What the experts say . . .

Half time reports and "sports center" speculations about the 4 upcoming "big bowl games" are particularly interesting to hear . . . of course, the only one I'm really paying any attention to is the PSU - FSU match up in the Orange Bowl next Tuesday.

So far . . . they all agree . . . PSU will win this game! Most prognosticators point to Penn State defense as the principle reason for State to prevail . . . and a few have mentioned Michael Robinson. A die hard PSU fan gets the distinct impression that most of these sports announcers are jumping on the bandwagon . . . and one has to wonder just how many Penn State games they actually watched this year because they seem to be missing some other very significant PSU players who've contributed to our campaign this year . . . oh well, they'll learn some of their names before half time Tuesday!

I'm getting fired up . . .

For the record . . .

. . . she is either extremely thirsty or auditioning for our tailgate bash next Tuesday!

Contrary to recent reports . . .

This photo was not taken near my residence following the Penn State-Michigan State game! Plausible denial . . . I wear my #22 jersey at all PSU pre-game and post-game festivities!

Thoughts on the bowls . . . so far

Any time Miami gets thumped in a football game, especially a bowl game, that's a sweet treat to watch . . . LSU took 'em to the wood shed. Miami a bit over-rated this year?

It's hard to believe but so far the Big 10 schools are 0 - 3 in bowl games! For some reason I figured the likes of Northwestern, Michigan, and Minnesota would have done much better in post-season competition. Teams remaining that can help bring up the win-loss totals are Iowa, Wisconsin, Ohio State, and Penn State.

Another Honor for JoePa

Joe Paterno becomes the first coach to win the Bobby Dodd Award for a second time! The award has been around since 1976 and Joe won the award for the first time in 1981. Announced last night at half time of the Peach Bowl, Joe is this year's winner and the only coach to be a repeat winner of the award! You go Joe . . . you deserve this award!

Getting my fix of college football

I don't think I've ever enjoyed the season finale of college football games such I have this year compared to years past. Historically, I take vacation between over the Christmas holiday period and watch as many bowls as possible . . . man, that goes back to the 1960's!

What's different this year (besides my beloved Lions playing in the Orange Bowl)? Well, this year my widescreen HD television set up has a new addition . . . a DVR . . . that allows me to schedule games to be recorded and watch them at my leisure (handy, cuz there's always a honey do list that surfaces this time of year). Two features of the DVR that are proving priceless is an integrated picture-in-picture format and the ability to pause, rewind, do slow mo replays, and then catch up with the live action (great when you have dogs that want to go out during a critical offensive drive or even greater when you want to review a questionable play as many times as you want). I just love it!

Mixed thoughts . . .

Well . . . it's only a few days until the Penn State plays Florida State in the Orange Bowl and as uncharacteristic of me as ever, I find myself feeling pretty laid back about the game and don't know why. I'm fairly optomistic about a Lion victory but I haven't spent any time researching stats and following any of the press in the up to kick off.

Stocking up for the big game!

Merry Christmas

Sparkling glitter

Abbey waits for Santa . . .

Our standard Poodle, Abbey, in her Christmas get up . . . waiting patiently for Santa . . . yep, she already drank the milk and ate the cookies . . . gotta love her!

This Smithwick's Irish Ale is OK

I think I've found a rival for my adult beverage of choice (Bass Ale) . . . yep, it's another ale alright but this one is an Irish import called Smithwick's. It's brewed by the people at Guinness and it's an ale with character that finishes smooth, bottle after bottle. Priced about the same as Bass, I find myself now alternating case purchases at the local distributor. This stuff is OK . . . it ain't quite Bass in character, but it's a pleasant brew that's kind of won my heart with the way it keeps its taste if you decide to drink more than just one.

The only thing cooler were his 60's whale pants

Coach of the Year . . .

Congratulations Joe Paterno!!! Coach of the Year!!!

Early speculation . . .

Well it's official, Penn State will play Florida State in the Orange Bowl. I've been holding my breath through the weekend in hopes that some miracle might take place that would match the Lions up with a team having a better record . . . but, it was not in the cards!

Like other PSU fans, I should be happy . . . Penn State is going to its very first BCS bowl . . . that seems kind of odd considering the long tradition of bowl appearances they had over the past 4 decades. I don't know, I'm a little disappointed . . . Florida State (#22, with their win over Virginia Tech) against #3 Penn State just doesn't seem right to me. Yeah, the Lions will be heavy favorites and it'll be billed as a match up between the 2 winningest coaches in college football, but I think the Lions deserve a better opponent - like Virginia Tech, or even Notre Dame or Oregon. The automatic conference champion thing works for you or against you in the BCS arrangement I suppose.

There's a remote possibility at this point that I may attend the game . . . more on this should it actually pan out . . . that would be totally excellent because I've never attended a PSU bowl game in all my years of following the squad. Funny thing about this whole PSU-FSU scenario, I actually speculated early on in the season that this match up might actually occur . . . oh yeah, FSU was actually a Top 10 team when the idea popped into my head . . . dah . . .