It's that time of the year again. No, not the time to break out your Perfect Strangers DVDs. Though that does sounds fun. No, not the time to appreciate all the blessings in your life and spend time with family. While that's nice and all, there's nothing that says you can't do that at in the middle of April.I'm talking about the annual Thanksgiving weekend that also doubles as an excuse to get rip-roaring drunk for four or five consecutive nights. What's better than getting shitcanned, sleeping in/laying on the couch all morning and then gorging yourself on some of the most delicious, artery clogging food this side of Milwaukee? Not much. Except, maybe getting repeatedly shitcanned, sleeping in and devouring boatloads of leftover artery clogging food. That's my Thanksgiving wish for all of you out there today. Booze, food and football. I'm pretty sure, you won't get a more thoughtful gift all year long. Enjoy.
On a personal note, I won't be eating Thanksgiving with my family for the first time since my freshman year in college. While the lucky people who get to be related to me (Seriously, how envious are you?) are all in Tallahassee this weekend, I'll be back here with my girlfriend and her family for the holiday. That's right, not only am I missing Thanksgiving, I'll also be missing out on free tickets to the Florida-FSU football game. I guess I could drive up on Friday for the game but there's something else at work here besides me being the greatest boyfriend ever.
You see, I've never seen the Gators win at Doak Campbell. Never. Ever. I saw them tie once (ugh) but that's as close as I've come. When Florida broke the 18 year winless streak in Doak two years ago, I was working an event. So, I've decided, in the best interest of Florida football, to stay home and watch this game on TV. Lest I show up and cause the Mighty Gators to lose and ruin the faint National Championship hopes that they still have. While I'll miss the atmosphere of this rivalry. I won't miss the drive to Tallahassee, the smell of Tallahassee and the dim-witted residents of Tallahassee. Hopefully, my strategy works.
Finally, tomorrow is the annual Turkey Bowl game. This is a pretty big deal between my friends and I and always provides plenty of high (and low) lights for all. What else can you say about an event in which at least 50% of the participants are still drunk from the night before?Disclaimer: This post sucks. I know that. Blame the half day that I'm taking today and the generous helping of Maker's Mark I drank last night for that. Or blame me. I don't care. I've got the next five days off. I've also got the following things on my agenda during that time: Get drunk, play football, watch football, eat, get drunk, watch basketball, eat, get drunk, watch Florida-Kansas (basketball), eat, watch Florida-FSU (football), get drunk, eat, get drunk(er), eat, watch more football. Happy Thanksgiving indeed.
16 comments:
Cousin Larry, let us do the Dance of Joy...
I can always count on you TJ. And yes, I DO own that autographed Linn Baker photo.
Great extended weekend of football (w/ the exception of the NFL on Thanksgiving). Did you hear about the Clemson fan who shot and killed his buddy who was a USC fan over a $20 bet following the game Saturday? Awesome.
And even though UF lost, the UF-KU game was awesome the other night. Totally lived up to the billing.
You've got to love South Carolina. It doesn't get nearly enough credit for being the backward southern state that it is. Very Underrated, it's right up there with Miss, Bama, and Louisiana. All in all, a very entertaining weekend of football with yesterday's late afternoon games being a pleasant surprise.
I actually went home from the bar so that I could watch the second half of that UF-KU game. I in no way regret that decision. I'm Okay with UF losing early. They played wel enough to win but this allows Billy to get the team's attention early on in the season.
That was a great early season game, and I agree the loss is no bigge, and it actually will help the Gators in the long run. They had won 17 straight and as that streak extended undue media hype would of course surround the team, something Billy doesn't need anymore of.
By the way, Ohio State is now #1 in both the hoops and football polls. Niiiice...and Florida is #4 in both I think.
OSU loses to UNC tomorrow night so that won't last long. Though, I'm sure they don't care too much about losses until they get Oden up and running.
The loss wil help show the Gators the level of intensity and teamwork it's gonna take to win it all again this year. I'm sure they thought they knew what they had to do based on last year, but this game will allow Billy to show them that they're gonna have to step it up a level or two to achieve the same degree of success. Along those lines, I feel sorry for Southern tonight.
Great column from Seth Davis today about the Gators and this very topic:
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/writers/seth_davis/11/28/hoop.thoughts/index.html
OK, this one MIGHT work
I read that yesterday too.
In related news, Corey Brewer has mono.
He needs to stop mouth-kissing prostitutes
Don't we all...
Even though the Bucks lost last night, that was a very entertaining game.
That's the first time I've seen them play and I was impressed. Conley can get into the lane whenever he wants and Daequon Cook is money. I had heard great things about him coming out of Dayton, but I didn't think he'd score like this right out of the gates.
My only concern is that when Oden comes back its going to be a big adjustment. Right now this is a run and gun team. They drive and kick for 3's. Its going to be a totally different style of play. At least Conley and Butler are know how to play w/ dominant big men.
And one more thing. Former BG star Ron Lewis is a stud. Last year he got acclimated to big time college ball, now he's ready to bust out.
I remembered you telling me about Lewis a couple years ago when I saw him play last night. He's much bigger and athletic than I had imagined when you described him to me. I envisioned him much smaller, based on your tales of him transferring to play more on the perimeter. He's definitely the most underrated player on that team and, more than likely, the key to their overall success.
I was very impressed with Conley. He's very long for his size and has a smooth handle. I can see him being a lottery level PG in a couple of years with his athleticism, size and talent. He needs to tighten up his jumper though.
Cook is very good. That baseline dunk he had was nasty. He has all the tools that you want in a big time wing player.
Your concerns about the adjustment to Oden are warranted. Shulman and Vitale were acting like its a given that the team will easily mesh with him once he returns. They are going to have to change their style of play dramtically, even if Oden isn't a featured part of the offense. His presence alone will close off driving lanes and force OSU to play an entirely different style of offense.
Another thing to consider, Matta hasn't ever had to coach a team with a legit inside (Dials last year wasn't somebody that you built an offense around) threat as most of his previous teams have been guard dominated. How he changes his offensive approach will be key.
Ultimately, I think OSU has enough shooters to keep defenses honest once Oden returns. They're just going to have find different ways to create open looks from outside.
Matta will really have to coach 'em up when Oden comes in. Your right that he hasn't had a dominant big man at OSU, but remember he did have David West at Xavier. But of course those teams were busts in the tournament while his Sato/Chalmers team made it to the Elite 8.
Cook's dunk last night was sick.
And your right about Lewis. No one mentioned him in the preseason even though he was a big contributor (mostly off the bench) last season. He's only about 6'4", but he's clearly worked on his handle and pretty much got to the hoop anytime he wanted to last night. And he couldn't shoot like that at BG. It looks like Michael Redd gave him some tutoring over the last couple of summers.
If Lewis can continue to play like that, OSU will be tough to stop offensively. Even though he's only 6'4", it was surprising to me as I had envisioned him as beign right around 6'0".
Having Michael Redd tutor you instead of Antonio Daniels has its advantages.
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