Tailgating: Because IU Football and Sobriety Don't Mix

October has been disappointing for me. The Angels imploded against the Yankees in Game 6, the Chargers can only win against the Chiefs, and the Hurricanes choked against Clemson. With all this bad, it's time to focus on the good in sports: tailgating.

A couple weeks ago, I went tailgating for homecoming at Indiana University with my friends in Indiana. Those Hoosiers do it right.

On a cold, crisp autumn day, rows and rows of cars enter a series of huge fields, right near the stadium. A bunch of friendly Midwesterners fire up their grills to make pancakes and eggs. That's right, pancakes and eggs. These people are on the tailgate fields as soon as they open. In fact, my friends arrivedthree hours early. From 9 am until noon, we parked on the street and stepped into the tailgate fields to drink and start the tailgating fun. This was for a 7 p.m. game. Compare this to University of Miami students barely making it to a noon game.

Cornhole, burgers, and beer: it truly is a tailgater's heaven. It is one giant outdoor party that lasts all day. In my seven years of tailgating, I have never witnessed such a commitment to a tailgate. One group of people brought an entire pig to roast. Yes, they were sawing off the hoofs at 9:30 am. I couldn't watch.

I have tailgated at a lot of football schools. Nobody does it better than IU. And to think...all of this for a team that is perpetually in the Big 10 basement. Here's the secret: most of the tailgaters don't go to the game. At IU, tailgating is the main event.

Here's to you Hoosiers: Hoo Hoo Hoo...Hoosiers!

Quote of the Week: Celinda on Fantasy Football

One of my very best friends, Celinda, is currently winning our fantasy football league. When I say winning, I mean dominating. She is 5-0 and put up 108 points last week. Here's what she had to say about it:

"If you are looking for another blog topic, I recommend writing about the fallacy that is fantasy football. Skill? no...luck? YES. It's some sort of cruel football god joke on those who know what the hell they're talking about, and I am just a pawn."

Still, impressive showing out of Justice C-Dot!

The face of failure...

I would like to thank Jonathon Papelbon for having such an expressive face. Special thanks go out to the person who thought of "Papel Bomb" as a headline.

Stupid Comments from Both Men and Women

This weekend, I went to game 3 of the ALDS in Fenway. I was completely decked out in Angels gear. Obviously, this sparked some interesting conversation. Surprisingly, most of the Red Sox fans I encountered were very nice. After the Angels won, the most common comment I received was "just beat the Yankees." However, there were many ridiculous statement mades. Here they are:

Girl at Starbucks: "Angels! Yay! Go Angels! Who are they playing?"

The X Back Commentary: If you are unaware of the happenings during the playoffs, please do not pretend to be an Angels fan. This series was HUGE.



Guy at CCC: (context: we were discussing Drew Brees v. Philip Rivers.) He made many stupid comments during this debate. Here are the three worst:

(1) "Yeah, but Drew Brees built that system in San Diego."

(2) "Drew Brees had a better quarterback rating last year. He threw for like 500 yards a game."

(3) Unrelated to the Drew Brees debate: "Tom Brady calls his own plays."

The X Back Commentary:

(1) Quarterbacks don't build systems, coaches do. Coaches might build systems around quarterbacks, but that certainly didn't happen when Drew Brees was in San Diego. Aside from that fact, we've gone through a number of offensive coordinators and coaches since then. The system under Norv Turner is different than the one that existed when Cam Cameron was the offensive coordinator...and neither system was pass heavy.

(2) Total yardage and quarterback rating are entirely different. QB Rating for the 2008 Season: Rivers - 105.5; Brees - 96.2. Career qb rating: Rivers - 92.7; Brees 90. Thanks for playing, dude. You're just wrong.

(3) Again, just wrong.

Stupid Comments From Female "Sports Fans" - Part I

Nothing makes me more angry than girls that claim to be sports fans, but clearly have limited knowledge of sports. Ladies, just be quiet...you're making us look bad. For this reason, I'm starting a running list of stupid comments I hear from women discussing sports. I've given all these women nicknames. Here are a couple to start us off:

Patriots Fan: "Drew Bledsoe couldn't handle the pocket...the game got too fast for him."

X Back Commentary: How does someone possess an inability to handle the pocket? You are either a pocket passer or you're not (the latter tends to fail in the NFL). There is no such thing as a quarterback that "can't handle the pocket." The pocket is a delightful place for those with a good offensive line. Additionally, the game is no more "fast" now than it was in 1993, when Bledsoe was drafted. It is not as though we are discussing Otto Graham here. Besides, if the game was too fast for him, wouldn't Bledsoe then stay int the pocket? Points for knowing what a pocket is, but work on using it in context.

Red Sox Fan that claims to be a general baseball fan (comment made two weeks ago): Are the Angels winning their thing?

X Back Commentary: If by thing, you meant division, then yes they were. If you're a real baseball fan, you should be relatively familiar with the division leaders at any point in the season. It's ok if you only like the Red Sox, no one says you have to be an MLB fan.

Note: Men make stupid comments too. They will appear on this blog when I hear them.

Chronicles of a Depressed Chargers Fan

Some thoughts as I watch the Chargers embarrass themselves on national television:

• Given this performance, they should have to wear pink all year.
• Why...WHY...did the team refuse to address the aging defensive line in the off season?? Everybody knew Jamal Williams was getting old. He wasn't going to dominate the middle forever. Ogembi Nwagbuo is a non-entity at nose tackle. The Pittsburgh o-line pushed him around like a rag doll. The d-line gets no penetration and no rush.
• Thanks, Cromartie...thanks for reminding me why I hate Florida State University.

Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth made the following comment: "San Diego passed on Ben Roethlisberger...TWICE." Guys, Big Ben would have done ABSOLUTELY NOTHING for the 2004 San Diego Chargers team. He would do nothing for the current San Diego Chargers. If Rivers and Roethlisberger switched teams at half-time, Rivers would be the one out there looking like a combination of Johnny Unitas and Steve Young. The Pittsburgh offensive line has given Ben so much time to throw tonight. Roethlisberger seriously could have done his taxes while waiting for receivers to get separation. A lot of quarterbacks can complete passes when they have 7 seconds to throw.

Unlike Pittsburgh in 2004, the Chargers had no defense (apparently, they still have no defense)... With the Steelers, Big Ben had to manage games. That's it. He was given time to develop. And frankly, I am still not convinced he is anything more than a game manager. Stop treating the Chargers' decision to trade for Rivers in the 2004 draft as the football equivlent of the Portland Trail Blazers passing on Michael Jordan for Sam Bowie.