Super Bowl XLIII

I always find the Super Bowl to be a hilarious event…there are usually a bunch of guys gathered to see a good football game and then a bunch of girls who are there to watch funny commercials and the half time act….therefore it is hard to determine when talking is allowed.  I root for talking during the actual playing of the game…you don’t have to hear anything to see a bunch of guys running and tackling each other.  But, like usual, I digress…now onto the game. 

First of all, whats up with the Roman numerals?  Does the NFL think that they’re so cool that they’re above just calling it Super Bowl 43?  How hard would that be?  I mean, the one good thing is that it keeps me practicing the Roman numerals….Anyway, I digress.  The “Big Game” is finally here, and since the two teams who are playing on Sunday are rather understated and modest, there hasn’t been too much of the usual over the top hype for the game.  Well, I am here to change that.  How, by giving you some of the unrelentless hype that you’ve come to expect from the Super Bowl?  Of course not, who do you think I am, ESPN?  I’m here to tell you the important things, aka how to look good at your Super Bowl party on Sunday.

That being said, here are  a couple of key storylines that you need to know:

• The Cardinals head coach, Ken Whisenhunt, used to be the offensive coordinator for the Steelers.  He was passed over, along with Russ Grimm, one of his assistants, when the Steelers hired Mike Tomlin as their head coach a few years ago.  Both coaches are in their second season, and both teams are happy with their decisions.  It will be interesting to see if Whisenhunt’s experience with the Steelers will give the Cardinals an edge on Sunday.
• The Cardinals quarterback, Kurt Warner, will be starting his third Super Bowl game.  He is 1-1 in his first two, both as QB of the Rams,  having beaten the Titans in Super Bowl XXIV and losing to the Patriots in Super Bowl XXVI. 
• Two of the Steelers best offensive players,their QB Ben Roethlisberger and WR Hines Ward, are battling injuries coming in to the game… Roethlisberger has a sore shoulder and ribs, while Ward has a sprained MCL. 
• In case you were wondering, the Steelers have won 5 Super Bowls in their history, while the Cardinals have never won one.  In fact the Cardinals have the second longest title drought of any team in pro sports (60 years), behind only the Chicago Cubs (100 years). 
• Larry Fitzgerald, the wide receiver for the Arizona Cardinals played college football for Pittsburgh…talk about the irony….

Hopefully you’re going to be watching the game with family or friends on Sunday, and by the way, this girl will be rooting for the Cardinals… remember my post about Larry Fitzgerald…well it wasn’t too hard to pick after that…hopefully you have the “Cardinals 1, Steelers 0″ block in your block pool, because the Cardinals are going to pull the upset:  Cardinals 31, Steelers 20 (this part is my husband’s prediction…I think it is a high score, but we will see who is right. 

Now, if you are going to be hanging out with a bunch of people for the game and want to wear the colors of one of the teams…go with red & white for the Cardinals and black and gold for the Steelers (as I’ve noted before, who really wants to look like a bumble bee?)

Enjoy the game, I’ll be back with some non-football posts during the week!

-sportsgirl

PS…sorry girls, I haven’t heard much excitement about the commercials this year, but at least we have Bruce Springsteen to look forward to at half time.  Oh..and if you are a fan of “The Office” then you have an hour episode after the game as well….Monday could be a good “personal day.”  This sportsgirl already took the day off..not for the game, but because I am away for the weekend….enjoy

Why the nostalgia?

So ladies, Wednesday night marks another milestone in the history of Philadelphia sports.  Or so I’m told.  Villanova is hosting Pitt on Wednesday night, in what will be the last ever college basketball game at Philadelphia’s legendary Spectrum.  The old arena, which opened in 1967, will be demolished next year to make way for a new entertainment complex and hotel.  But, here’s what I don’t get… who cares? 

When they knock down an old Nordstrom’s to build a brand new one with nice lighting, plush carpeting, and luxurious wood paneling, do you hear me reminiscing about all the good times I had in the old one?  Didn’t think so…I mean, a more modern shopping experience, what girl wouldn’t want it?   Guys are just strange with these things… most of them wouldn’t cry at an emotional family wedding or a movie like Steel Magnolias, yet put them in the Spectrum on a Wednesday night in January and there will be onions everywhere.

Doesn't look like anything special, right?

Anyway, while you’re watching #21 Villanova and #3 Pitt battle it out tomorrow night, you can impress the guy in your life with your formidable knowledge of Spectrum college basketball history.  Here’s a couple of tidbits for you:

-  The Spectrum hosted what many people consider the greatest college basketball game ever played:  Duke 104, Kentucky 103, in the 1992 NCAA Tournament East Regional Final…  remember when Christian Laettner was every girls dream?  Remember when he caught that incredible full court inbounds pass from Thomas Hill, then spun at the free throw line to hit the jumper with no time left on the clock?  OK…I don’t remember this at all, but my husband told me all about it and some of you may remember…nice name though…That was at the Spectrum.

-  Two Final Fours were played at the Spectrum, and get this… both of them were won by the same team!  Indiana won the NCAA Tournament at the Spectrum in both 1976 and 1981, under coach Bobby Knight.  I’m pretty sure he is a tough coach…that is something that would make ME cry (LOL).

Philadelphia is a city that loves its college basketball, and although it won’t be the last event in the old building, it will be a sad day for many who hate that it was ever replaced by the Wachovia Center (I guess the soon to be Wells Fargo Center???)  across the parking lot.  A lot of history in the building I guess, but this girl still doesn’t get the nostalgia…I mean I did see the Harlem Globetrotters there and a few Disney on Ice type events as a kid, but just not getting it….give me the nice new Nordstrom’s (marble flooring, 360 degree mirrors and automatic papertowel dispensers)!  Look out for a lot more Spectrum info when the Sixers play their last game there in March, use your fun facts wisely!

-sportsgirl

A real underdog story…

So ladies, I’ve been telling you for a while that I’m going to start writing about some college basketball.  Most of you are probably thinking North Carolina, Duke, UConn, maybe UCLA?  How about NJIT?  Who?  NJIT?  Thats right.  I must admit that when I heard this news story earlier this week, I had absolutely no idea what NJIT was, in fact I had to go look it up ( I thought it had something to do with the NJ transit system…sort of).  NJIT is New Jersey Institute of Technology, located in Newark NJ, and one of the newest entrants to the world of Division I-A college basketball.  Since you’ve never heard of them, and now knowing that they are one of the newest teams at the highest level of competition, you probably have some idea where this is going.  

Up until this week, NJIT had lost 51 straight basketball games.  Their last win was all the way back on February 19, 2007, until they defeated Bryant College this past Wednesday night.  From reading these news stories and seeing the clips online, you would think they had just reached the Final Four from the way that they celebrated…craziness.  Personally, this girl is wondering whats the benefit of being in Division I-A if you’re going to lose all the time?  The only press you’re going to receive is pure ridicule, and your players can’t be in a great mood (but hey, at least they’re getting a scholarship and they’re only a 15 minute train ride from Manhattan… shopping ladies, shopping).  They should have just stayed down in the “minor” leagues, but now every school thinks they can be the next Gonzaga.  If you are wondering who Gonzaga is, well there this small school in Spokane, WA and they make it to the March Madness of the Final 64 teams every once and awhile and most recently they made it to the elite 8…so, as I am saying…these small schools are trying to go Gonzaga-style…Oh well.

On a more serious note, and in keeping with the ‘female’ theme of this blog, the longtime head women’s basketball coach at NC State, Kay Yow, passed away this morning after a long battle with breast cancer.  She originally got into coaching just so she could secure a job as a high school teacher, she knew nothing about basketball and took the women’s coaching job at the school and ended up learning from the men’s coach during their practices.  Pretty impressive that she made it as far as she did, she is a legendary coach in women’s college basketball, and the basketball world will definitely miss her…. hey, I don’t know much about basketball, maybe I’ll be the head coach at UConn someday.  Well, maybe not….let’s be serious….I would have absolutely no interest in the job…but good for her.  Get your pink ribbons out ladies and show some respect…she is in the Hall of Fame for a women’s basketball coach and won more than 700 games as the coach at NC State…pretty impressive.  

 

Nike even created baksetball sneakers in honor of Kay Yow

 

 

Alright, well I didn’t mean to end on a low note…I am going for a glass of vino now…and remember that anything is possible…look at Kay Yow’s success and NJIT!  Have a fantastic rest of the weekend and I will be back…

-sportsgirl

And the hype begins…

In my last post I talked a little bit about the excitement that I’m feeling since the upcoming Super Bowl is the last football game we’ll have to suffer through until August/September…. well, the downside to that anticipation is that the hype building up to the game is almost unbearable.  On the bright side though, a lot of the stories that will come out in the next few weeks will appeal to us girls, and hey, can’t complain about that, right?  We need something to keep us interested between commercials!

One of the first “interesting for a girl” pieces that I read appeared on ESPN.com earlier today, written by Rick Reilly, who used to write for Sports Illustrated.  His article talks about the Cardinals awesome wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald and his father, Larry Fitzgerald Sr., who happens to be a pretty big-name sportswriter for a paper in Minnesota.  Well, of course Larry Sr. has to cover the game in Tampa, and there is a rule in sports that no cheering is allowed in the press box, so he will have to sit silently, work and watch his eldest  son play in the Super Bowl.  Could you even imagine how hard that would be?  Also some pretty interesting stuff in there about his hair and its connection to his Mom…it seriously brought tears to my eyes…I love Larry Fitzgerald and his dad….so cute.

 

Check out Reilly’s article and start getting in to the hype so you’re prepared to dazzle at your Super Bowl parties… seriously, sportsgirl might have a new favorite wide receiver even though his squad defeated my beloved Eagles last week.   I might even draft him first in Fantasy Football because of this article (JK guys).  And don’t forget to keep an eye on college basketball, the season is starting to heat up and I’ll be writing more about it, whether I like it or not (blahhhh).  Until then…

-sportsgirl

 

PS…if there is anything else that you want to hear about, let me know…I already got a request for some hockey stuff…so I need to read up

And then, there was 1…

Ladies, I can’t even believe we’ve made it to this point, but we are finally to the point of the year where after Sunday, there will only be one football game left to suffer through!  Now, obviously that game is pretty big, and I’ll have lots to write about the many subplots in the coming weeks, but can you believe we made it?!?!  That being said, Sunday’s two conference championship games, which decide who gets to play in the Super Bowl, will be opportunities for many of you to gather with friends or family and watch the games, relaxing and basking in the anticipation of a well-deserved day off on Monday.  Here’s some good info that will help keep you up to speed, making you that all-knowing sports fan in the eyes of your friends and family:

Philadelphia at Arizona (3:00 EST, FOX)

• The Eagles have now made it to the NFC Championship game five times in the past eight years… pretty impressive in itself, but when you consider that they are 1-3 in the first 4 appearances and haven’t brought an elusive Super Bowl championship back to Philadelphia, the Philly fans are still a little bit restless.  
• This will be the second road NFC championship game in that span for the Eagles, the last time they were the visitor in this game was when they lost to St. Louis after the 2001 season.
• The Cardinals play their games at the University of Phoenix, in Glendale, AZ…now the cool thing about this stadium is that the field is fully removable…since the stadium is in a dome with a retractable roof, the field crew put the turf out in a secure field to get sun and then put the turf back into the stadium before the game….I just say…keep the roof open during the week…seems like a lot of work.
• The Cardinals have never (that’s right, NEVER) made it to the NFC Championship game before… they are hoping to keep their hot streak going with a win at home on Sunday over the Eagles.
• Last week the Eagles beat the defending Super Bowl Champion NY Giants (sorry Christine)… did you know that in the history of the conference playoffs, teams that beat the defending Super Bowl champs are 0-11 in their next games?  Not a good sign for Eagles fans, but as I usually say…there is a first time for everything…Philly is hot right now after a World Series Win in October!
• Eagles fullback Dan Klecko will be trying to advance to the Super Bowl with his third different team, after having played in previous Super Bowls for the Colts and Patriots… his team has never lost a playoff game when he is active (Eagles fans are hoping he is active tomorrow!)

Now if you are going to a Cardinals vs Eagles party….it would be smart to dress appropriately…Cardinals are red & white and Eagles are green & black…my theory is…”green” is all the rage…so if you can’t decide…you can at least say that you are being “green!”

Baltimore at Pittsburgh (6:30 EST, CBS)

• The Ravens and their outstanding defense will visit the cold in Pittsburgh on Sunday, in what could be a fun game to watch since there is a chance of snow.  These two teams have had slightly more historical success in their histories than the teams on the NFC side… The Steelers (5) and the Ravens (1) have combined for six Super Bowl titles in the 42 years since Super Bowl I.  The Eagles and Cardinals have combined for…. zero..again, there is a first for everything.
• These two teams have already played twice this season, and the Steelers won both times, but both were close games:  one was decided by 4 points, the other by 3 points.
• This is the fifth time in history that two divisional foes will meet in a conference championship game after one team swept the season series… 3 out of the past 4 times the team that was victorious during the regular season completed the sweep in the conference championship game (the 1982 Dolphins over the Jets, the 1986 Giants over the Redskins, and the 1999 Titans over the Jaguars… the only team that lost in that situation was the 1983 Seahawks, who lost to the Raiders in the AFC Championship.)

If you are going to a party to watch this game…and want to dress appropriately, the Steelers are black and yellow and the Ravens are black and purple…unless you are a huge Steelers fan (sorry friends)…root for the Ravens…you don’t want to be at a party looking like a bumble bee, now do you?

So, hopefully you will be enjoying the games on Sunday in a nice warm place… speaking of warm places, although the Cardinals stadium is a retractable dome and the weather will be great in Phoenix, look for the roof to be closed so the crowd noise echoes and affects the Eagles (at least thats what the Cardinals are hoping… should we remind them about that game on Thanksgiving night?)  Enjoy the games!

-sportsgirl

January Madness

Hey ladies… now that college football season is over and there are only a few NFL playoff games left, I figured I’d give you a quick post on some of the big college basketball games that are coming up on Saturday.  The guys in your life will probably be tuned in to these battles, so maybe having some good info to chat about will help you fit right in to those conversations about different teams that may end up “on the bubble” when the NCAA Tournament rolls around.  Why January madness, you ask?  Well, the tournament is only two months away, and there are some great matchups on Saturday that could help sort out who some of the better teams in the country are.  Here’s some info for you:

#10 Clemson at #2 Wake Forest (3:30 EST, ABC)

-  This is a matchup of two of the last three unbeaten teams in the country.  A classic ACC battle, college basketball is always big on Tobacco Row in North Carolina, and this game should have a raucus crowd.

-  Wake Forest is in its second year under coach Dino Gaudio, a longtime assistant who replaced the legendary Skip Prosser when Prosser died of a heart attack two summers ago after going for a jog.  Its a pretty heartwarming story, and the team is constantly bringing up reminders or Prosser’s legacy and keeping his memory alive.  This is the kind of stuff that makes me watch sports…tears ladies, tears….

#13  Georgetown at #3 Duke (1:30PM CBS)

-  Duke has a 67 game non-conference home winning streak, and they will be putting that on the line Saturday against the Hoyas in front of the Cameron Crazies (aka Duke fans…who knew…apparently the Duke stadium is called Cameron Indoor Stadium).  Have you seen the environment for  a game at Duke?  Apparently its one of those things that every sports fan needs to experience in their lives… personally I’d rather experience a great sale at Nordstrom, but unfortunately they are only semi-annually…

#16 Arizona State at #9 UCLA (3:45 PM)

-  The Pacific Ten conference, which both of these teams are members of, is apparently having  a “down year”.  The Pac-10 has an interesting scheduling system for basketball:  there are 10 teams in the conference, made up of 5 logical pairs of 2 (UCLA and USC, Arizona State and Arizona, Washington State and Washington, Oregon and Oregon State, Stanford and Cal).  Each weekend during the conference season these pairs rotate to play every other team twice, with games being held on Thursday through Sunday.  For example, this weekend Arizona State played at USC on Thursday night, while Arizona played at UCLA.  On the weekend they switch, so Arizona State is playing at UCLA in the big matchup on Saturday, while Arizona plays at USC.  Impress your friends with that knowledge!

So those are a few tidbits for the big day of college basketball, I’ll be back tomorrow with some interesting info for the NFL conference championship games, but until then enjoy the long weekend!

-sportsgirl

The third time is the charm

Hey ladies… so the first two games of the NFL Divisional Playoffs are in the books, and both road teams came out victorious, with Baltimore and Arizona moving on to the AFC and NFC championship games. One cool stat from Saturday’s games…Joe Flacco, the Baltimore Ravens’ QB is the first rookie to win 2 playoff games….craziness… So,  Sunday brings us two interesting matchups, the Chargers visiting the cold weather in Pittsburgh, and the Eagles travelling up the NJ Turnpike to take on their division rival the NY Giants.  Here’s a couple of facts to keep you in the know for tomorrow’s games, and at the insistence of my loyal reader Christine, a pick for the popular Eagles-Giants game in the Meadowlands.

San Diego at Pittsburgh, (4:30 EST, CBS)

• The Chargers all-world running back LaDainian Tomlinson is probably not going to play due to a torn tendon in the groin area… doesn’t sound very pleasant if you ask me, almost sounds like something an angry girlfriend might inflict on a guy.
• The wind-chill in Pittsburgh is expected to be at or below zero, so I’m guessing the boys from Southern California might not be too comfortable on the frozen sludge of Heinz Field. 
• The replacement for Tomlinson is Darren Sproles, who is listed at 5′6″, which apparently is also a “generous” listing, meaning he is likely even shorter than that.  Can you imagine playing in the NFL at 5′6″?  That’s 3 inches shorter than me, and I’m a little bit intimidated just watching on TV.

Philadelphia at NY Giants (1:00 EST, FOX)

• The Eagles are the sixth and lowest seed in the NFC playoffs, while the Giants are the #1 seed and have homefield advantage up until the Super Bowl.  Since these two teams play in the same division, they have already played twice this year, with each team winning on the road.
• I was a little nervous when my husband’s Sports Illustrated came in the mail…the Eagles were on the cover highlighting their victory over the Minnesota Vikings.  If you are wondering why I was nervous…well that is because there is a “curse” that when a player or team are on the cover…that player/team loses.  My husband reassured me that the cover was done on a regional basis, not national…so maybe this means the “curse” does not apply???
• Apparently the wind currents at Giants Stadium are pretty vicious, which wouldn’t be good for the hair if you were attending the game (Thank goodness that a ponytail is a very “in” hairstyle at all times…) Look for the wind to play a big factor either in the kicking or passing aspects of this game…Eagles kicker David Akers is only 7 for 16 kicking field goals in his career at Giants Stadium.
• As I mentioned before, both road teams advanced on Saturday, and my husband says usually only one or maybe two of the road teams win on this weekend in the playoffs each year.  This doesn’t bode well for the Eagles’ odds.  But… I can’t let two totally independent situations impact my pick.  Therefore, here’s the prediction:  The third matchup between these teams will be the charm for the Eagles.  The winds will cause the Giants to muff a big punt from the Eagles midway through the fourth quarter, giving the Eagles prime field position for a short Akers field goal and a 16-14 Eagles win, setting up a date in the desert next week for the Eagles and the Cardinals.  (And ladies, if you want to seem like you really don’t have a clue on Sunday just say that both of the ‘Bird’ teams won on Saturday, why not continue the trend on Sunday?)

Obviously my pick is a bit biased, but hey, can you blame me?  We’ll see what happens in the games… keep in mind that after Sunday there are only 3 football games left in the season, which means the man in your life might actually pay attention to you on Sunday!  Enjoy the games.

-sportsgirl

A lot can happen in 21 years…

So the second round of the NFL playoffs is upon us, with two games coming up on Saturday at 4:30 and 8:00.  For those of you who are veteran football fans, apparently the games used to start at 12:30 and 4:00, but a few years ago they determined that they might get more viewers and interest if they started the Saturday games later (Gee, you think?  No one I know likes to go out with friends and watch football on a Saturday night… How could it have taken that long to figure this out?  Plus, this lets us ladies get our Sat. morning shopping done…before the social hour(s) begin)  Anyway, I digress.  Saturday’s matchups are intriguing for a few reasons… if you happen to be out celebrating your 21st birthday on Saturday night you won’t know the difference, but if you’re older you may notice a common thread:  none of these teams that are playing on Saturday were in existence 21 years ago.

Baltimore Ravens at Tennessee Titans (4:30 EST, CBS)

• These two teams currently do battle in the AFC North and AFC South, respectively.  Did you know that those divisions weren’t even in existence until this century?  These teams used to do battle as part of the AFC Central, with Warren Moon and Bernie Kosar leading their teams into battle back in the 1980’s (well, at least thats what my husband told me…I have no idea who these guy are….but their names are much more classic than say “Ocho Cinco”.

 

Apparently this is Warren Moon...

 

 

• The Baltimore Ravens have only been around since 1996… after the 1995 season Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell packed up the franchise and moved to Baltimore, but a series of legal challenges forced him to the leave the “Browns” identity behind, and thus the old Cleveland Browns are now the Baltimore Ravens.  Good trivia question to stump your friends… which current Baltimore Raven was on the team when the move took place?  Kicker Matt Stover… in fact, he is the only active player remaining in the entire NFL from the original Cleveland Browns. (Love this fact…)
• The Tennessee Titans were “born” in 1997 when the Houston Oilers moved to the Smoky Mountain State.  They played their games in Memphis for two years as the “Tennessee Oilers” until their stadium in Nashville was ready, and in 1999 became the “Titans”.  Another fun trivia question… there is one remaining active player in the NFL who played for the Houston Oilers, can you name him?  Answer to come at the end….ha ha…that’s just to keep you reading…

Arizona Cardinals at Carolina Panthers (8:00 EST, FOX)

• It might seem as if the Cardinals have been around as doormats forever… they have, just not in their current location.  After the 1987 season the St. Louis Cardinals packed up and moved to the desert, playing their games in Arizona State’s Sun Devil Stadium until a couple of years ago.  (And yes, St. Louis used to have two teams named the Cardinals, one in baseball and one in football..at least if you were a girl during that time you had a good shot of knowing the name of the pro team).
• The Carolina Panthers are an NFL expansion team that started play in 1995.  Based in Charlotte, they have played in one Super Bowl, losing to the Patriots after the 2003 season.  Their owner, Jerry Richardson, was a good NFL player in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s… if you’re looking for a team to root for in the playoffs it might be his, a few weeks ago he was placed on the waiting list for a heart transplant, so maybe a winning team will do him some good.
• When the Cardinals beat the Falcons last week it was only their second playoff win in the last 60 years, not a very impressive record if you ask me, and they are a pretty solid underdog heading into this game.  Their record coming to the East Coast has been awful, they are 0-5 this year in Eastern time zone games.

Hopefully that is some good info you can use to impress your friends/family/potential dates, etc as you watch the games on a potentially snowy Saturday night in the Northeastern part of the country.  I know that a lot of you out there are looking forward to my Eagles-Giants preview tomorrow… patience is a virtue, and good things will come to those who wait.  Oh…and for those of you who waited for the answer to the earlier question, the last remaining Houston Oiler is Jon Runyan, currently an offensive tackle for the Philadelphia Eagles.  

Until my preview tomorrow…

-sportsgirl

Hello to a New Year, Goodbye to a Season

So, you may have noticed that I took a bit of a holiday hiatus over the past couple weeks.  I know, I know, I’m sure you missed me, but did you think that I really wouldn’t be back to write about the LAST COLLEGE FOOTBALL GAME OF THE YEAR?!?!  Thank God, I thought it would never end, although my husband is already looking ahead to potential college football road trips for next fall.  

We’ll talk about the matchup in a second, but based on some conversations with my friends I have a feeling I need to give an overview of what’s going on here.  This is the BCS (Bowl Championship Series) Championship Game, which this year is being held in Dolphins Stadium in Miami, the site of the Orange Bowl.  But wait, wasn’t the Orange Bowl already played last week?  Yes, it was, but this game is the result of the “plus 1″ system that was implemented a few years ago in college football.  The four BCS Bowls are all still played (Orange, Rose, Sugar, and Fiesta), with the “plus 1″ addition of the National Championship game each year matching the #1 and #2 teams in the country, with the site rotating between the 4 BCS Bowl sites each year.  Confused yet?  If not, keep in mind that both participating teams have one loss, and there is another team that feels they should be the National Champion regardless of who wins this game:  the Utah Utes finished 13-0 after soundly beating Alabama in the Sugar Bowl earlier this week, and have a pretty valid argument that they should be given a share of the championship.   Needless to say, I’ll be watching Grey’s Anatomy while this game is being played, but here’s a few quick facts for you in case you’ll be tuning in:

#1 Oklahoma vs. #2 Florida (8:00 EST, FOX)

• Although Oklahoma is the #1 team, Florida is favored in the game based on the Las Vegas point spread.
• The two quarterbacks in this game are the last two Heisman Trophy winners, and they are both underclassmen:  Sam Bradford of Oklahoma won the Heisman this year, and Tim Tebow of Florida won it last year.
• These two teams are traditional college football powers, and it hasn’t been too long since their last national championships:  Florida beat Ohio State to take the crown in the 2006 season, and Oklahoma last won the title when they beat Florida State in the Orange Bowl after the 2000 season.

I must say, I’m pretty glad that this is the last post I’ll be writing about college football, at least for a while.  Maybe some of my readers could provide ideas to make it more fun for next season?  Until then, I’ll be back with some college basketball info and some previews of the big NFL playoff games coming up this weekend.

-sportsgirl