Thursday Thoughts

After taking the NFL Draft weekend off, my batteries are charged and ready to produce again...

Some quick thoughts on a Thursday;

1. A-Roid did PEDs during high school? Really, who cares now? He has admitted to taking them during his days as a Texas Ranger, so why does it matter if he took them before, all we want to know if has taken them since, including his miraculous recovery from hip surgery.

2. The Nuggets are into the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 1994! That was the year they upset the Sonics (remember them?) on the back of Dikembe Mutumbo. The match-up vs. the Mavs in round 2 looks good, since the Nuggets went 4-0 vs. Dallas during the season.

3. Zach Greinke looks like this year's version of Cliff Lee. He will probably rob Roy Halladay of another Cy Young. Where would Doc be listed on the all time greats if he could have finished this season with three trophies?

4. Kentucky Derby is coming and the favorite is a horse named "I Want Revenge", even if he wasn't the favorite, how could you not bet on him?

5. NBA is the new NHL. Some violent acts over the past week in the NBA playoffs. Between Rajon Rondo smacking Brad Miller across the face at the end of the game, while Miller was going for the game winning lay-up or Dwight Howard throwing a round-house elbow to the head of Samuel Dalembert it was reminiscent of playoff hockey. Good show boys!

NFL Mock Draft

Figured since I am going to be on the draft floor, might as well throw my hat in the ring and write a mock draft. I will limit it to the top 11 picks so I don't look like a big loser.

1. Detroit Lions - Matthew Stafford - QB - Georgia
The Lions will take another QB of the future at the top of 2009 draft. The Georgia QB might not be the top pick in other drafts, but the Lions need a franchise player and Stafford will try to be that player.

2. St. Louis Rams - Jason Smith - OT - Baylor
The Rams have many gaps on both sides of the ball at the moment, but the last time they were good, they started by drafting a franchise LT (Orlando Pace), and this seems like a good place to start over.

3. KC Chiefs - Aaron Curry - DE - Penn St.
In desperate need of another pass rushing lineman since the loss of Jared Allen. One of the best athletes in the draft he will make the players around him better including last year's first round selection DL Glenn Dorsey.

4. Seattle Seahawks - Matt Sanchez - QB - USC
Sanchez has been climbing draft boards, and many pundits consider him better than Stafford, but with only one year starting at USC, he might not be ready for prime time that the Lions need. The Seahawks can let Sanchez learn for a year or two under Matt Hasselbeck, and that will make him the choice here.

5. Cleveland Browns - Brian Orakpo - DE - Texas
The Browns have many needs and there has been much talk about trading WR Braylon Edwards. If that happens they opt to go WR, but defence wins championships and Orakpo will complement big body Shaun Rodgers well in the trenches.

6. Cincinnati Bengals - Eugene Monroe - OT - Virgina
The Bengals get a gift here with Monroe falling to them at #6. Once again, the Bengals had success when they had a franchise left tackle (Anthony Munoz) and they hope that Monroe can be that guy for them. The other OT available is Andre Smith, but after he had problems during the scouting combine and at his Alabama pro day, the Bengals who have had some bad personalities lately would be good to stay away from him.

7. Oakland Raiders - Jeremy Maclin - WR - Missouri
Al Davis no matter how old loves speed and therefore Maclin will be the guy for the Raiders. He will be a great target for JaMarcus Russel or new QB Jeff Garcia. He needs to the playmaker for the Oakland team and bring a spark back to the black hole.

8. Jacksonville Jaguars - BJ Raji - DT - Boston College
Until two days ago the Jags were looking to take a wide receiver, probably Michael Crabtree, but after the acquisition of Torry Holt, choosing a WR can probably wait till the second round. Instead they will go with Boston College big man BJ Raji to solidify the defence against tough running AFC oppenents.

9. Green Bay Packers - Andre Smith - OT - Alabama
Although defence is probably a greater need, the Packers go oline to protect their greatest investment - QB Aaron Rodgers. Even though Smith had the problems during the combine and pro day, look for the tradition and hard working veteran tackle like Mark Tauscher to groom Andre Smith into a pro bowl caliber tackle.

10. San Francisco 49ers - Michael Crabtree - WR - Texas Tech
The 49ers started the "system" team phenomenon with the west coast offence, so drafting a "system" wide receiver shouldn't be a problem for them. Crabtree will make whoever is the QB in San Francisco that much better.

11. Buffalo Bills - Michael Oher - OT - Ole Miss
The Bills continue to add name recognition to their roster by taking Oher. The subject of Michael Lewis's 2006 book Blind Side, he has disappointed slightly as Ole Miss as he wasn't as dominant as expected. Still a great run blocker, he will need to improve his pass blocking some, but he will immediately fill the spot vacated by Jason Peters who was recently traded to Philadelphia.

Other Notable first round players that could move up into the top 11;
Everette Brown - DE - Florida St. - Could be a one year college wonder, so teams are being a little cautious.
Tyson Jackson - DE - LSU - Another pass rusher that could help 3-4 defenses.
Beanie Wells - RB - Ohio St. - A big back with speed, will help whoever drafts him. He will most likely be the first RB taken.
Josh Freeman - QB - Kansas St. - A big QB with potential. More likely will go in the 15-20 range, but he has caught the eye of the 49ers, also he was invited to NY to attend the draft so maybe the NFL knows something the rest of us don't.
Clay Matthews - LB - USC - Matthews comes from great football pedigree and will make some team very happy in the mid first round.

Random Thought Wednesday

Some random hump day thoughts...

1. NBA playoff games have been really entertaining so far. The only problem is that everyone assumes it is going to be Cavs vs. Lakers in the finals. PTI even suggested that they should just pay off all the other playoff teams and let the Cavs and Lakers play the best of seven now. Couldn't say I disagree, but I would like to see the Nuggets get out of the first round before that happens.

2. The more we hear about the ESPN documentary series 30 in 30, the more I feel like I will have 30 documentaries to see when they are released in September. Some of the topics that they will cover include the Ali vs. Holmes fight, the Baltimore Colts leaving, Luis Tiant, and 1992 Dream Team.

3. In entertainment news - Andrew Bynum is supposedly getting cuddly with Rihanna. An NBA center dating any women is a mismatch in size unless her name is Lisa Leslie, but this is pretty odd. If she thought Chris Brown hurt her, wait till Bynum climbs into bed with her.

4. When is it okay to remove songs from your ipod? Now, half my problem is that mine is only the 2 gig version, so it can hold about 400 songs. Since I love my music and download pretty regularly my library has about 3 times that many songs. I am always distraught when I need to remove some music, because I know there is a good chance I will never listen to that song again. Most of my tunes haven't changed since December because no major albums have been released since then, but it is now the end of the first quarter of the year and some big names are releasing albums (k-os, Jadakiss, and some quality mixtapes - kid cudi) and my trauma was last night when I had to remove about 40 songs to add some new music. Do I just invest in a bigger ipod, is it that easy?

5. You were probably aware that former Raptors and Knicks boss Isiah Thomas has signed on as the new head coach of Florida International University. What you probably didn't hear was that he is going to coach for FREE during his first year. The hiring has brought big interest to the FIU program who last year averaged 694 fans, since Thomas's hiring they have already sold 1000 season tickets. Good or trainwreck, Thomas presence will bring in the fans and hopefully for them, the recruits.

Hotel H-E-L-L

As mentioned yesterday, I'll be travelling to the Big Apple this weekend which will probably lead to a enjoyable/aggrevating travel note, but just incase it doesn't, this qualifies...

After reading this you probably won't stay at that airport hotel again.

NFL - To Attend or Not to Attend

The 2009 NFL draft is happening this Saturday and Sunday in New York City. Over the two days, almost 300 college football players will be selected to join the ranks of the professionals in the NFL. This selection into the NFL is a culmination of years of hard work, discipline and determination.

Although this is one of the biggest days of their young lives, most of the players being selected will not be in New York during the draft. Instead, many of them stay home, go fishing or hang out with their coaches at school waiting for that fateful phone call from a coach or GM to tell them they have been selected and will have a chance to play in the NFL in 2009.

In fact a total of nine prospects are going to be in New York, and the NFL is touting this as the most since 1996. Of the players showing up, two have a chance to be in the green room for an extended period of time, Josh Freeman QB from Kansas State and Michael Oher, Offensive Tackle from Mississippi. Both of these players have been climbing draft boards of the experts, but could just as easily spend most of the first round backstage without hearing their named called. This might be one reason more players don’t attend the draft – sitting backstage or in the crowd and not getting your name called as early as you thought is hard on the ego and potentially could be quite demoralizing.

But don’t the benefits outweigh the possibility of waiting around for an extra hour? Having fans cheer you as you make your way up to the stage, getting to shake the commissioners hand, and putting on your draft hat are things you would never forget. This is what you have worked so hard at and wouldn’t you want to be recognized for your skills? Being in New York for the draft, whether I was invited or not would be something I would need to do.

As a former University player, my dreams of walking up to the podium were extinguished pretty quickly due to injuries, and a lack of skill. Even so, after four years of playing my name was entered into pool of potential draftees of the CFL. I was excited just to see that, and if the CFL draft had been a public event instead of a conference call from the offices in Toronto I would have been there.

Live coverage of the draft starts Saturday at 4pm. I’ll be in New York attending the Draft – as a spectator, not a draftee, and will give you all my thoughts and opinions from the draft floor.

OK Blue Jays!

The Toronto Blue Jays are off to their best start in recent memory and everyone is trying to figure out why and how.

Is it the young pitching staff coming through? Did Cito Gaston and Gene Tenace get magical wood for the bats? Are they using oversized gloves in the field? Not really sure those are the answers, and you don't want to be a cynic when cheering for the home team, but the reason the Jays are 10-4 to start the season, might have more to do with their opponents than anything else.

The Jays opened the season against the Detroit Tigers who were supposed to be a favorite in the American League Central. The Tigers have been slow starters the past couple of seasons, and this year was no different. The Jays managed to rack up some unexpected runs and got good starting pitching from the top of the staff and took 3 of 4 from the Tigers.

The Jays continued their trip through the American League Central with a 7 game road trip to Cleveland and Minnesota. The Indians were another team many considered the best of the AL Central. Unfortunately for Tribe fans, Manager Eric Wedge hasn't been able to turn his talented line-up into a winning line-up and the Jays took advantage. Building big leads,with timely hitting from Adam Lind, Travis Snider and Marco Scutaro (?) and letting the bullpen do its job, they managed to win 2 of 3 from the Indians.

After leaving Cleveland the Jays traveled to Minnesota and took 3 of 4 from the Twins. The Jays romp through the AL Central was complete. The offense was once again the driving force, scoring 31 runs in 4 games. The pitching didn't disappoint either behind great starts from the young staff. If it wasn't for the Florida Marlins and the openings of both of the new New York stadiums people might be talking about the Jays.

The Jays made it back home for a 3 game stint against their first opponent from another division, the Oakland A's. The Athletics are a young team, both pitching and hitting wise. Although they have potential to compete for the AL West title, they won't be able to keep up a close to .500 record with the offence playing like it is (3 home runs so far this season) and the Jays took advantage. Behind strong starts from Ricky Romero and Brian Tallet the Jays took 2 of 3 from the A's.

So, that's where the Toronto Blue Jays sit a couple of weeks into the season, the best record in the American League, leading in almost every offensive category, but can they keep it up? The real tests are around the corner and they need all the wins possible against the teams they are "supposed" to beat to have a chance in a division where 95 wins might not get you into the playoffs.

As we get deeper into the season, fans will begin to expect more from the young Blue Jays team and if the young hitters like Lind and Snider can continue their torrid pace and the pitching staff holds opponents down, things like being ranked sixth in the SI.com power rankings might not seem so surprising.

North Carolina Raise Up!

In case you missed all the action last night between basketball, baseball and the replay of the Shanghai GP - Donald Trump crowed the new Miss USA from Planet Hollywood last night.

I think the Miss California owned the crown until her answer during question period. Don't try and be to PC...ughhh...

check out all the highlights

Snack of the Day

For those of you who are starving, waiting for the next Snack of the Day, don't fear...this is a good one.

Since I will be attending the baseball game you need to eat, the challenge - 9 beers, 9 hot dogs in 9 innings.

Has any one ever done it? Would anyone ever try it?

The gauntlet has been laid down...

Random Weekend Thoughts

Some random thoughts for a Saturday afternoon...

1. Going to my first Jays game of the year tomorrow afternoon. Certain to see the following things a) Jays score at least 5 runs b) give up at least 5 runs c) 10K fans there early to get the Lyle Overbay bobblehead d) at least one A's fan heckling Rios on his poor start (me).

2. NBA playoffs start today. Some good first round match-ups, like Boston vs. Chicago, San Antonio vs. Dallas and Portland vs. Houston, but for the most part this is going to be three rounds of basketball to end up seeing the LA Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers in the finals. These have been the two best teams all season and seeing any other teams in the finals would be a travesty. If you are so inclined to put money on someone - the Lakers have my support on experience, some better support players and Kobe needing a championship to secure his legacy. LeBron still has time.

3. NHL playoffs started earlier this week. Lots of cuts, bruises and beards will be seen on Canadian TV over the next couple of months. Not really sure who are the favourites because hockey seems to be the one sport where upsets can happen in 7 game series based on the play of one player (the goalie). My hope is that two Canadian teams make the finals and Gino Reda's head explodes.

4. Canada qualifies for the World Cup of Cricket. Not sure what this says about our amateur athletics system when we can qualify for a world cup event without a professional league in the country or even any infrastructure for the sport in the country. On the other hand you have sport like soccer, which is played by more kids than any other sport and a semi-pro and professional leagues and we cannot qualify for the world cup or even hire a coach. The Canada Soccer Association has hired another interim coach in Stephen Hart. Who knows what comes next for the CSA, but they need to make a decision on a coach who can ensure qualification for 2014 world cup while our talent (DeRosario and Guzman) can still able to play at high level.

5. The Buffalo Bills - who are you?? The Bills made two major moves in the last couple of days. First they traded Pro Bowl Tackle Jason Peters to the Philadelphia Eagles for multiple draft picks including a first round pick this year. Peters made the Pro Bowl last year on reputation only. He held out and missed training camp and then was out of shape and out of position most of the season. A good player, but is replaceable on the Bills o-line. The second move was the signing of free agent running back Dominic Rhodes. Rhodes will prove to be a valuable addition. Able to be the featured back during the three game suspension of Marshawn Lynch to start the season and then will be the third down back when Lynch returns. This will continue to make Fred Jackson a valuable piece in small doses.

Visit "MMMMBLT Stadium"

With the economy what it is, you knew we were eventually going to get to this...I just wished I lived near Rochester to take advantage of this promo. Okay, don't really want to live near Rochester...(h/t Deadspin)

Welcome to "Your Name Here Stadium"

Raptors Season In Review

The 2008-09 season was supposed to be a banner year for the Toronto Raptors. After finishing with a .500 record in 2007-08 and going out in the first round of the playoffs, GM Bryan Colangelo made a couple of dramatic off-season moves to try and improve the franchise.

The biggest move being the acquisition of Jermaine O’Neal from the Indiana Pacers for TJ Ford. O’Neal was going to provide the inside presence the Raptors have so desperately needed and by trading Ford, the team anointed Jose Calderon as the starting point guard. As we will see, unfortunately, these moves didn’t pay off.

The Raptors started off well, opening the season 3-0, but quickly fell to 8-9 and the axe fell on coach Sam Mitchell. Assistant coach Jay Triano was named the interim head coach and has been in that position all season. Triano wasn’t able to right the sinking ship and the Raptors fell further and further down the standings in the Eastern Conference.

With the trade deadline looming and Colangelo looking to shake things up, he decided to deal his big off-season acquisition Jermaine O’Neal and energetic 7th man Jamario Moon to the Miami Heat for another former all-star Shawn Marion and back-up guard Marcus Banks.

The trade deadline move excited the fan base, but it was short lived. Losing streaks became longer, and back-to-back wins were non-existent. Raptor players looked dejected on the court, playing without energy or passion for extended periods of time. They were not doing the fundamentals like rebounding and scoring in the paint. The team was settling for jump shots and three-pointers, and when they weren’t falling, losses in the double digits became more common. The tendency to settle for outside shots contributed to not only big losses, but also games where they had big leads and let opponents back into the game or outright lost because of poor shooting and the lack of ability to rebound

The Raptors have managed to finish the season on a positive note, winning seven games in a row, before losing to the Knicks on April 5 to break their win streak and officially knock them out of the playoff race. During the win streak, the Raptors got the performances from key pieces (Chris Bosh, Andrea Bargnani, Shawn Marion and Jose Calderon) that they were expecting all season long. In the last game of the year to avoid the 50 loss mark, the Raptors came out against a Chicago Bulls team that needed the win and put in the performance that so many in Raptor nation were looking for all year long. Now the wait is on for the draft lottery and off-season moves to re-work a team that will look to make the playoffs in 2009-10.

Individual Report Card:
Jay Triano: B Triano did the best he could with the talent he was given and has proved he can coach at the NBA level. The Raptors should consider bringing him back because as we have seen in so many situations, consistency pays off (see Jazz, Utah).

Chris Bosh: B- Coming off his performances in the Olympics, Raptor fans had high hopes and he performed extremely well until December. Chants of MVP where even heard at the Air Canada Centre. Come January when the losses started to mount, Bosh began to sulk and couldn’t carry the team in the same manner. He needs to rest, meet with management and come out firing next season.

Andrea Bargnani: B+ Andrea looked more like a top pick towards the end of the season and he needs to continue his development, especially if the Raptors trade Bosh.

Jose Calderon: C Aside from his record breaking free throw percentage, Calderon struggled this season. His defense lacked and without someone to threaten his playing time like TJ Ford, his performance seemed average as opposed to above average when coming off the bench.

Shawn Marion: Incomplete Marion showed he still has some game left, but not sure the Raptors will want to offer him a contract for 2009-10. Younger, cheaper players will be able to fill his role just as well.

Joey Graham: C Hardworking, role player who demonstrated he can rebound and attack the rim if given a chance. Would take him back as the number 8 or 9 man in the rotation.

Anthony Parker: D Often playing against the other teams best player, he sometime struggled on defense. Took lots of outside shots and the threat of him leaving after the season to return to Israel, looks more and more like a possibility.

Jason Kapono: D An outside shooter who doesn’t or isn’t allowed to take outside shots, and couldn’t win the one contest that was designed for him (3pt shootout). Disappointing year and one of many parts that will probably be let go.

Pops Mensah-Bonsu: C- Brought energy when on the court with monster dunks and rebounding, but is not ready for prime time just yet. The Raptors need better offensive players, rather than energy coming off the bench.

Roko Ukic: D- Didn’t want to fail anyone despite the 49 loss season, but he came close. Ukic might have the skills to be a back-up point guard one day, unfortunately for the Raptors it isn’t yet and that let the team and Calderon down.

None of the following players make the grade because they didn’t see the court enough and won’t be around next year to get a grade either. Although Voskuhl still might be the best 12th man in the NBA and Humphries is unlucky due to his knee injury.

Jake Voskuhl
Marcus Banks
Patrick O’Bryant
Nathan Jawai
Kris Humphries
Quincy Douby

Live From Augusta National

Well, not really live because that would get my badge revoked, it is a day later and I have had time to reflect on my experience at Augusta National...

In previous year's, patrons could enter the grounds from a main gate (gate 3) on Washington Rd., this year, that gate has been closed to assist with traffic flow, now you must enter off to the side. Eventually you end up in the same area, near the first tee, eighteenth green and the LARGE souvenir shop.

I arrived in the middle of the afternoon and patrons were already scattered all over the grounds. To embrace my Canadian roots, I decided to find Mike Weir. He was at the 4th, but I wasn't able to catch him until the 7th. I planted myself behind the 7th green and waited for him to arrive. It was a great view as players hit their second shot at the green. The 7th is protected by bunkers in front and behind and to see players hit shots short, long or within feet of the pin was outstanding.

After Weir arrived at the 7th green and I saw him two putt, I walked over to 8 to see him tee off. A perfect shot right down the middle of the fairway. As I walked down the fairway in stride with Weir, I passed numerous other Canucks who were doing the same excursion. Whether it was a Winnipeg Blue Bombers hat, a Team Canada baseball jersey from the recent World Baseball Classic or eight fans all wearing Canada hats and bright red t-shirts, you knew who was from North of the border. As Weir approached the 8th green his shot went to the left, and I was able to watch him chip on perfectly. Instead of watching him putt out, I got in position to see him tee off on the 9th hole.

Since Weir didn't have as big of a gallery as Mickelson or Woods, I was able to get in position right on the rope, directly behind the tee box. It was pretty cool to watch as these professionals went through their routine, set up and then let it rip down the middle of the fairway.

First to tee up in this group was Imaya, he hit his to the right, probably about 260 yards. Then Weir teed it up and hit a low line drive down the middle of the fairway. Following him was Padraig Harrington. The big Irishman hit a towering drive down the middle which looked to out hit both Imaya and Weir by about 30 yards. As we walked down the fairway with Weir, he munched on a sandwich and we realized he was only about 5 yards behind Harrington. Very different shots, almost exactly the same result. Before the second shot from the fairway, Imaya was taking his sweet time lining up his shot, after they had all hit, Harrington took his divot and threw it at Imaya in jest, but letting him know that he needs to pick up the pace.

After seeing all three golfers hit on to the green, I moved to the concession stands to get some liquid refreshment. Seeing everyone walk around with the souvenir cups, I decided to get one for myself. $1.50 later I had my cup full of lemonade. With beverage in hand, I went to 18th green to watch the players finish their round. Saw the finishing shots of Ian Woosnam, Paul Casey and Ross Fisher among others. A nice tradition among the players as they were finishing was they would give their ball to the kids along the ropes, and Woosnam's caddie even gave out several golf gloves, towels - I think he was just tired of carrying around the 40lbs bag.

Augusta National is a beautiful course. The colours are vibrant, the grass is lush and the grounds are immaculate. Once you step foot in the gates you can understand why it is so revered.

Tee it Up!

Always a sure sign of spring is the opening round of the Masters in Augusta, Georgia. If you are from a northern province, it is more like summer instead of spring, 23 and sunny was the weather today.

The day started with the opening of the ropes at about 7:30am and all the patrons rushed to their favourite spots. Then at approx. 7:54am Arnold Palmer teed it off for the appreciative crowds. Of the early groupings there were some low scores, that were due to favourable pin placements and no wind on the course. As the afternoon progressed the winds picked up, and affected scores a little, but some golfers managed to tame Augusta National all the same.

The clubhouse leader after day 1 is Chad Campbell. Campbell carded a seven under 65. He started his round with 5 straight birdies, then had another 4 straight on the back nine before bogeying 17 and 18. Former Canadian Open champion Jim Furyk is tied for second with Hunter Mahan at -6. Furyk finished strong birding 4 of the last 5 holes.

The other notables including Canadian Mike Weir, Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh and defending champion Trevor Immelman are all still in the hunt anywhere from 5 to 6 shots back.

Other story lines of the day included the incredibly slow play and the large crowds. Instead of the normal 4 hour rounds, players were going from first tee to the clubhouse in just over 5 hours. This led to some fears that play might be called for darkness, which would have been the first time ever, not due to other weather (rain, lighting) related problems. Hopefully speed increases for the remaining rounds, otherwise patrons will need a third application of sunscreen. The fans roaming the course today were shoulder to shoulder which is a good sign since there had been a lot of talk in the media about a, down year on the secondary market for ticket sales due to the slumping US economy. It did not seem to be the case on Thursday. The real test will be Friday (Good Friday) and Sunday (Easter Sunday) to see if the crowd is still 10 deep around the 18th green.

Although the prediction did not make it to paper before Round 1 commenced, my pick to wear the green jacket on Sunday is Tim Clark. He is going to break the curse of the Par 3 Tournament (no one to win the par 3 tourney has ever won the Masters), and that will be the first curse breaking of many this year - think Billy Goat.

UCONN Basketball

An impressive feat was accomplished last night, and I'm not talking about my consumption of 12 Krystal Burgers, the UCONN Women's basketball team won the NCAA championship in St. Louis by crushing their Big East rival Louisville Cardinals for the third time this season.

Louisville wasn't the only team UCONN destroyed on their way to the championship, they won 39 other games - in a row. They finished the season 39-0, becoming only the 5th women's team to go undefeated in a season. Although finishing the season 39-0 is pretty good, apparently that wasn't enough for the UCONN ladies. They won every game during the season by 10+ points. If that isn't dominance, not sure what is.

Take that UNC Tar Heels...

Enjoyable/Aggravating Travel Note

Now I understand what Peter King means when he writes his enjoyable/aggravating travel note of the week.

It is not like a travel all that often, and when I do, it is normally with someone else that I know or the plane has entertainment...well not yesterday.

The first thing is the no entertainment on the plane. If JetBlue can put TVs in every headrest, why can't the bigger carriers? If you aren't going to give me my own personal TV, then at least have a screen for everyone to enjoy the pre-packaged entertainment. I understand it is a shorter flight (2 hours), but that still gives me plenty of time to watch a couple of Seinfeld episodes.

My seat mates on these flights were both rather normal, one put in ear plugs as soon as he sat down which indicated to me he didn't wish to converse. Halfway through the flight though he begins to talk to me, but I am still not sure he heard my answers. The other was returning from Costa Rica and was catching the same connection. He had some good tales about his time in Costa Rica, but was a tad grumpy, since on his previous flight he was seated next to a teenager who coughed for 4 straight hours. The parents didn't once acknowledge their child to ensure he wasn't going to die and no one offered him drinks, cough drops or even gum. Then on our flight, we were lucky enough to be seated 3 rows infront of the screaming baby. Joy!

If I had to say something was enjoyable about my travel yesterday, it was that my luggage was the first piece to come out onto the conveyor belt. One and done!

NCAA Championship

Since I was correct last week in predicting a MSU vs. UNC final, I think it is my right to be able to predict the winner of the final. As I did last week, I am sticking with my prediction of UNC. For no other reason than they are the better team.

When the championship is on the line, all the other factors, home court, loud fans, Ty Lawson gambling at the Greektown casino's - they don't matter anymore. The line is 7.5 points in favour of UNC and if I were a gambling man, they would get my money. Not just because they have already beaten MSU by 30 points earlier this year, or because UNC is playing some of the most dominant basketball in recent memory - it is because this tournament has been BORING. There have only been a handful of close games, only a couple of upsets and this trend will continue in the finals. UNC will hand MSU their lunch and claim the title for Chapel Hill

Cutler to the Bears

After the story broke earlier this week that the Denver Broncos were going to trade QB Jay Cutler many suitors lined up to present an offer. It did not take long for the Broncos to find the offer they liked. Chicago is the new home of Jay Cutler. The Bears needed to pony up two first round picks (2009 & 2010), a third rounder in 2009 and their starting QB from last season Kyle Orton to land Cutler and revive the Bears in a competitive NFC.

The Chicago Bears have been a franchise without a Pro Bowl quaterback since Jim McMahon led them to the Super Bowl in 1985. The acquisition of Cutler gives their fan base hope that they are moving in the right direction. Is it the right direction though?

Kyle Orton was the starting QB for two seasons in Chicago and leaves with a career 21-12 record. During his tenure he didn’t receive much help from playmakers on offence, as exemplified by his two leading receivers in 2008 being his rookie running back Matt Forte and tight end Gregg Olson. He was never given a big name receiver to work with, someone who could make the difficult catch in traffic or the big play in a crucial situation. Jay Cutler is walking into the same situation.

The Bears are still without a big play receiver for Cutler to get the ball to. Without someone to catch for him, it will be difficult to put up the kind of lofty numbers he did last season in Denver (4500+ yds and 25 td passes). By not making a play for a receiver during free agency and trading away their first round selection (where they were in line to pick a WR), the Bears offense will be limited in their play calling. Unless a young receiver like Rashied Davis can develop or Devin Hester can turn from a specialist to a full time receiver and not a gimmick playmaker, Cutler is likely to get frustrated with the system. Cutler will soon feel Orton’s pain, and Orton gets to reap the rewards of a new situation.

Kyle Orton walks into a situation in Denver with a QB genius for a coach, some young and talented offensive weapons (Marshall, Royal, Tatum Bell and Mike Bell) and a team with two high draft picks that will most likely be used to upgrade the defensive side of the ball, which had failed to deliver during Cutler’s tenure (Cutler was 13-1 in games where the Broncos surrendered 21 points or less). Although, Orton hasn’t filled the stat pages during his time in Chicago, he is being given a much better opportunity to do so in Denver.

While the Bears may reap the rewards of this trade long term as Cutler seems to be a better weapon, the Broncos will not struggle with Orton behind center and two high draft picks in the weaker AFC West.

Random Thoughts and Musings

Random thoughts to finish off an interesting hump day/April Fool's day...

1. Jay Cutler and the Broncos soap opera. The Broncos have now publicly come out and said that they will trade their quarterback as he and the new coach Josh McDaniel can't get along after McDaniel tried to trade Cutler a month ago to acquire Matt Cassel. Cutler will get his wish and leave the franchise that has wronged him. Now it is just a matter of what team will acquire him. A couple of teams have already made inquiries about the pivot and it is thinking that a second round pick will get him. The teams in the running include the New York Jets, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, San Francisco 49ers Jacksonville Jaguars and Cleveland Browns according to the Sporting News.

2. John Calipari is ditching the University of Memphis basketball program for some bluegrass. He is going to take over the troubled University of Kentucky program which lost in the elite eight of the NIT tournament. Callipari is a loud coach who demands attention and if gets Kentucky and their superfan Ashley Judd back on TV I am okay with this hire.

3. TFC is off to a good start in the 2009 season. They won their opener in Kansas City and then tied the defending champions Columbus Crew 1-1 in Columbus. The only negative from the game was a small riot after the game that lead to an arrest of a TFC fan and another fan being tasered. They open the 2009 home on Saturday vs. the expansion Seattle Sounders. GO REDS!

4. Finally some new music for 2009. The man with the most alias ever DOOM has released his new album Born Like This. Not sure how to classify his rap or songs except that they are chopped, quick hitting and raw. He has some great collaborations on the album with appearances by Ghostface Killah and Slug. Support good music...

5. Can anyone stop Tiger Woods? Arnold Palmer and his course couldn't do it and neither could the largest final day deficit of his career. He finished it off with a huge birdie putt. You can't really bet against him when the Masters kicks off on April 9. If you have the choice between Tiger or the Field, how do you really take the field?

5. Don't forget to go read the latest bleacher report article and vote for who you think is the greatest jays pitcher of all time.