It was last month when Mike Shanahan spent 7 quality hours with the Bills alleged brain-trust.  It was said that the meeting went well and that the 2 sides would keep in touch over the coming weeks.  Immediately thereafter, pretty much everyone and their uncle grenaded the thought that Shanny could ever end up in Buffalo.  Impossible, ludicrous & ridiculous, were just some of the adjectives bandied about by the ‘experts’ to describe the Bills chances.  It got me thinking, how could they be so sure?  What I came up with is this – the only thing more ridiculous than Shanahan going to Buffalo, is that he shouldn’t even consider it.

Insiders allege that Shanny is after 3 things - 1. complete football control  2. a guaranteed 50 million in salary & 3. a stake in the team.  Let’s for a moment assume this is accurate.
Let’s look at some of the potential openings and see who might meet Mike’s criteria.

Oakland - No argument required, the chances of Shanny returning there are worse than me getting or even wanting that gig.

Washington - If Shanahan is serious about his criteria, this would be a pretty quick conversation.  Snider is about as likely to give up complete football control as I am likely to give up the double quarter pounder.

Dallas - the only thing less likely than Dan Snider giving up complete control of his team, is Captain Plastic giving up control of his.  Even if Jerry tells him he will have control, all Mike would have to do is call the Tuna or Jimmy Johnson and ask him if he means it.

Seattle - With the resignation last week of the GM, speculation began to percolate.  Ownership made it clear though that the replacement would have to be willing to play by their rules, in other words likely keep Jim Mora Jr. as coach.  Does that sound like complete control?

Jacksonville - While it is likely they miss the play-offs with their schedule, it’s unlikely they will make a change. There has been a dramatic improvement in the Jags over last year, and since its only year one with Gene Smith making the personnel decisions, it’s unlikely a change is imminent. Besides, even if the job opened up who would take this job over Buffalo?  The attendance in Jacksonville is worse than a WNBA game.

Carolina - What a huge mistake it would be to fire John Fox. That being said, if they did fire Fox,  it would probably be to hire Bill Cowher.  At least that’s what everyone seems to think.  Personally, I don’t think the Panthers will make a change at all and if Cowher gets the feeling that it won’t be anytime soon,  he may be more interested in throwing his hat in the ring for other jobs (maybe I’m just hopeful because he is so terrible on TV).

Tennesse – Fisher isn’t going anywhere.

Now things get a little interesting,

Chicago - With the obvious connection between Shanahan & Cutler it makes sense. Too, its Mike’s home state. Realistically though what are the chance that both Lovie Smith and Jerry Angelo get fired?  I say not good, they are only a couple years removed from the Super Bowl and it seems unlikely after one bad year that they both would get punted.

Cleveland – Owner Randy Lerner seems desperate for a winner and seems willing to give everything that Shanahan would want but for now Lerner has been said to be flirting mostly with Mike Holmgren.  Too, just think about it, if Buffalo is a crappy job what would make the Cleveland job so much more attractive? Ok, maybe the load of draft picks they have stockpiled.

Tampa -With the ownership here, who the heck knows what they will do.  They may still be in love with Raheem Morris or they may think he is already over the hill.  One thing is for sure, if they follow the same hiring pattern and keeping hiring younger coaches they may hire one of the Jonas brothers instead of Shanahan.

Houston – Now this one is interesting.  Kubiak is said to be on the hot seat after another mediocre year.  Every year they are on the verge and every year they come up short.  It’s also interesting because when Kubiak got the job in Houston they employed the Bronco/Shanahan GM philosophy, which is basically that the coach has the control over personnel.  So if Kubiak was let go, the Owner Mcnair is already familiar with the organizational structure that Shanahan is comfortable with.  Whether that is a plus or a negative remains to be seen.  Finally, what impact will it have that Mike’s son is on the staff in Houston and that Kubiak was his protégé?  Again time will tell.

Have you learned anything from this exercise?  Well I firmly believe that there is a decent chance of the Bills landing Shanahan. While it is certainly to soon to tell, the Bills have made it clear that they are agreeable to meeting his demands. Let’s see if anyone else will.

NR

If there was a ‘Be careful what you wish for…’ category at your local Barnes & Noble, you would no doubt find among other interesting reads – The Jay Cutler story.  No one is asserting that it would make the N.Y. Times bestsellers list, but at the very least it would be a compelling read for the football fan.  Read the full story

Roy Halladay:

Rumours this past week at the winter meetings were flying in regards to Halladay being traded. It is no surprise since Roy has made it clear that he wants to play with a contender. This is the part I wonder about and fans (especially Toronto fans) hate to hear, that one of their athletes wants to leave for a better team. Yet hasn’t society in general taken this approach? Don’t people end their marriages to go on to what they feel is a “better marriage” instead of making their existing marriage better. Don’t people want to get a “better job” instead of making the company they work for better? So why ask Halladay to stay to make the Jays’ better when he wants to go to a “better team.

Saints and Colts Stay Undefeated:

In an era when we constantly hear that the NFL has parity, can someone explain how we have 2 teams (13-0 Colts and Saints) that are so far ahead of the rest of the league and 2 teams (1-12 Bucs and Rams) that are so “behind” the rest of the league?  Maybe the only parity we have is that all teams (except the Jaguars) are making a boatload of cash. To make matters worse, this past week we are hearing about how the NFL wants to cut 100 million dollars of revenue sharing.  And this is going to help the parity?

Toronto Maple Leafs:

This past week the Maple Leafs won 3 of their 4 games.  Their one loss was to the Bruins and they almost came back to tie that one up.   2 of their 3 wins were against 2 top teams in their conference – the Atlanta Thrashers and Washington Capitals. Let’s give credit to Ron Wilson who after the Leafs had that horrible start where they won 1 game in their first 13 starts did not panic and kept his cool and has now won 8 of his last 12 games. Look out NHL the Leafs are no longer a push over and could surprise many come April.

The NCAA proves every year that you don’t have to be good at something to succeed.  Admittedly, they are good at making money.  But when it comes to honouring the sports they claim guardianship over, they are embarrassingly inept.

Not that you need me to remind you of the litany of proofs, but I need to get this off my chest.

Firstly, the BCS.   Really, this is like shooting fish in barrel, but here goes anyway.  It starts with the refusal to have a playoff for the national championship, instead the BCS would rather have a group of figure skating judges and computers determine the 2 best teams in the country and then wait five weeks to play the game.  One of my favourite arguments against having a playoff that they use is that ‘we don’t want to interfere with exams in December’.  So let me get this straight. There is no time for a playoff because the students study for five weeks for their exams?  I think not. If that where the case, then why do they start playing Bowl games on the 19th of December?  The solution isn’t rocket science; just start a playoff on the same day the bowl games begin. Start with eight teams and play two playoff weeks and then a championship game. Now how hard was that?

It’s bad enough they don’t have a playoff, but just as bad is their stubborn refusal to give us the games we want.  For instance, TCU vs. Boise. What a joke; the cowardly BCS instead of giving the two mid-major powers a chance to go toe to toe with some BCS teams, they get them to play again for the second year in a row. Why?  It’s to ensure that next year when both teams are great again the BCS can again talk about them not playing anybody and thus have a lousy preseason ranking which basically precludes them from having a legit chance at a national title.  How much better would a TCU/Florida match-up be and Boise/Cincinnati game? Oh, what could have been!

This leads me to another complaint I have: the outright stupidity of the pre-season rankings. Without even playing a game, teams are ranked and these rankings later become part of the equation when determining rankings later in the season and ultimately may be a determining factor in playing for the National Championship.  How fair is that? NCAA is on par with those bastions of fairness boxing and figure skating.  Again, how difficult would it be to just not start ranking the teams until week 4, or even later.  Last year a mediocre Georgia team was the consensus preseason number one.  Too, did you realize in the 2006 season Notre Dame was ranked second and third in the respective pre-season coaches and AP polls?  That fact alone should bring the system down.  The BCS likes this system though, why?  Because it ensures that the championship game will be played between a couple of BCS schools.  What does the guardian of all that is fair the NCAA do about all this manipulation by the BCS? Yup, you guessed it, sweet tweet!

According to the NCAA their job is as follows: “The NCAA serves as the governance and administrative infrastructure through which representatives of colleges and universities enact legislation and set policy to establish recruiting standards and competitive equity among members, protect the integrity of intercollegiate athletics, ensure the enforcement of its rules and provide public advocacy of college sports…The NCAA also has the responsibility in Division I-A football to protect the integrity of the game and the sanctity of the subdivision itself. While there are 117 institutions in Division I-A, the BCS represents an agreement among 64 of those institutions to participate in the series with guaranteed participation for the champions in the six conferences, plus two additional at-large berths. Any team from a non-BCS Division I-A conference (Conference USA, Mountain West, Western Athletic, Sun Belt and Mid-American Conferences), or an independent can qualify if it is ranked in the top six in the BCS standings.”  Who is their watchdog so that they live up to these lofty standards?  Again you guessed it, themselves!

While we are talking about fairness, what is it about hiring coaches from bowl teams before the bowl games? This week Brian Kelly of Cincinnati wouldn’t even commit to coaching his team in the Sugar Bowl because of considering an offer from Notre Dame – which he has since accepte.  Is that fair?  There is so much made of the fairness to kids, and the NCAA claims to be the guardian of these student athletes. While a kid who wants to transfer to another school to play has to sit out a year first, a coach who is under contract can walk away before the year is even finished, leaving the kids that he recruited hanging.  In spite of this he’ll usually even get his school and the NCAA’s blessing. What kind of a system is that?

My last beef is the policy on student athletes and holding down a job. Under NCAA rules, the maximum an athlete can earn at a job is $2000 for the year, including a summer job.  How ridiculous is that? That’s an average of $170 a month.  They may say they are trying to prevent boosters from giving kids bogus jobs for big bucks, which is understandable.  Yet how fair is it that when they sign television deals worth billions of dollars, you can’t tell me there isn’t enough cash to offer student athletes a modest stipend.  It is true that these kids are getting a free educational ride, but come on.  These are kids often from very humble means and can’t rely on relatives for spending money.  By refusing to offer a modest stipend, the NCAA is actually encouraging these kids to explore temptation.

The NCAA is run like a cell-phone provider or cable company.  They basically blackmail and hold us hostage because we can’t live without what they provide.  The NCAA has one of the greatest sports products available and, like a big bully, make stupid contrary decisions to remind us that they hold the cards.  It sucks to be us!

NR

With the playoffs starting in many fantasy leagues, it’s time you really pay attention to SportsRuckus.net as we set you on your way to yet another victory !!

If you have to make a gutsy play this week, Randy Moss is your man, he will either win your matchup single handedly or send you home packing after what’s happened to him lately. 

Quarterbacks

Dr. Drew Brees

The former Charger is just having an MVP type season and apart from a few hiccups against AFC East Teams like the Jets and Bills, he’s performed surgery without the anaesthetic on the rest of the league. Look for the Dr. to continue his practice

Tom Brady

Brady has been embarrassed by the performance or lack thereof from the Patriots the last 2 weeks, look for the leader to re-establish himself once again this week.

Donovan McNabb

If Mr. November can light up the Giants (in December may I add) look for the smiley one (even smiles after missing wide open receivers in the end zone) to do a number on this Giants team that’s running out of duct tape .

Aaron Rodgers

Obvious pick here, since his linemen have been getting healthy, they’ve only allowed 2 sacks last 2 games while allowing 43 the first 11 games (in turn sending 4 Viking Linemen to the pro bowl) Rodgers has been taking full advantage putting up huge numbers in the last few weeks 

Sleepers

Quarterbacks

Bruce Gradkowski

Showed some Moxie lately as he put up some big numbers against the Steelers, Redskins aint the Steelers ! 

Running Backs

Ricky Williams

Look for Ricky to outduel Maurice in the battle of the 2 star running backs in the “most nerdy name  bowl”

Chris Johnson

Another duel of amazing backs, Johnson outduels Jackson in the “son bowl”

Joseph Addai

He’s making his first appearance in these pages, the way to beat Denver is with a grinding running game, not that Peyton is a slouch, just that you will have to run Addai if you’re up in the second half

Felix Jones

He hasn’t really lived up to his billing this year, playing the Chargers is an instant remedy for any ailing running back

Ray Rice

He’s been laying low of late, after Cedric Benson ran for a 110 yards to soften up the Lions, look for Rice to Roni up on the Lions

Correll Buckhalter

If the Donks have any chance of beating the Colts, you will hear his name a lot on Sunday. 

Wide Receivers

Brandon Marshall

Someone has to step up and show the Colts secondary has no experience !! Brandon doesn’t respect anyone anyways so he’s the perfect man for the job.

Andre Johnson

Every receiver has been torching the Seahags this year, unfortunately for Seattle, Johnson is not just another receiver.

Wesley Welker

He’s been Brady’s No 1 Target (Randy no likey) which makes him an easy play this week against hapless Carolina.

Randy Moss

Was sent home for showing up to practice (Practice?) late. He will either respond with an amazing performance or lay an egg !

Every New Orleans Receiver !!

Robert Meachem, Devery Henderson, Marques Colston… Mamma mia ! Take your pick…no wonder Brees (former Charger) is going to be MVP 

Tight Ends

Vernon Davis

Just playing like he was on a playground in his hometown, a must start for teams that have to play a tight end.

Antonio Gates

It’s going to be a track meet in Dallas this Sunday, Gates is on pace for a 2400 yard season his last 2 games.

Jason Witten

The number 1 reason Tony Romo may get rid of his Mr. November name tag is because of the numbers Witten has been producing lately.

Brent Celek

Just follow the wheelmarks that Jason Witten left on the Giants last week for over 155 yards (had 156) and you’ll be fine. 

There you have it, hope you have success !!

Let me start by saying I am not a New England Patriot fan, but I did love Bill Belichick’s fourth down call against the Colts. I’ve thought about this very carefully over the last two weeks and I’ve come to the conclusion that it really was the right decision. Here’s why. First, I am tired of watching football coaches constantly making conservative calls playing the entire game with a “not to lose ” Italian soccer strategy instead of the “going for the win” approach. Second, when you think about it, which was the riskier move, having Tom Brady and his offense get the 2 yards for the first down or giving Manning the ball with 2 minutes left and 60- 70 yards to go. In reality Belichick did what most baseball fans, who I feel are in the same category as Star Wars/Star Trek convention-going fanatics, would say a great manager would do. Make a decision on percentages.  Yes, a baseball manager looks at all his options and who his opponent is in every situation and figures out what his best percentage to succeed is and goes for it. Successful or not if he plays the percentages he is always considered to be making the right decision. In baseball what Belichick did is called strategy but to football fans it’s crazy. Go figure.

As for the thinking that what Belichick did would get his defense to feel like he doesn’t trust them is also ludicrous. Does a relief pitcher that gets pulled out of a game because the next batter he faces has a better chance of getting a hit on him than another pitcher on his team get offended? No he understands the percentages. Belichick knew that his offense facing the Colts defense has a better chance of success then his defense facing Peyton Manning.

So for all you Belichick haters that are just waiting for him to make a mistake and jump on him on what was the right call, just chill out and remember a very important fact. He hasn’t won 3 super bowls with a constantly changing line up and low-drafted players because he guesses and uses emotion in making his decision. He also hasn’t won because he has had great coordinators as Charlie Weiss, Eric Mangini, Romeo Cromell and Josh McDaniels have not exactly gone on to great things without Belichick. He has won because he is a football genius.

Mr. “Sports” Bean

It is time for my fearsome predictions of teams headed for playoff bliss and teams headed for playoff whiffs in the NFC – the contenders versus the pretenders, the players versus the dreamers, and the combatants versus combustibles.  

With 4 weeks left in the regular season and no more byes to be had, the margin for error for most teams to make the playoffs save the Colts or the Saints is slim to none and as the saying goes slim is out of town. 

Let’s begin by taking a look at the contenders. 

Contenders

Minnesota (10-2)

The Vikings no doubt got more than one wakeup call by the time the left Arizona.  But this is a team that of course will be playing meaningful football come January, and certainly along with the Saints the current favourite to go deep into the post-season.  It certainly would be an interesting matchup with the Saints potent offense against the Vikings vaunted defence.  They say defence wins championships.  If that’s true the Vikings are in good position, notwithstanding their loss yesterday.

Arizona Cardinals (8-4)

They are starting to look like the team that went to the big dance last year.  Much like Philadelphia, they are not a team you would like to play in the first round of the playoffs or anywhere the temperature is above freezing.  As long as Warner can stay healthy, they have too many weapons to not be considered an elite team in the NFC. 

Philadelphia (8-4)

A very resounding win yesterday against a depleted Falcons team doesn’t hurt this team’s chances.  Going down the stretch and given the choice I would take my chances with McNabb at crunch time over Romo.  Their schedule isn’t much easier with matchups against the Giants and Broncos.  If they do make it to the playoffs and I think they will with an 11-5 record, I think this is one team nobody wants to face.

N.Y.Giants (7-5)

What has happened to that fearsome Giants D?  This is not your infant’s defence from 2 years ago.  A nice surprise has been the WR position which was thought to be a glaring weakness going into the season.  If it comes down to the last game of the season against the Vikings it may come down to whether the Vikings have anything to play for.  This one may be the hardest to call.  The Giants could conceivably run the table against the Eagles, Redskins, Panthers and Vikings or they could lose 3 or 4.  I’m hedging they will go 3-1 and finish at 10-6 – which puts them in the playoffs.

New Orleans (12-0)

They have a swagger don’t they?  Add to that the coach says they will not rest starters but will play for an unbeaten record down the stretch and you can feel the confidence oozing out of New Orleans.  I seem to remember a lot of confidence in Oklahoma this year too, until a certain QB there hit the injury shelf. 

Green Bay Packers (8-4)

Much like the Cowboys, something doesn’t feel right with this team.  Perhaps fittingly their only win against a team with a winning record this year was against those same Dallas Cowboys.  I don’t see much changing with this team, and given the fact that of the 5 games remaining on the schedule 3 will be against .500 teams or better they are in tough.  But it says here there will be one more playoff reunion with the frozen tundra  this year but not with Brett Favre.

Pretenders

Atlanta Falcons (6-6)

They aren’t who we thought they would be.  Hopes reigned high in Atlanta after last year’s success.  But the fine folks in Atlanta better look to the Hawks for their next post-season success.  You can take away yesterday’s loss to the Eagles because they were certainly undermanned – but this team is still average at best.  Their schedule bodes well for them with three of the four remaining games against the likes of the Jets, Bills, and Bucs.  But, even at that they are still a long shot to make the playoffs.

Dallas (8-4)

It is hard to figure this team out – starting with the offense.  In many ways it seems like a collection of parts that put together look more like a Lada than a Lamborghini.  However, at 8-4 they sit atop the NFC East after beating Philly earlier this year.  That said, the Eagles may very have something to say about that on the last game of the season.  That game could very well decide the division and may even decide who packs up and goes home.  However, with games against San Diego and New Orleans still ahead, I think this team is in danger of finishing the season with a 9-7 record.  I don’t think that will be good enough.

Love him or hate him, Rivers is quietly enjoying a pro bowl season if that’s somehow possible. Look for continued success against a Browns team that can’t get out of its own way.

Matt Shaub

Schaub had a great first half against the Colts last week, the coaches have reminded him there is another half after the first one for this weeks playoff elimination type matchup with the Jags.

Vince (gulp) Young

Never thought I would see his name in this column, but hey, isn’t life full of second chances, we just may have found the next Jim Plunkett. Look for Young to be effective against a young colts secondary.

Carson Palmer

The Bengals offense has been on holiday the last 3 weeks, look for Palmer to show some veteran leadership in lathering up the Lions this week.

Aaron Rodgers

When he gets time to throw, he can light you up ! That will be the question against the Ravens defense this Monday Night, having Chad Clifton and Mark Tausher healthy are key here.

RB’s

Chris Johnson

Move over Adrian Peterson, there’s a new kid in town ! The colts don’t know what they’re in for this sunday.

Adrian Peterson

“Hey, did you just tell me’s to move over ? Watch me tears it up gainst the Cardinals dis weekend !”

Larry Johnson

They’re working him in slowly, Cincinnati adding another character in the locker room makes them replace the Raiders as the kookiest team in the league.

Ricky Williams

Everyone knows the Dolphins are going to run the ball, yet, who can stop them, Pats showing you can lay the wood to them this year with their defense in tatters.

Maurice Jones Drew

Everytime Jags get whooped, they get this brilliant idea to run the ball more next game, well, good news, the Jags got whooped last week !

Felix Jones

This kid is a Chris Johnson clone, only problem is he can’t stay healthy, giants defense is a shell of itself since Spagnuolo Aiglie Olio…anyways since that italian guy left !

WR’s

Desean Jackson

This guy can flat out fly. Look for him to do some damage this weekend as McNabb is going to him more often.

Chad Ochcinco

Showing veteran leadership this year, let’s give Chad some credit as he was off everybody’s radar when the year started and he’s definately putting up good numbers this year.

Andre Johnson

It’s time for AJ to show up in a big game for Houston, if he likes his coach, we will see the results this Sunday.

Devery Henderson

Came out of the same draft class as Sheili Manning, finally delivering on the potential he’s always had, having Drew Brees doesn’t hurt either.

Kilometres Austin

Roy Williams does all the talking, Miles Austin does all the receiving ! Only problem here is that the QB known as Mr. November is throwing him the ball !

TE’s

Antonio Gates

Mr. Gates is from Michigan, close enough that I’m sure he’ll put on a fine show for family and friends

Tony Gonzales

The Eagles are vulnerable against the tight ends, Atlanta has one of the best ones in the league.

Dallas Clarke

The guy is just too good not to mention , he and Peyton do the Vulcan mind meld once a week (we have any trekkies out there ?)

Visante Shiancoe

Brett Farve was embarrassed to throw to a guy who’s name he couldn’t pronounce , I just learned last week he can call him Shank, so know he can  throw the ball to him because they have a  new friendship to build on .

The sound you probably didn’t hear last month was Tim Floyd waving goodbye to College Basketball. By accepting a job on the bench of the New Orleans Hornets, Floyd made it clear that he was done with college basketball, at least for now. Things unraveled very quickly for the coach of the Trojans basketball team that advance to the Sweet-16 in last year’s edition of March Madness. Just three months later, without saying a word beyond his terse one paragraph resignation letter to USC Athletic Director Mike Garrett, the embattled coach indirectly fired a shot across the bow of the late Myles Brand and his gang at the NCAA.  Hard on the heels of last year’s pathetic performance by Indiana’s Kelvin Sampson, who despite mounting evidence of his unwillingness to comply with NCAA rules, refused to release the death-grip he had on his job without first tossing loyal assistants, staffers and even players under the team bus, Floyd simply refused to fight. You could argue that Floyd saw the writing on the wall and turtled, realizing that he has very little support among his peers in College basketball and that no one at USC including his A.D. is going to stick their neck out for someone who might jeopardize Pete Carroll’s juggernaut. You could say that given the choice between quit now or get publicly tarred and feathered later, Floyd chose the easier route.  You could say that…but you’d be wrong.

When Floyd arrived on the scene of big-time college basketball in 1994 with a team at Iowa State that would go on to set a school record for victories and a #5 seed in the Tourney in his first year, he was described in the local Ames, Iowa paper as “combining school-boy good looks with a fierce determination to win”. Floyd’s erstwhile good looks are long gone, having been replaced in recent years with a perma-scowl of such psychopathic intensity that a ref once “T’d” Floyd for looking at him. But the determination to win remained and Floyd finally figured out something that everyone figures out who hangs around on the inside of college hoops long enough, you can play by the rules or you can win, but you can’t do both!

 “Whoaaa there big fella”, you say.  “Are you saying that Mike Cryzewski, Roy Williams and…and…and…” Go on, try to come up with another name that you would categorically state has not broken the rules to win. The point is that even if the Dukes and UNCs of the world don’t pay players to play for them they certainly are receiving “benefits” not available to players at South East Missouri State or Lafayette. Have you seen the way these teams travel, or the facilities the players train in and live in? And for the coaches of the other 300+ teams in Division 1 not in the class of the Top 10 programs, a more overt type of cheating is the only solution.  In 2003, SMU coach Dave Bliss, a coach who had worked in College basketball for over 20 years and was regarded as a sterling example of coaching integrity, publicly admitted that he paid players to play and to avoid detection had tried to implicate a player as a drug dealer to explain his lifestyle while in college.  Oh by the way, that player happened to have been recently murdered by a teammate. What could possibly explain this level of “scumbaggery” by a seemingly upstanding coach? The system created by the NCAA.

It is the highest form of hypocrisy for the NCAA to accuse any coach of unethical behavior. For the NCAA and its member institutions to benefit to the tune of 100s of millions of dollars in TV and licensed product revenue from the efforts of unpaid players and then impose a set of rules on these athletes so draconian and pervasive as to make them all but incomprehensible and ensure a poverty level existence for these players away from the comfort of their campuses, is immoral. That ethics and the NCAA sound as compatible as Jessica Simpson and a MENSA convention, is hard to argue. But everyone except the players has such a vested interest in the continuity of the situation that no one breathes a word about it. Not the media that generates sales and ratings, not the coaches and administrators that make a fine living of the avails of the game and certainly not the ticking heart of the goliath, the pencil-pushing evil geniuses at the NCAA.

So, Tim Floyd was left with no choice at all. He went home knowing that he would return down the road on the bench of some NBA team. As a throw-back, discipline oriented coach more at home in another age of college basketball, Floyd never looked comfortable stalking the sidelines of this modern game.  A newer mindset exists among these athletes who are now surrounded by handlers and acolytes from the time they lace up their shoes in high school. “I’m going to get mine” is the mantra of these players, but it is the NCAA that has created a world in which playing for school pride and for the love of the game is not only gone but are ideals more retro than the David Thompson shirts this unpaid workforce sport on the blacktop.

It’s amazing that in the decades of 4th Quarter collapses, I don’t ever remember one like this. To lose on a ‘too many men on the field’ penalty is hard to fathom even for a Rider fan. There seems to be a difference this time around though. I feel it myself and was surprised to find that I wasn’t alone. This was a loss with hope. In fact, notice below a letter forwarded to me, that was sent this morning to the Mayor of Regina:

Dear Mayor Fiacco,

I know you and City Council are among the many people of the province who share the feeling of disbelief and devastation after the end of last night’s game…. Watching the Montreal players celebrate, and listening to the eloquent but painful interview with Coach Ken Miller (especially his statement that “the disappointment of this loss is going to affect us as long as we’re on this planet”), an idea started to percolate:  that Rider Nation should hold a parade for the Riders in a couple of days – a ‘Rising Above Defeat’ parade, held in a spirit of snatching hope (if not victory) from the jaws of defeat.  I know there is a gathering at Mosaic Stadium this afternoon, but here are ten reasons for one more celebration for the Riders of 2009:

1.  The Riders had a great season, won the Western division, hosted and won the Western final, and in the process, brought a whole province (and a whole lot of fans outside the province) a great deal of joy.  The way in which we lost the Grey Cup has left all of us shaking our heads in absolute dismay, but it doesn’t seem right to end the season on that note, given the tremendous year we had.

2.  The Riders played well enough to win.  All those prognostications about the Alouettes being a far better team, about them being ahead of the Riders in most statistical categories, being the class of the league, 9 point favourites, we disproved and defied all of that.  We didn’t win, so this is not a victory parade – we’re still hungry for one of those – but we certainly showed we were capable of being Grey Cup champions.

3.  A small mistake on the penultimate play of the game cost us big.  But there is no value in scapegoating anyone.  In fact the end of the game eerily resembles much of human life, where often enough, things that go really wrong are at least in part our own doing.  Nothing is going to let us play that play over, or a handful of others plays which could have won us the game.  So rather than concentrating on who is to blame and dumping on their lawn, let’s do something positive and thank the players and coaches for a great season.

4.  This is not only a talented team which evokes a great deal of hope for coming seasons; it is also a classy team, with very likeable players and coaches, especially a head coach and starting quarterback who are two of the more intelligent and articulate people in football, who have the ability to keep things in perspective, and who have gained our respect not only for their coaching/playing, but for who they are.

5.  A great deal has been made about Rider Pride in the past weeks, and rightly so, but Rider Pride isn’t only about winning, about jumping on a bandwagon because we happen to have a championship-contending team.  Rider Pride has shown itself strong in the midst of football’s equivalent to the great depression (a couple of decades of losing seasons).  Doing something for the team now would show that Rider Pride is about supporting a team, players, a franchise, even when we didn’t quite pull it off this time.

6.  The players have obviously been grateful for the fan support from Rider Nation especially in recent weeks.  Celebrating the team in the days ahead would be a way of showing the players that there really is something different about this publicly owned franchise, and that there are some serious advantages to playing here rather than in the larger markets of the CFL.  It would show the class of the Rider Nation.

7.  Part of what makes sports exciting is that someone wins and someone loses.  But ‘loss’ isn’t the right word to describe that game or that season.  We certainly can’t call it a victory parade, but perhaps a ‘rising above defeat’ parade to show our resilience, to help put things into perspective, and to remind the rest of the CFL that we’ll be back….

8.  It would be somehow revealing about our knowledge and love of football on the prairies if we managed to have more people out for a parade for the Riders than the Alouettes would have at their victory parade in Montreal.

9.  What are our choices, eh?  Sulk and rage, or deal with it, make the best of it, and let our coaches and players know our gratitude for a year that has been special in many ways.

10.  It would be an anticipation and foreshadowing of a victory parade (hopefully) next year at this time.

Yours Sincerely,
Don Quixote and Friends (bleeding green)

Well Don Quixote, I couldn’t agree more!

I’m not sure if I’m fooling myself or not but it sure feels better than just focusing on another devastating loss.

NR