Knucklehead of the Week
Raiders linebacker Ray-Ray Armstrong reportedly lifted up his shirt, pounded his chest and barked at a police dog before last week’s game at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh. I’m sure Ray-Ray was just having fun, but the officer with K-9 Banditt (who was sniffing around for explosives) was not amused. Officials have not pressed charges, and I doubt they will because this is all just silly. That said, taunting a police dog is a felony in Pennsylvania. Wow. I wonder what Ray-Ray did when he saw the Dawg Pound when Oakland played in Cleveland earlier this season.
It was my birthday Saturday and the kids loaded me up with Bill’s Donuts, ice cream, cake and Kraft macaroni and cheese. If my doctor is reading this, I promise to eat more responsibly the rest of the year.
The TV guys trying to keep us awake during Ohio State's ho-hum 28-3 victory at Illinois speculated at one point in the second half that the unbeaten Buckeyes might be holding back. Their offense was so vanilla that they had to be looking ahead to huge games against Michigan State and Michigan, right?
Buckeye fans hope so, but it would be hard to bet the mortgage on OSU to repeat as national champions. It’s tough to play with a chip on your shoulder when there’s a target on your back.
The Buckeyes welcomed back J.T. Barrett after a one-game suspension for driving around Columbus under the influence. I had hoped Barrett wouldn't play the big-shot card when he got pulled over, but he did. After finishing up his field sobriety test, he said, "I'm the quarterback of Ohio State … officer, there's nothing you can do?" Disappointing.
UD looked good in its basketball opener. The toughest part of Friday's game for Archie Miller had to be adjusting to all the substitutions. The Flyers have some quality depth and the newcomers will make an impact. We found out Ryan Mikesell can shoot, Steve McElvene deserves to be called "Big Steve," and Sam Miller has a colorful vocabulary.
Like most cable TV subscribers, I have a love-hate relationship with Time Warner Cable. But I have to say the TWC Sports Channel looks really good. The quality of the UD-Southeast Missouri State broadcast was impressive, as was Saturday's UD-Marist football game. TWC will televise several Flyers games this season.
Ken Griffey Jr. will be the top vote-getter in Baseball Hall of Fame balloting this year, largely on the strength of his great seasons in Seattle. Griffey was only 30 when he arrived in Cincinnati, but injuries ruined the homecoming. He averaged 105 games per season in nearly nine years with the Reds.
Trending up: UD football, Keenan Reynolds, Radford basketball. The Flyers rallied to defeat Marist 28-21 on Senior Day at Welcome Stadium, improving to 10-0. Redshirt freshman Tucker Yinger rushed for 237 yards to help his team clinch an FCS playoff berth.
Trending down: Aqib Talib, Melissa Click, SpaghettiOs. Broncos cornerback Talib pulled a classic pro wrestling move by eye-gouging Colts tight end Dwayne Allen. He appealed his one-game suspension (why?) and will sit out today's game against the Chiefs.
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