressive Moment – In the ‘Surfs Up’ challenge the red team had repeated trouble staying on the zip-lined surfboard suspended in mid-air. Red team member after red team member kept falling to their demise, including Chet. When Chet fell awkwardly it was apparent something may have been wrong. What was impressive is that he swam the course and finished the challenge. He then preceded to turn pale white and almost pass out and was diagnosed with a concussion and had to leave the show. It was a hell of an effort.

Look Away Moment – I could’ve gone without seeing the insides of Abe and Sarah in the final challenge. It was a weird combination of funny and scary watching Abe turn white, stumble around, and speak in tongues to his team and paramedics. It was funny all around watching Sarah cry and puke at the same time, all the while Laurel yelling at her because she was slowing them down. But as I said, I could’ve done without the pukey close ups. Both players were yanked from the final challenge as they were deemed ‘medically unable to continue.’

Unsuccessful Strategy – When Derrick got together with Laurel and Sarah to scheme for the gray girls to throw the final challenge it seemed like an unbeatable plan. This plan would guarantee a blue win securing Derrick in the final, and would give the gray girls their wish of ridding themselves of teammates Cara Maria and Luke. It didn’t work as the blue girls Jenn and Emily were not able to push off all of the red girls and the plan was sunk as gray won the challenge. Consequently Derrick was eliminated in the Gulag and Cara Marie and Luke got a ride to the final. It was another lesson proving that it is extremely difficult to successfully throw a challenge.

‘The Challenge Cutthroat’ was a predictable mix of competition, debauchery, and underhandedness set in the beautiful landscape of Prague Czech Republic. The castmates played hard during the day, and played harder at night. In the end the core of the red team (Brad, Tori, Dunbar, and Tyler) and their plan to cross the finish line together is what set them apart from the other two teams. As TJ would say… “Congratulations…You killed it.”

Big Life, Big Stage, Big Ten, Big Break…Big 2011?

As the off season is in full effect for most of the golf world, many of the non-established hopefuls were wide eyed and ready to earn their place at Q-School. I want to give Congratulations to former Big Breaker (Sandals Resorts & Dominican Republic) Sara ‘No H’ Brown for earning a spot on the LPGA Tour with a T20 at ladies Q-School. Sara was one of the more popular and personable girls on each of her seasons, and is highly respected as a fierce competitor on the golf course.

The former Michigan State standout finished 3rd on BB Sandals falling short to eventual winner and fellow Big Tener Ohio State’s Carling Coffing. On BB Dominican she was knocked off the show by the hotheaded Brian, miraculously saved by her team at the 11th hour and then exacted her revenge by defeating Brian in the finale. She still fell short of MVP status as that was clinched by the lovely Blair O’Neal.

Brown will join Kristy McPherson as ex-Big Breakers playing regularly on the LPGA in 2011. I’m sure Miss Brown hopes she can duplicate McPherson’s success on the Tour. Although she has yet to win a tournament, McPherson has numerous top ten finishes including three in majors in 2009. Her success has shown worldwide as she has risen to 32nd in the official Rolex World Rankings.

If Brown wants to move up the ladies Big Break success ladder she has a ways to go. Obviously McPherson’s success is the bar to reach toward, but others have made their mark recently. Sandals winner Carling Coffing is coming off of a top 25 finish at the 2010 LET Dubai Masters and has a cash at the Lorena Ochoa Invitational. Blair O’Neal will get her chance this season too with an exemption in the Kia Classic. But right now Sara Brown is in the best position to gain ground on McPherson with a successful 2011 season as a card-carrying member of the LPGA.

2011 PGA Tour Preview

If I learned anything from 2010, it is that when it comes to golf I should expect the unexpected. I expected the legend Tiger Woods to dominate 2010; instead he trudged through a difficult season winless. This proves that even the most mentally tough guys can’t always block everything out. I’ve discussed this Tiger thing to no end, and now that he is a so-called changed man and that now that 2011 is on the horizon, I think it’s time to turn the page and focus on his golf and not the scandal.

Speaking of his golf…he starts the season in a position he hasn’t been in for almost 6 years! As the #2 ranked player in the world. As the 2011 season kicks into gear Englishman Lee Westwood sits atop the World Golf Rankings. As mentioned Tiger is #2, ahead of #3 Martin Kaymer, #4 Phil Mickelson and #5 Jim Furyk who is coming off one of his best seasons as the reigning Fedex Cup owner.

If there was a second thing I have learned from 2010, is that there has never been more high-powered parity on the Tour. From the Tour Vets (see Furyk), the Long-Ballers (see Bubba Watson), the Young Guns (see Fowler / McIlroy / Ishikawa), the Stars (see Tiger), to the Euro-Invasion (see Poulter / Fisher / McDowell / Quiros / Kaymer) there are so many players that can win any tournament, at any place, at any time. And for me, that beats the days of Tiger domination. But I’m not your casual viewer!

Here are my champion picks for the main tournaments of 2011:

Accenture Match Play – Graeme McDowell. The reigning US Open champion will kick start his season in style defeating a field of 64 in the desert. The cardigan clad Northern Irishman just came off a huge comeback playoff victory over Tiger at the Chevron, and that’s enough for me. If you can beat the big guy in a playoff, you can win the match play.
Runner up: Francesco Molonari

CA Championship – Charl Schwartzel. I’m not really sure why I’m picking the long hitting South African, but I guess they just fall into order: Els, Goosen, Immelman, Clark, Oosthuizen and now Schwartzel. Why not right? He had a very good showing at Doral last year and he’s primed to do it again.
Runner up: Matt Kuchar

The Masters – Tiger Woods. Can you really ever bet against this guy at Augusta? 2010 was a nightmare for him and he still found a way to muster a T4 finish after taking a near 6-month leave of absence from competitive golf. This guy knows the echoes amongst the magnolias and lob lollys as well as anyone and will harness that for his 5th Green Jacket and a welcome back (but won’t be his first win of 2011).
Runner up: Phil Mickelson

The Players – Zach Johnson. This guy has been one of the most consistent players over the past 5 years and it’s about time to add another big time title to his 2007 Green Jacket. With recent winners like Tim Clark, Fred Funk, Stephen Ames and Hal Sutton; Sawgrass isn’t just for the long ballers. Johnson’s accurate game and early season success leads to a win in the season’s deepest field.
Runner up: Martin Kaymer

US Open – Hunter Mahan. He was one of my 2010 up and comers and he did not disappoint. He had two victories (Scottsdale and Akron), the second of which was a WGC event where he dominated. I like him at Congressional because of what he did there at the ’08 AT&T National. He fired a third round 64 en-route to a top five finish and he’s even better now as a two time Ryder Cupper.
Runner up: Dustin Johnson

The Open Championship – Martin Laird. As the world’s oldest tournament moves to the South shores of England at Royal St. Georges it will usher in another…Scottish champion? Yes with all of the talented and heralded Englishmen in the field it will be a Scot who rises to the top. Forget Westwood, Poulter, Casey, Fisher, Donald and Rose; the Open will produce another unlikely hero.
Runner up: Rhys Davies and Tiger Woods

Bridgestone Invitational – Justin Rose. Rosey will finish the career sweep in Ohio by tackling the tight fairways of Firsestone after his ’10 victory at Jack’s place. You can never go wrong with Tiger in Akron, but last year’s performance has left him shaken at the place he had once dominated. The once upstart and now veteran Rose will cash in with his biggest career win.
Runner up: Tiger Woods

PGA Championship – Rory McIlroy or Rickie Fowler or Ryo Ishikawa. The Shootout in Atlanta as I will call it. Picture a 4-hole playoff between three of the golf world’s young guns. One with long curly locks hanging out the back of his cap another dressed head to toe in neon orange Puma gear, and the third with spiked up hair a visor and tight white trousers. Imagine the birdiefest that would ensue from there. It blows my mind so much right now that I can’t pick a winner…but I guess I’ll say Ishikawa.
Runner up: Rory McIlroy & Rickie Fowler…4th Nick Watney.

Tour Championship – Phil Mickelson. I can’t have an entire season without ‘Lefty’ winning a fairly significant tournament, I figured I’d hedge my bet with one of the season’s smallest fields and pencil him in at the final Fedex Cup event edging Tiger by a stroke. I have no explanation why aside from what I said above, and feel I don’t need one as this is my blog and I do what I want!
Runner up: Tiger Woods

Fedex Cup – Tiger Woods. ‘The Striped One’ will clinch his 2nd Fedex Cup with his runner-up finish in Atlanta at the Tour Championship. He will take command of the standings after the Masters and will ride it out throughout the summer until the Standings are reset. A win in Chicagoland at Cog Hill and a 2nd place in the season’s final tournament and he will lock up the coveted Fedex Cup.
Runner up: Zach Johnson

President’s Cup – USA. The Stars and Stripes will make the trip out to Melbourne Australia and dominate like they should. Europe may have their number right now, but I’ll take my chances with the US against a not so cohesive rest of the world bunch. It won’t be as decisive as Harding Park in ’09, but it will be enough to retain. Stars and Stripes by 2.5 points.

Individual Awards:

Player of the Year – Tiger Woods. By season’s end Eldrick will be back where he is supposed to be. He may not be as dominant as his earlier years, but he will find a way to win relatively consistent, and it will be enough to surpass Westy to reclaim his rightful spot at the top of the World Rankings. He will inch closer to the Golden Bear with yet another Green Jacket, but still will have a ways to go. The Fedex Cup will be a great cherry on top of a bounce back season.

Q-School Rookie of the Year – Gary Woodland. The 2010 graduate class of PGA Q-School is chock full of PGA veterans. From semi-successful journeyman like Billy Mayfair, Brandt Jobe, Paul Stankowski, and Kent Jones; to younger established players like James Driscoll, Richard S. Johnson, and Jarrod Lyle. It was very difficult for me to come up with a youngster rookie worthy of the ROY. I picked Woodland as he had been semi-exempt in the past and is coming off of a season ravaged with injury. If he can stay healthy look for a big season from him. Others to watch: Ben Martin (US Am runner up), Kyle Stanley, William McGirt and Korean Bi-o Kim.

Comeback Player – Tiger Woods. If he is successful as I think he will be, it’s going to be tough to not name Tiger. In a year of personal turmoil and professional ineptitude (for his standards) he will rise to the top with a Tiger-esque season. Others to watch: Anthony Kim coming off of a injury riddled 2010, Sergio Garcia who needs to get the focus back, and Rory Sabbatini who has dipped significantly in the World Rankings.

Falling Star – Stewart Cink. 2010 wasn’t great for the Twitter star Stewart Cink, and I don’t think 2011 will be any better. If Vijay Singh was the apparent loser of 2010 Cink will be in the running this season. He has yet to crack the winner circle since his Claret Jug winning performance at Turnberry, and will have a second straight dreadful season at the majors. Others to watch: Angel Cabrera has sneaky made it halfway to the career slam, but won’t get any closer in 2011. Look for the long in the tooth ‘El Poto’ to take a dive in the World Rankings. ***Please note: I selected Furyk as one to watch fall in 2010 and he won the Fedex Cup, so it’s not exactly the kiss of death.

The Next Big Step – Ryo Ishikawa. This Japanese teenager sensation has taken the golf world by storm with his long hitting and incredibly seasoned game. His predicted win at the PGA Championship will give him his first major and obviously jump him into the next category of upper echelon of professional golfers. Others to watch: My predicted winner in Sandwich UK Martin Laird, the combination of the two flamboyant youngsters Rory McIlroy and Rickie Fowler, and although he will not make a big impact on the PGA Tour look for Welshman Rhys Davies to take a huge step in the European Order of Merit.

2011 should be a great year in the world of golf…and I can’t wait ‘til Kapalua.

Blair O'Neal Wins MVP Honors on 'Big Break Dominican Republic'

Congrats to the lovely eye appealing Miss Blair O'Neal for taking home the most MVP points on the Golf Channels hit reality series 'The Big Break.' This most recent installment was held in the Dominican Republic and was a battle of the sexes between 12 former Big Breakers. In the end the ladies outlasted the guys to win the big prize. As team MVP O'Neal, a former Arizona State Sun Devil, earned the lion share of the cash take, an endorsement deal with Adams Golf, a Dicks Sporting Goods shopping spree and most importantly a spot in the 2011 LPGA Kia Classic! Congrats on an epic season Miss O'Neal and good luck at the Kia Classic.