By Brendan Loy

MERRY BARKLEYMAS, FELLOW TROJANS!!!!!

The arm of Matt Barkley shall throw in the Coliseum — one last time. FELL DEEDS AWAKE! Now for wrath, now for ruin, and a cardinal dawn!

FORTH TROJANLINGAS!!!

By Brendan Loy

The official trailer for The Hobbit debuted today. OMG OMG OMG:

By Brendan Loy

Today, the NCAA announced Ohio State’s sanctions for Tresselgate. They are, of course, far less severe than USC’s sanctions, despite the misconduct having been indisputably more widespread, with higher university officials (like, I don’t know, THE HEAD COACH) having been undeniably more directly responsible for what occurred.

Asked to comment, USC athletic director Pat Haden demurred: “My job is to move on. Not going to compare it.”

Here’s what Haden should have said:

Good afternoon. Today, the NCAA announced that it is imposing a 1-year bowl ban, and a reduction of 9 scholarships over 3 years, on Ohio State’s football program. These penalties resulted from an investigation which found that five football players had sacrificed their amateur status, sold merchandise illicitly, and taken illegal benefits from boosters within the Columbus community, and that head coach Jim Tressel knew about this, lied about it to the NCAA, and covered up his role, in large part so that the ineligible athletes could continue to compete for Ohio State, including in the 2010 Sugar Bowl.

As you know, USC is presently serving a 2-year bowl ban, and is about to suffer a reduction of 30 scholarships over 3 years, as a result of the NCAA’s findings that a single football player took illegal benefits, in San Diego, from a would-be agent. The NCAA found that USC had not adequately monitored this athlete’s activities or those of the agent, and had lacked institutional control in that the university “should have known” what was occurring, because “high-profile athletes require high-profile monitoring.” Crucially, however, the NCAA found no proof of actual knowledge by the school, still less of coaches or other university employees lying to the NCAA or engaging in a coverup.

We are gratified that, by imposing lesser penalties on Ohio State for what are indisputably more serious infractions that those committed in the USC case, the NCAA has tacitly acknowledged that its penalties against USC were far too harsh. It is unfortunate that the NCAA did not come to this realization sooner, such as when we appealed for a reduction in the penalties. However, the NCAA has obviously, if belatedly, realized its mistake, and for that we are grateful. All of college athletics is better off when the punishment for a given infraction fits the crime, as in the Ohio State case, rather than being grossly excessive, as in the USC case.

In light of these developments, we look forward to receiving an explicit statement of acknowledgement and apology from the NCAA. We also believe, although our appeals process has been exhausted, that a discretionary decision by the NCAA to reduce our scholarship penalties would be appropriate. But in any case, we are grateful that the mistakes made by the NCAA in our case will not be repeated going forward, and other schools will not suffer similarly unreasonable penalties to the ones we were given.

Thank you for your time.

But alas.

For the record, I’m genuinely glad Ohio State didn’t get hit harder. The fact that USC got royally screwed — a fact that cannot now seriously be disputed — is no reason to royally screw everyone else, too. That flies in the face of the concept of “precedent,” of course, but I’m looking at the bigger picture here. We can’t be giving Ohio State a three- or four-year ban, Miami the death penalty, and Penn State…what the hell would you give Penn State? No, we can’t do that, not if we want college sports to continue.

What should happen is an explicit renunciation of the USC ruling — the precedent being wiped off the books with an apology, a cancellation of the as-yet unserved sanctions, mass resignations from the Committee on Infractions, and a criminal investigation of Paul Dee (okay, kidding, I’m sure he’s done nothing criminal, but dammit, I can dream). That won’t happen, of course, because of the NCAA operates like a third-world kleptocracy, and third-world kleptocrats can never acknowledge that they were wrong about anything — it’s right there in the third-world kleptocrat handbook! So the USC ruling will remain on the books, a “widows & orphans” case that will never be used as precedent for anything, and USC fans will forever (or at least for the next decade or so) be pissed off when new rulings come out that are plainly unjustifiable when compared to our sanctions. That’s just how it’s gonna have to be, folks.

Meanwhile, I extend my sincere sympathies to any Buckeye fans who might be reading this. You’ll see no schadenfreude from this corner. It sucks to be you today. I know. I remember. But take heart: you’ll be back. Today is the low point. So fly your colors proudly today, as I did when USC’s sanctions were announced. Take your medicine, but have pride in your school. Tomorrow, the sun will rise. And Urban Meyer will still be your coach, you bastards. :)

By Brendan Loy

As noted in my post announcing Jacob Sommer as the winner of the LRT college football regular season Pick ‘em Contest, it’s bowl season, and that means it’s time for the 7th annual Living Room Times Bowl Pick ‘em Contest! The contest is now underway. Instructions for entering after the jump.

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By Brendan Loy

Jacob Sommer (@jasommer) of Washington, D.C., a.k.a. “The Commodore” a.k.a. “Irish DC,” won the 3rd annual Living Room Times College Football Pick ‘em Contest, finishing with a 298-87 prediction record (.774) and defeating Christopher Enger (@fuegote) of Harriman, UT, who went 296-89 (.769).

Enger missed just two games this past weekend, the Conference USA and ACC title games. If he had predicted the mild upsets by Southern Miss and Clemson, he would have won the pool on a tiebreaker, with a perfect final week. Instead, he finishes two points behind Sommer (who also missed the ACC and C-USA games, plus Texas-Baylor).

Jeff Freeze (@bigfreezer) of Burns Harbor, Indiana finished in a third-place tie with “FIGHT ON! CREW” (real identity unknown), with 294 points. Freeze was actually the last person mathematically alive to defeat Sommer in the contest: if Michigan State and Oklahoma had won their prime-time games on Saturday night, Freeze would have tied Sommer on points and beaten him in a tiebreaker. But of course, that didn’t even come close to happening. Although MSU was just barely edged by Wisconsin, OU was utterly demolished by Oklahoma State. The Cowboys’ Bedlam blowout didn’t quite earn them a trip to the BCS title game, but it did clinch the pool victory for Sommer.

That said, Freeze may have squandered his realistic chance to win last week, when he inadvertently failed to make picks for the first five Friday games (“#toomuchturkey,” he tweeted yesterday), thus got all five games “wrong.” That knocked him out of what had been a first-place tie with Sommer. Had he gotten at least 4 of those 5 unpicked games right, he would have won the pool. The favored team won 4 of the 5 games.

This was the second straight Living Room Times college football contest that ended with Freeze losing at the wire. He would have won last year’s Bowl Pick ‘em Contest if Oregon had beaten Auburn; instead, Randy Styles won.

Speaking of Bowl Pick ‘em, it’s that time of year — the 7th annual Living Room Times Bowl Pick ‘em Contest will soon be underway! I’m just waiting for OfficeFootballPool.com to post the matchups. Stay tuned!

Anyway, after the jump are the final standings of the weekly regular season Pick ‘em contest…

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By Brendan Loy

UCLA sucks. That is all.

P.S. Enjoy your Pac-12 South “championship”! Have fun at Autzen! HAHAHAHAHA

By Brendan Loy

Last night, while most sports fans in Denver were watching some guy named Tebow lead his team to another improbable comeback, I was at Magness Arena, watching the DU Pioneers knock off Conference USA’s Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles, 59-52. Here’s my full 800 Games Project write-up of the game, over at the Mid-Majority. Excerpt:

Denver’s offense…showed flashes of brilliance that were rarities last season. … Rob Lewis was brilliant, reminding everyone why Denver missed him so much last year, as was sophomore Chris Udofia. Denver’s aggressiveness and ability to get points inside — against a bigger, more athletic team — was a welcome surprise, and one of the big stories of the game. The Pios were “only” 4-for-10 from #superhoop range, doing more of their scoring than usual from 2-point land and the free-throw line. …

Udofia and Lewis led the way with 23 and 15 points, respectively, including a number of beautiful layups resulting from excellent, well-executed offensive sets. … Udofia also produced the unquestioned play of the game, and probably of Denver’s young season, when he blocked a shot…then fielded a fast-break pass from Brett Olson (who had retrieved the ball after the block) and slammed it home for 2 points on the other end. As I tweeted immediately afterward: “OMG OMG OMG … CHRIS UDOFIA WITH THE #OMGSTUFFZ FOLLOWED IMMEDIATELY BY THE #OMGDUNX that was awesome … Udofia block, fast break, gets ball back, dunks it. I present to the @midmajority / @800GP community a new term… the #OMGSTUFFDUNX!” …

The victory was effectively sealed on a Pioneers offensive possession that started with 55 seconds to go, Denver up 5. Southern Miss chose not to foul, but tried instead to pressure the Pioneers into a turnover. Denver patiently played keep-away, but the signature moment came with 15 on the shot clock, when freshman O’Neale fielded a pass just outside the three-point line, and found himself staring at a completely empty path to the basket. It was an Ali Farokhmanesh moment, and you could tell he was sorely tempted to try for the “dagger” superhoop. (He was 2-for-4 from three-point land on the night.) But he literally shook his head no, as if settling the debate between the angel and devil on his shoulder, and instead passed the ball to Travis Hallam. Seconds later, Lewis got open under the basket, Hallam passed it to him for an easy layup with 5 on the shot clock, and it was a 57-50 game with 25 seconds left. Game, set, match, Red Line Upset.

Read the whole thing.

Denver is now 3-0. The Pioneers’ next game is at home Wednesday against mid-major powerhouse St. Mary’s. Then they hit the road to face Cal, ranked in the Top 25 nationally, and Utah State, another mid-major power. It’s very possible DU will be 3-3 after those games, but even if so, this has been a very successful start to the season.

[Cross-posted from Mile High Mids.]

[Cross-posted from Pioneer Pulse.]

By Brendan Loy

Although inevitably overshadowed by the excitement of college and pro football season, the horror of the child-rape and coverup calamity at Penn State, the seemingly endless drama of conference realignment, and the “nuclear winter” of the NBA, something wonderful has happened in the last week or so: college basketball season started. It actually tipped off on Monday, kicked into high gear Friday and Saturday, and is announcing its presence today with ESPN’s 24-hour marathon. Live chat here.

So, today seems like a good time to mention that I’m not continuing Pioneer Pulse this season. Instead, I’ve started up a new Tumblr blog, Mile High Mids, where I’ll be blogging about both Denver and Northern Colorado hoops (and occasionally about other mid-majors and basketball-related topics). I will probably cross-post or link MHM posts here on the LRT occasionally, but generally I decided to keep the blogs separate, in part because it’s technically easier, and in part because this blog has become so quasi-dormant that it would be completely overrun by basketball from November through March if I blogged about hoops here. Anyway, in addition to the new blog, my @PioneerPulse Twitter account is now @MileHighMids. So follow me there if you like college hoops, and bookmark Mile High Mids.

By the way… Denver is 2-0. Yay!

By Becky Loy

Homemade laundry soap is wonderful if you’re frugal and/or if you have eczema. Compared to about $.14/load for something like All Free and Clear, you can make your own soap for less than $.01/load. And unlike many other so-called easy, frugal solutions, this one rates low for the pain-in-the-ass factor.

You need four things to make your own soap: a 5-gallon bucket, washing soda, borax and Fels Naptha soap. You can also use Zote soap or something equivalent.

Grate the Fels Naptha and put it in a saucepan.

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By Brendan Loy

Here’s Amelia Hamilton (@AmeliaHammy), the queen of 11:11 tweets. I made sure to be sitting near her at BlogCon for the big moment — 11:11:11 on 11/11/11. :)

Screenshot:

By Brendan Loy

If anyone else in Denver feels a disturbance in the Force this evening, it’s probably caused by the arrival of a bunch of conservative bloggers and tweeters from around the nation, descending on our fair city for BlogCon 2011, a two-day conference sponsored by the Tea Party-supporting political group FreedomWorks.

A bunch of long-time online friends and acquaintances who I’ve never met in person are coming to BlogCon, from my “blog wife” Melissa Clouthier, to voice-of-reason righty Matthias Shapiro, to the conservative twittersphere’s id, Kurt Schlichter, among many others. And so, because I wanted to meet all these people, I’m going too!

I may not share much politically with these folks, but I like a lot of them, and I think it’ll be fun to hang out and chat and network…plus, it was free to sign up…so I’m taking most of the day and attending BlogCon, where I’ll be the lonely liberal/left-centrist in a room full of conservatives. Occupy BlogCon! :)

Below, for posterity, a CoverItLive window importing all tweets from everyone on the official BlogCon Twitter list, plus any tweets using the hashtags #BlogCon, #BlogCon11, or #BlogCon2011.

NOTE: I previously referred to FreedomWorks as being “Koch-affiliated.” I now understand that’s not really true. The Koch Brothers founded FreedomWorks’ predecessor group, but then there was a schism over Koch funding, and some hard feelings remain. Anyway, FreedomWorks gets no Koch money, nor has any direct Koch ties. Doesn’t really matter to me, as a “Koch-agnostic.” The point is, it’s a conservative group. :)

Oh, and by the way… Happy 11/11/11!

By B. Minich

In the last few years as a Penn State fan, I had one main fear: that somehow, Joe Paterno’s tenure at Penn State University would end in ignomy. Penn State fans like myself had prided themselves on the lack of scandal at the program: seemingly the last football program without one. It seemed too good to last. And as Paterno’s role at Penn State changed from intimate involvement to overseer, I feared that something would escape him, a scandal that he would fail to notice would envelop the program, forever tarnishing the legacy a man who had done many great things for Penn State and college football.

I am saddened to discover that my fears have come true. And this isn’t a “scandal” in the lame NCAA sense, where some kids drove cars around when they shouldn’t have because the NCAA has stupid rules. No, this scandal is the worst thing ever to happen to a college football program. We’ve all been shocked and saddened by the allegations that young boys were molested by a former Penn State coordinator. The crimes are heinous. And the repercussions are only beginning.

Many columnists have written what they think should happen to those who let this abhorrent crime continue on their watch. And I had opinions on it as well. But those are moot now, for Paterno has been fired. The post-Paterno world that all Penn State fans knew was coming is here. In a way that even the most pessimistic believed was impossible.

I’m saddened. Saddened because of what happened to so many young boys. Saddened that more wasn’t done to prevent this. And also saddened that Paterno’s legacy will be remembered this way. Saddened that people will forget what he contributed to education, to civil rights, to the community of State College, PA.

A tweet from the Macworld writer Jason Snell says it well: “It’s a crying shame that this is how Joe Paterno’s career ends. But it had to be done, and he brought it on himself.”

By David K.

A shake-up at the top of the BCS rankings could benefit the Pac-12, but there was plenty of shake-up to go around here at home too. Meanwhile, Larry Scott and the Pac-12 watch with amusement as the rest of the country is in the grips of the latest rounds of Conferencemageddon.

1. Stanford (7-0, 5-0 Pac-12)
LW: 1
The Cardinal made a strong statement on Saturday with their pummeling of the Huskies, the only team on their schedule so far who has a winning record. Stanford dominated on both sides of the ball, especially up front. As they continue moving through the meatier part of their schedule, the Cardinal can help themselves in the BCS standings with wins while hoping more teams at the top stumble. With games left against USC and Oregon, plus the Pac-12 championship game (likely against Arizona State), Stanford stands a reasonable shot at playing for the national title.

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By Brendan Loy

Wow, it’s been more than two weeks since I blogged anything?!? Not counting my November 2008-June 2009 hiatus, that has to be a record dating back to 2002, no? Anyway, sorry, I’ve been really busy, and what free time I’ve had for the Interwebs has been going toward Twitter instead.

But look! A pretty picture of Notre Dame Stadium at night! (And here’s a panorama!) This past weekend, as a 30th birthday present from the Best. Wife. Ever., I returned to Notre Dame for the first time since graduation, and attended the USC-ND night game (sitting in the USC section this time). It was a glorious weekend in all respects. And despite the perhaps slightly inflammatory t-shirt I wore to the game…

…I was otherwise on my best behavior, and more than anything else, spent the weekend (aside from tailgating and the game) soaking in Notre Dame, indeed posting so many #LoveTheeNotreDame tweets that David felt compelled to express some #PANIC and to remind me who I was rooting for. Heh. He needn’t have worried; my rooting interest was never in doubt. But I do love Notre Dame, and it was wonderful to be back, if only for a couple of days. It’s hard to express this sentiment adequately without sounding like a complete sap, but it’s a very special place, and I missed it more than I realized.

The trip “woke up the echoes” of what almost feels like a completely different life, even though it ended only 4 1/2 years ago, because upon leaving Notre Dame, I not only entered the “real world” but also promptly started having kids, such that my time under the Dome is now something akin to a distant, long-ago dream. Being back was almost like an out-of-body experience. (It also made me really, really look forward to the day — in 3 or 4 years, perhaps — when we go back for a game, not against USC, with all three girls, and do the whole “Notre Dame football weekend” thing as a family. Can’t. Wait.)

Oh, and also, I stopped in Chicago on Thursday night, crashed at Kyle Whelliston’s place, and met the original Bally. So there was that.

So anyway, back to the Notre Dame part of my trip. As you may have heard, USC, which came in as a 9-point underdog, won the game. So that was awesome. Fight On!

Go Irish, Beat Navy! Fight On Trojans, Beat the Farm Drunken Trees!

By Brendan Loy

Last night, inspired by the generally unsatisfying, incomplete, and often vacuous nature of the tweets I keep seeing from both Left and Right about the “Occupy Wall Street” movement and the ongoing economic calamity — and also by this National Review article, among other big-picture economic pieces I’ve read recently — I went on another one of my extended Twitter monologues of political pessimism and #PANIC. Before it disappears into the nothingness of Twitter’s terrible archive system, I thought I’d post it here for posterity. Warning: some profanity.

Ken Gardner (@kesgardner): America is exceptional and I cherish the system that makes us so: capitalism. I like working hard and being rewarded for it. #iamthe53

Me: Do you like the stagnation in real wages since 1973? #iamconcerned MT @kesgardner: I like working hard and being rewarded for it. #iamthe53

How did we collectively fail to notice that, economically, the American Dream has been moribund for decades? #IAmStagnantRealWagesSince1973

I am not the 99. I am not the 53. I am sick of rigid ideological perspectives that obscure what matters. #IAmStagnantRealWagesSince1973

I am not a number. I am worried about my girls inheriting a crappier America than mine. I am angry at failed leadership & failed ideologies.

I am angry that a broken political system, a worthless press, demagoguery, ignorance & fairy tales prevent America from fixing its problems.

I am sick of a politics dominated by rigid ideologues, Left & Right, whose misplaced self-confidence is exceeded only by their utter myopia.

I hate the inadequacy of our politics AND the sniveling self-regarding Bloombergian vacuousness of many who posture against that inadequacy.

It’s not that we need to be more “bipartisan.” Pitched battles are fine, when informed by facts & reason. The problem is WE NEED TO SOLVE SHIT.

For DECADES we’ve had an energy crisis, a health care crisis, a debt crisis… crisis after crisis. WTF happened to us? We won 2 world wars!

The American Dream was a thing once. Now it’s not, but we pretend it is. Our “leaders” tell us fairy tales while leaving our crises unsolved.

In the end, the problem isn’t Obama, or Bush, or Congress (though they all suck). The problem is us. All of us. Not Left, not Right. Us.

Or maybe the problems of the modern world are just too complex to solve. But again I go back to, DAMMIT WE WON TWO WORLD WARS.

#TeaParty and #OccupyWallStreet have more in common than they’ll ever know. They see a tiny sliver of the truth & think it’s the whole truth.

Why does our binary political system force us to choose who’s f**ing everything up, government or the private sector? What if THEY BOTH ARE?

I have three daughters. I fear they will inherit from my generation a poorer, crappier America, in decline. For this, I blame everyone.

I boldfaced that “more in common than they’ll ever know” tweet because I particularly like it. I really think that’s true. The Tea Party isn’t wrong about our unsustainable debt; they’re just wrong in their myopic focus on that one crisis among many, and in their blind adherence to rigid conservative ideology in seeking solutions to our many problems. Likewise, Occupy Wall Street isn’t wrong about financial sector greed and malfeasance and how it’s screwed us over; they’re just wrong in their myopic focus on that one cause among many for the current mess we’re in, and in their blind adherence to rigid liberal ideology in seeking solutions to our many problems.

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By David K.

I can’t remember exactly how old I was when my dad brought home the first computer I would ever use, a Mac Classic I believe, for summer from the high school where he worked. My first memory of using a computer was playing the black and white version of The Oregon Trail. Fast forward a few years and I was in school, always the first to finish my classwork so I could play Word Munchers or Number Munchers on the Apple IIe we had. I was already hooked. For the rest of my life, computers would be one of my biggest passions. I convinced my parents to get our first home computer (a lowly Performa 475) and then later to upgrade (a Performa 630). I had a subscription to MacWorld and MacAddict. I was a member of Guy Kawasaki’s Evangelist mailing list. For my 17th birthday I asked for (and got) a copy of MacOS 8 for our home computer. Even in those dark years when you were away from the company, I was an Apple fan. Thanks for coming back by the way, it got SO MUCH BETTER!

My passion followed me to college, where I had MY first Mac, a PowerMacintosh G3 tower. I even had a couple Apple posters on the walls in my dorm room. Two years later when my brother went to college he got my G3 and I upgraded to a shiny new G4 tower. From there it kept going. A G4 iMac, a G5 iMac, and my current iMac a Core2 Duo machine. I’ve owned every model of iPhone since the first one, and I use my iPad more than my desktop computer. I’ve followed the keynotes, watched the videos, and truly enjoyed using your products, so many of them ground breaking, over the years.

But I think my favorite moment relating to Apple technology happened just this summer. Earlier this spring my nephew was born, the first in a new generation of our family. He and his parents were living in Chicago at the time so it was hard for the whole family to get to see him in person, especially my elderly grandparents, whose health isn’t what it used to be. While visiting them in California this summer, someone, I can’t recall who, remarked that it was too bad we didn’t have a fast enough computer or internet connection (they still only have dial up!) to do a video chat so they could see and interact with their great grandson for the first time in something other than pictures. At that moment it hit me, we DID have a way to do it. I had my iPhone 4, and a healthy 3G connection at their house! We made the arrangements and one afternoon we got Grandma and Grandpa together in the kitchen together, made the call and then I handed them my iPhone. It was, as you would say, a truly magical moment. The joy on their faces as they saw their great grandson in action for the first time, as they talked to him, listened to him make those cute noises babies make, and saw him moving around, it was like the weight of their age lifted off their shoulders for those few minutes.

So for inspiring me to a life of passion about computers I thank you, but my biggest thanks is for helping to enable moments like the ones my grandparents were able to share with my nephew. That story and millions of others like it are the legacy you have left behind. Today we lost a true visionary, your family lost a loved one, and we all mourn for that loss, but we also celebrate the creations you have helped usher in that have changed and enriched our lives. I regret that I never had the opportunity to meet you, but even without that personal connection you have touched my life and so many others. Thank you Steve. Rest in peace.

By Brendan Loy

Apple co-founder, chairman and (until very recently) CEO Steve Jobs, whose inventions repeatedly changed the world as we know it, died today of complications from pancreatic cancer. He was 56.

His death prompted massive news coverage (totally overshadowing Sarah Palin’s decision not to run for president) and an overwhelming outpouring of public grief more typical of a head of state’s death than a corporate CEO’s. But of course, Jobs was no ordinary CEO. He was — well, I’ll let President Obama say it:

Steve was among the greatest of American innovators – brave enough to think differently, bold enough to believe he could change the world, and talented enough to do it.

By building one of the planet’s most successful companies from his garage, he exemplified the spirit of American ingenuity. By making computers personal and putting the internet in our pockets, he made the information revolution not only accessible, but intuitive and fun. And by turning his talents to storytelling, he has brought joy to millions of children and grownups alike. Steve was fond of saying that he lived every day like it was his last. Because he did, he transformed our lives, redefined entire industries, and achieved one of the rarest feats in human history: he changed the way each of us sees the world.

The world has lost a visionary. And there may be no greater tribute to Steve’s success than the fact that much of the world learned of his passing on a device he invented. Michelle and I send our thoughts and prayers to Steve’s wife Laurene, his family, and all those who loved him.

On that last point, I am one of the many who learned of Jobs’s death on an Apple device. The above screenshot was taken with my iPhone a few minutes later, but here’s a shot of the actual breaking-news moment — a push notification from my CNBC app, superimposed over the Mandel Initiative podcast, which I was listening to on my drive home:

One more reaction for you, from none other than Bill Gates:

I’m truly saddened to learn of Steve Jobs’ death. Melinda and I extend our sincere condolences to his family and friends, and to everyone Steve has touched through his work.

Steve and I first met nearly 30 years ago, and have been colleagues, competitors and friends over the course of more than half our lives. The world rarely sees someone who has had the profound impact Steve has had, the effects of which will be felt for many generations to come.

For those of us lucky enough to get to work with him, it’s been an insanely great honor. I will miss Steve immensely.

R.I.P., Steve Jobs.

P.S. Above, a more personal reflection by David K.

By David K.

The situation in the North is exactly where we left it a week ago. In the South, there has been some shuffling between the two trios of teams, but the gap between the two divisions looms larger than ever. This week, we get a slate of 5 conference match ups, while Oregon and Cal enjoy a bye week to prepare for a Thursday night matchup on the 6th.

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By Brendan Loy

The final night of Major League Baseball’s regular season was ridiculous, absurd, impossible, unbelievable, indescribable.

Thanks to a win earlier in the evening by the St. Louis Cardinals, the Atlanta Braves needed a win to force a one-game playoff for the NL wild card that they once seemed certain to win (having led by 10 1/2 games in late August). The Braves came within one out of the needed victory — only to lose in 13 innings, ending their season. And that was the undercard.

Over in the American League, the Boston Red Sox, trying to prevent the ignominy of possibly the worst September collapse in baseball history, led the lowly Orioles 3-2 heading into a 90-minute seventh-inning rain delay in Baltimore, while the Sox’s wild-card competition, the Tampa Bay Rays, trailed the mighty Yankees 7-0 in the eighth at home. Tampa and Boston had been tied for the AL wild card heading into the day, so with a Rays loss appearing all but certain, it looked like the Sox could clinch the wild card by holding on for the win, or at worst, lose and face a one-game playoff.

Then, well, several things happened.

Tampa rallied in the bottom of the eighth, scoring six runs to pull within 7-6. Then, down to their last strike in the bottom of the ninth, the Rays tied the game on a pinch-hit home run by Dan Johnson, sending the game to extra innings.

Around the same time, the Boston game resumed, with the Red Sox suddenly in a much more precarious position thanks to Tampa’s comeback. But they clung to their 3-2 lead, and got closer Jonathan Papelbon in, hoping to close it out in the bottom of the ninth. Boston, mind you, was 77-0 this season when leading after eight innings. And at first, it looked like this would be no exception. Papelbon struck out the first two batters, then allowed a double. But then he had the Orioles — stop me if this sounds familiar — down to their last strike before giving up a game-tying ground-rule double by Nolan Reimold to tie the game… followed promptly by Robert Andino’s game-winning single. 4-3, Baltimore, final.

And then, literally 3 or 4 minutes later, in Tampa… BOOM.

Unbelievable.

The Rays go to the playoffs. The Red Sox go home. As it should be, frankly. Boston didn’t deserve a playoff spot after its September choke job. And fate was clearly on Tampa’s side tonight. But man, what an unbelievably epic, horrible, wonderful, incredible, ridiculous way for it all to go down.

By Brendan Loy

President Obama is in Denver today to give a speech about his jobs plan, but apparently he — or at least his press office — are slightly confused about which rectangular-shaped state Denver is located in:

AAAH-HAHAHAHA. Hey, cut the man a break. It’s hard to keep all 57 states straight!