All I Want for Christmas is a Break From Sports….

Hey ladies… hopefully you made it through Monday. I am totally in countdown mode for my holiday vacation to kick in….I am so over sports right now because I have gifts to still buy, parties to attend and decorating to finish.    Just a quick post here to recap another weekend full of sports.  Maybe you were lucky enough to avoid a heavy dose of televised football and basketball, but I’m sure some of you weren’t, and I’m sure that some of you want to impress the cute guy at the office, so that being said, here’s what happened this weekend:

• On the “Hot Stove”… what’s the “Hot Stove”, you may ask??  Thats what my husband tells me they call offseason baseball talk and transactions since the thoughts of baseball keep you warm in the winter… Anyway, the Phillies made some news by signing 46 year old Jamie Moyer to a new contract… not just a one year contract, but a 2 year contract!  This is crazy, it means that he’s going to be a professional athlete when he’s 48 years old, which is comparable to a woman being a 48 year old Victoria’s secret model….and I don’t know if you saw the Victoria Secret fashion show a few weeks ago…but I can’t even imagine.  Also, it is confirmed that Pat Burrell will not be returing to the Phillies…at least he got to ride in the carriage pulled by the Clydesdales for the Phillies World Series parade…I am sure he is super disappointed though….
• In the NFL, the Cowboys put aside their differences to beat the Giants in a big Sunday night game.  In case you hadn’t noticed, the Cowboys, particularly Terrell Owens, Jason Witten, and Tony Romo, have been bickering more than the cast of “The Hills”, but apparently they were able to overcome it for one night and beat the Giants to keep their playoff hopes alive.
• Sam Bradford, who is Oklahoma’s QB, won the Heisman Trophy on Saturday night.  He seemed to be a pretty nice soft-spoken guy at the ceremony, and he’s only a sophomore, so there’s always the chance he could join the very thin ranks of multiple Heisman winners (can you name any of them?  More on that next time)

 

Sam Bradford...Cute or Not Cute???? The verdict is still out....

 

 

Also…one more thing that I almost forgot to tell you….if your man is involved in Fantasy Football…which it seems like pretty much every guys is….most leagues have the championship coming up this weekend…therefore you might notice the guys in your life having a little more free time and away from their computer…enjoy it…

 

Hope you’re enjoying the week so far and making it through, the holidays are almost here (along with College Football bowl season, which starts Saturday! Ummm, I’m not so psyched)  I’ll have the answers on the multiple Heisman winners next time, along with an update on some things to watch for later this week.  Until then…here’s to wishing that next week I can have a small break from any sports on the television (doubtful.. but we’ll see)…

-sportsgirl

That Guy in Whom You Have Little Interest? Show Him the Heisman…

Hey ladies.. so in my post the other day I was discussing the Villanova-St. Joe’s rivalry and how Villanova has made it to the ‘Sweet Sixteen’ in three out of the past four years.  I had heard that they were one of only six teams ever to do this, which I found a little hard to believe, so I decided to check it out, and here’s what I found:

The NCAA Tournament expanded to its current 64 (or 65) team format in 1985, some Sweet Sixteen facts:

• There have been 384 Sweet Sixteen teams (24 seasons, 16 teams make it per season)
• 16 different schools have accomplished the 3 Sweet Sixteens in 4 seasons:  Villanova, North Carolina, Arizona, Kansas, West Virginia, UCLA, Duke, Arkansas, Wake Forest, Seton Hall, UNLV, Indiana, Syracuse, Kentucky, Alabama, and Connecticut… pretty much a who’s who of college basketball
• The sixteen schools I named have accounted for 138 of the 384 Sweet Sixteen appearances, that’s 36%, which is amazing considering that they are less than 5% of the schools in Division 1 basketball
• The longest consecutive Sweet 16 streak belongs to North Carolina, who made it for 9 straight seasons from 1985-1993

For those of you who know me personally…it is now obvious that my husband has helped me research this information…he loves numbers and percentages….but guaranteed…not many people you are around will know those kinds of stats. …

So, I obviously need to apologize for my misleading trivia question, but take some of these facts with you as you’re watching TV on Saturday… its the first Saturday since August without college football, so college basketball is taking over the airwaves on Saturdays now (can’t you tell how excited I am?)

 

The Heisman Trophy:

The college football regular season is over, but there is still some hardware to be handed out:  The Heisman Trophy will be awarded in NYC Saturday night, and the three finalists are all quarterbacks:  Tim Tebow (Florida), Sam Bradford (Oklahoma), and Colt McCoy (Texas).  The ceremony itself is pretty boring, its probably more entertaining to go out and watch girls at the bar give guys “the Heisman”… if you don’t know what I mean, take a look at the pose that the player on the trophy is in.  Either way, there may be some entertaining pictures on the Internet Sunday morning… a few years ago when Matt Leinart won the Heisman he made the papers with some rather drunken pictures taken at Marquee later on.

Also a common pose for the ladies at the bars...

See, the Heisman can get a little bit more interesting than just the boring ceremony with a bunch of old guys in blue blazers (just Google “Matt Leinart” + “Marquee” and let the viewing begin)… So keep your eyes peeled for some juicy photos, which I’ll be sure to fill you in on, and keep an eye out for another post tomorrow, when I’ll discuss everything you need to know for another NFL Sunday (isn’t THAT over yet either?  It’s endless!)

Now go get your holiday shopping done…you don’t want to wait until the last minute do you????  Until then….

-sportsgirl

It’s Not Always Sunny in Philadelphia…but it’s the Place to be this weekend!

I’ve been talking about it for weeks, maybe even months now, and its finally here:  the last Saturday of college football until next August.  To big college football fans tomorrow is known as “Championship Saturday”, since most of the larger conference championship games are held tomorrow (ACC, SEC, Big 12).  If you were paying close attention to my post from yesterday, you’d also know that there are still a couple of big rivalry games this weekend as well, one being USC vs. UCLA.  Thats a great time for the West Coasters out there, but how about those of us shivering back East? Well, here’s a little something thats local to my area:

Army vs. Navy (12:00 EST, CBS)

Army and Navy renew their historic rivalry in the city of Philadelphia tomorrow, with thousands of cadets and midshipmen descending on the city for a weekend of partying (any of you single girls out there might want to hit up the bars in Philly tomorrow night after the game).  Makes me think of the Sex & the City episode when the gals go out on the town for Fleet Week…such a good episode…Ok back to the game….Why in Philadelphia?  Because its about halfway between West Point and Annapolis.  Also in attendance will be President Bush, and no matter what you think of his politics and decisions, you must admit that he has been pretty good as the nation’s sports fan in chief.  No one really cares who wins the game (except alumni and those in the services), however it is a great display of tradition and its always a good reminder that while most senior college football players are thinking about the NFL, or getting jobs, etc., the guys in this game are enjoying their last game before likely being shipped overseas into harms way, and you have to admire that.  

Since I know I have never covered any famous alumni from these schools…I thought I would cover a few from the Army & the Navy for you this weekend….

Army Alumni: 

• President Ulysses S. Grant (18th President)
• President Dwight Eisenhower (34th President)

Navy Alumni: 

• President Jimmy Carter (39th President)
• Montel Williams (the talk show host)…would you have guessed???

 

#1 Alabama vs. #4 Florida (4:00 EST, CBS)

The SEC Championship game, held in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, is the most highly anticipated conference championship game in maybe forever.  Undefeated Alabama is coming in to this game knowing that if they win they will be in the BCS Championship game, and the same likely holds true for Florida, so this game is serving as a virtual national semifinal.  The city of Atlanta is always a college football hotbed… you may not know that almost every young alumni of an SEC school looking for a big city job moves to Atlanta after graduation, so I’m sure the bar scene will be rocking this weekend for the Southerners.  Florida’s pure speed and athleticism against the more powerful style of the Crimson Tide will make for an interesting matchup (my husband gave me this lingo).  And, you know what else makes it interesing?  College Gameday of course!  Although I’m excited for the season to wrap up, it won’t be the same without looking forward to Corso’s headgear selection every Saturday morning.  Next season I have vowed to be in attendance at one of the College Gameday broadcasts and the subsequent game, I’ll be sure to blog about that.

#2 Oklahoma vs. #20 Missouri (8:00 EST, ABC)

This is the Big 12 Championship game, held in Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium (home of the KC Chiefs).  There has been a bit of controversy surrounding the participants in this game… Oklahoma, Texas, and Texas Tech all finished tied for first place in the Big 12 South Division:  Oklahoma beat Texas Tech, Texas Tech beat Texas, and Texas beat Oklahoma… so how did they decide who got to go?  By the team that was highest in last week’s BCS standings, where Oklahoma edged out Texas, even though the Longhorns beat them by 10 points on a neutral field back in October.  Needless to say, the people in Austin aren’t too happy about this.  If Missouri manages to upset Oklahoma in this game, then Texas still might have a shot to get into the championship game even without playing in their conference championship.  The BCS is more complicated than television ratings… think about it…most of us ladies watch our shows from the DVR…especially shows like Lipstick Jungle…I am pretty sure the DVR viewings don’t count in their decision to keep a show…so not right.   Have you noticed that I complain about show cancellations a lot?

 

Alright…so if you are in the colder parts of the nation…chances are you will be holiday shopping or doing something at home or at a party of some sort…if it is the latter two you will most likely have sports surrounding you at some point….especially with the caliber of games that are on this weekend…just look for some hotties in the crowd…there are bound to be some at the Army v Navy game.  

 

Stay tuned for some info about the NFL games tomorrow…

-sportsgirl

Girls Aren’t the Only Ones to Make a Fashion Statement

TGIF Ladies….it has been a busy week and with a lot of good television wrapping up, I have been able to avoid sports to some degree…but the weekend is now upon us, which means, no Dirty Sexy Money or Gossip Girl but 24/7 sports, unless you like the Hallmark holiday movies (which I would vote at times are better….).  I thought today I would give you some info about some stories that I read…that while I am sure are interesting to guys, they were definitely written to keep us ladies entertained…

So, as you know, every weekend I cover the top College Football games that are going on for the weekend.  This weekend, I typically wouldn’t be writing about USC….although they are ranked #5…they are playing their rival UCLA, who isn’t ranked…not a big deal..why even cover the game…except for the fact that the game is played at the Rose Bowl.  (Note:  the Rose Bowl is UCLA’s stadium, not just the name of the Bowl game that is played on New Years)  Well, I was reading on philly.com that the coach of USC, Pete Carroll, has told reporters that his USC Trojans would be wearing their red & gold home jerseys…even though they are the away team.   So what’s the big deal? This is against the NCAA’s rules.  The away team has to wear their white AWAY jerseys or sacrifice 2 timeouts per half. …leaving the USC Trojans only 1 timeout per half.  What’s the reason???  Well, apparently Carroll thinks that this is the fun thing for his team and the fans…until the early 80’s both teams used to wear their home jerseys for this rivalry game, but then NCAA rules changed it…so Carroll has decided to restore the tradition…his team is the 31 point favorites…why not take the chance and lose the timeouts…he believes this game won’t be a problem for USC.  I personally think this story is hilarious…not going to lie, it forced me to ask my husband questions about it when I read it…It is so something us girls would decide to do…don’t you think??? Rebel for fashion…totally love it…at least I can now explain to my husband why I will give up a meal or two for a new sweater, dress, or pair of shoes…I love when things are relatable like this….

 

Ok, so the second story…not going to lie…I am a little behind the times with this story and I do apologize…but I was in a meeting today and we started talking about college basketball and I learned about the oldest men’s basketball player that is currently playing college ball.  Not going to lie, I might have guessed that maybe the guy was like 25 or 26…I was so far off…this oldest college basketball player right now is 73…not a typo girls…totally true.  Ken Mink, 73, of Roane State junior college in Tennessee is on the basketball team.  Now he is not a starting player or one of the first subs to come into the game…however when the team is up by a lot or losing by alot, Mink gets the opportunity to play and live out his hoop dreams.  He has even scored some baskets in a few games….as you might have guessed, he’s a good shooter…maybe not the best defenseman, but in general he can hold his own.  If you are wondering how he is even eligible to play it is because he only went to college for one year at Lee’s College…therefore, he still has eligibility.  When he realized he still had his solid shooting skills…Roane Junior College gave him the opportunity to try out and play.  So girls, just remember, age is just a number…Mink reminds us what we learn when we see someone like Faith Hill on the cover of Shape magazine…age 41, with kids, posing in a bikini, looking better than most girls in their early 20’s…anything is possible if you put your mind to it (or if you have good genes or a good airbrusher). 

 

This isn't an office scrimmage....

So…not sure if you agree…but I really think these stories were meant for us ladies…hopefully it made for an easy read on a Friday…be back tomorrow with your College Football information…

-sportsgirl

 

Image from foxsports.com, Saul Young/Knoxville Sentinal

Angelina v. Jennifer??? Sort of…

OK girls, so we’re counting down the final days of the college football regular season, and while the end can’t come soon enough for most of us, there are still some pretty important games to be played today, including some pretty intense and interesting rivalries… not quite as interesting as Angelina Jolie against Jennifer Aniston, but I digress.  So, here’s a look at some of the most important and most interesting games of the day:

#3 Oklahoma at #12 Oklahoma State (8:00 EST, ABC)

• This is the host site for College GameDay this week, with the crew on hand for a big Oklahoma game for the second week in a row.  Corso was right with his prediction of a big Oklahoma win over Texas Tech last Saturday, so lets see who he picks to win yet another important Big 12 South game tonight.
• The latest installment in “The Bedlam Series”, as this rivalry is known, should be an interesting one.  Oklahoma QB Sam Bradford is considered one of the frontrunners for the Heisman Trophy, which is the award given annually to the best college player. 
• Although they’d like you to think this is a big rivalry, its a bit one-sided to be considered one of the best in the country:  Oklahoma leads the all-time series 78-17-7.

Auburn at #1 Alabama (3:30 EST, CBS)

• This rivalry is referred to as the “Iron Bowl”.  These two schools have an intense dislike of one another.  If you grow up in Alabama, you pick sides at an early age, there’s no room for sitting on the fence…going back to the Aniston v Jolie reference…I never sat on the fence…I am “Team Aniston all the way”.   Family members get into years-long arguments over these games, its definitely intense.
• The Crimson Tide have a lot to lose in this game, and they may be caught looking ahead to next week’s SEC Championship game against Florida.  Auburn has won the past 6 meetings in this rivalry, which has historically been dominated by the Crimson Tide, and the Tiger fans would love nothing more than to ruin their rival’s National Championship hopes with a victory today.  Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville is rumored to be on the hot seat on “the plains”,  (meaning he probably will get fired after the season) as the Auburn area of eastern Alabama is known, and I’m sure he’d love to go out on top, taking out Alabama and making his 5-6 team bowl-eligible.

#23 Oregon at #17 Oregon State (7:00 EST)

• This in-state rivalry is known as “The Civil War”, and this year it could decide the Pac-10 title.  If the host Beavers can take down their rivals, they will guarantee a share, with USC, of the Pac-10 championship and a berth in their first Rose Bowl since the 1960’s (Oregon State defeated USC earlier this year, so they win the tiebreaker).
• Oregon leads the Civil War series 55-46-10, and its the seventh-oldest college rivalry in the country, having first been played in 1894.  Oregon State has won the last two meetings, and you can bet that they’ll be out to win today, with visions of Pasadena on New Year’s Day in their minds.

So…I never thought I would be able to incorporate the Angelina/Jennifer saga into sports, but there’s a first time for everything….hopefully these facts wil make watching a little more interesting…I plan on avoiding the games at all costs… a little decorating, a little shopping and before you know it…the games will be donezo…

Check back tomorrow with some NFL football facts…

-sportsgirl

If These Were Girls…They Wouldn’t Need an Excuse to Drink Champagne…

OK ladies, we’ve made it through another weekend of sports.   Here’s what you need to know to stay knowledgeable when you’re back at the office for another ‘thrilling’ Monday morning…the only thing that I can say is…it is a short week…we can do this!

In the NFL, the Titans lost their first game of the season, falling to the Jets at home, bringing their record to 10-1.  Looks like the 1972 Dolphins can pop their champagne, as there will be no undefeated team this season… and unfortunately the Tennessee loss eliminates the chance for the first ever 11-0 against 0-11 matchup on Thanksgiving day when the Titans visit Detroit.  As for me, I’m always up for popping some champagne, maybe I’ll have to celebrate with them…plus you can’t beat the warm Miami weather…I am already sick of the cold weather here…

The big controversy of the NFL weekend was the benching of Donovan McNabb in Philadelphia.  The Eagles were routed by the Ravens in Baltimore, and McNabb’s typical erratic performance in the first half landed him a prime spot on the sidelines for the second half.  Kevin Kolb is the back-up QB for the Eagles and he also did not give a good performance …this means that most likely the big story in Philly all weekend will be whether or not McNabb will play in the Thanksgiving Night came against the Arizona Cardinals…. Does this lead to the end of the Donovan McNabb era in Philly?  We’ll have to see, but I must say that all good things must come to an end at some point… although some should get the chance to stay around a little longer (Lipstick Jungle, Dirty Sexy Money, and a few of my other favorite shows).

 

In college football, Oklahoma destroyed Texas Tech on Saturday night, setting up the potential for even more BCS chaos.  In case you didn’t know, the BCS method for setting up the National Championship game is pretty controversial, and a lot of people (including the President-elect) are in support of setting up a playoff system.  Now that there is only one unbeaten team remaining (Alabama), there will be a number of one-loss teams staking their claim to a matchup in the National Championship game.  Alabama and Florida will play in the SEC Championship game in two weeks, and if Florida wins that game then there will really be some controversy. 

Other College Football news is that Penn State clinched their place at the Rose Bowl on New Years Day when they beat Michigan State….the crazy thing is that on Sunday (one day after their win)…JoPa (Joe Paterno), the coach, had hip replacement surgery and should be able to coach at the RoseBowl…just from the press box…this man just doesn’t want to give up…I hope for him that Penn State wins the RoseBowl…just in case he is finally ready to retire after this season. 

 

Alright…I will be back with a bunch of sports information this week…with the Thanksgiving holiday this week, there is plenty of sports to watch…UNFORTUNATELY. 

Have a nice short week….

-sportsgirl

Would You Want a Bronzed Pig???

Thankfully we’re getting close to the end of the college football season, as I’ve said before I don’t know how many more Saturdays of this I could take, although it is always entertaining to watch the end of College GameDay.  Last week Corso put on the entire mascot costume…not just the head of the costume…it was a snake…and I have to admit…even I laughed.  

With the end of the season comes the bulk of the great rivalry games in college football… which is what a lot of people think makes college football so great and unlike any other sport.  Cal and Stanford are both out of the race to win the National Championship or the Big 10, yet Saturday’s “Big Game” is as important as ever.  Cal-Stanford is the “Big Game”, but there are a number of other interesting quirks to these rivalries ( a lot of the trophies resemble bad yard sale items, but thats another story for another day)… most of the big rivalry games take place next weekend, but there are a few big ones this weekend.  Here are some fun facts on them to keep you looking impressive while you’re watching:

Minnesota-Iowa:  These neighboring states play for “Floyd of Rosedale”… Floyd is a bronze pig… seriously.

Michigan-Ohio State:  Some of the luster is off this year’s matchup because Michigan is so bad, but if Ohio State wins and Penn State loses to Michigan State, then Ohio State gets to go to the Rose Bowl.

Indiana-Purdue:  These two in-state rivals have played for “The Old Oaken Bucket” since 1925… which is, yes, a wooden bucket.

Washington-Washington St:  The “Apple Cup” is a big deal in the Pacific Northwest, not so much to the rest of the country since these two teams are a combined 1-21 this year (from my perspective, the only shining spot here is that one of these two teams will have to win….)

Tennessee-Vanderbilt:  This is the first time in years that Vanderbilt has been favored and even though Vandy is the home team this year…the stadium will likely be at least half Tennessee fans….

 

 

Does this really look like something you would want to win????

 

 

So, those are the bigger rivalry games tomorrow, most of the huge ones are next week, so there will be a lot more info coming up on them.  I have to admit, even though I’m not the biggest college football fan, these rivalry games will make it pretty interesting these next couple of weeks….I mean, my husband can go down to the basement and watch these and I can have my own rivaly…which show to watch on DVR…Lipstick Jungle, DirtySexyMoney or Gossip Girl….  

 

Tomorrow’s biggest game, however, isn’t a rivalry game at all:

#2 Texas Tech at #5 Oklahoma (8:00 EST, ABC)

Another huge battle in the Big 12 South conference.. both of these teams still have one more regular season game next week and then the potential for playing in the Big 12 Championship game, but this game will go a long way towards sorting out the picture for the National Championship.  Oklahoma’s only loss was to #3 Texas, so a win over Texas Tech here could vault them up in the rankings.

I’ve previously listed some of the more famous alumni from these two schools, but keep an eye out for Corso doing his routine from the site of this game in Norman, OK tomorrow.  Norman doesn’t sound like it would be too exciting of a place, but I bet it will be crazy for this big Saturday night game and the appearance of College Gameday.

 

Alright…I will be back tomorrow with your NFL information….off to the Web to start some early holiday shopping….

-sporstgirl

Who Knew an NFL Game Could End in a Tie? The Players Didn’t…

That’s right…this weekend the Eagles vs Bengals game ended in a tie…the final score was 13-13.  I had no clue that NFL games could end in a tie…and apparently some of the Eagles players didn’t know the game could end in a tie either. After the 15 minute overtime ended in a tie, the players thought that they were going out there for another overtime…not the case according to the rule book.  The reason for the confusion around a tied football game is that it is pretty rare…here are a few stats about today’s game….

• This is the first NFL tie in 6 years…the last tie was Pittsburgh vs the Falcons in 2002
• The last time that the Eagles ended in a tie was in 1997…the crazy thing about that game was it was also on November 16th…
• The last time that the Bengals eneded in a tie was in 1969…almost 40 years ago

 

Some other stats from this weekend’s NFL games…

• The Steelers beat the Chargers at home..the crazy thing…the final score was 11-10…the first time an NFL game has ended with this score.
• The Tennessee Titans are still undefeated with 10 wins…the Detroit Lions are also keeping up their “0fer” season…they have 10 losses.  The two teams play each other on Thanksgiving Day…

 

The Monday Night Football game is the Cleveland Browns (3-6) at the Buffalo Bills (5-4).  The game is on ESPN at 8:30 EST.  This game doesn’t really mean much, so not much to worry about stat wise….

College Football…this weekend none of the top teams had big match-ups…so they were all able to keep their ranking intact…the top 5 teams are…

1.  Alabama

2.  Texas Tech

3.  Texas

4. Florida

5.  Oklahoma

On Sunday Night’s 60 Minutes, Obama was interviewed and talked about his wish to change the way that the College football championship was decided.  Basically, he wants the top 8 teams to play in a three week playoff series to get to a final champion… a good idea, but he might want to focus on the economy first. 

Other sports news…this week the baseball MVPs will be announced….they just keep wanting to have baseball in the news….

Alright, back to a Monday….college basketball and NBA stuff coming this week….

-sportsgirl

Do the Mascots Get a “Free Ride” at the Dermatologist?

Personally, I am starting a countdown until College Football is OVER!!!  I am told it is 3 weeks after this weekend…plus the Bowl games.  Since I am trying to “embrace” sports so that my husband and I spend any time together…I have learned that College Football Saturdays are the WORST.  College GameDay from 10-12 and then the games…all day long…past midnight sometimes.  Don’t worry, I don’t watch the games all day…but if we are anywhere near a tv that is what has to be on.  Luckily this week there are apparently no big games on…so I might not have to have my “typical” Saturday!

So…I will cover the two bigger games of the weekend in a separate post….but thought I would cover the mascots since I did have a request for that.  Apparently, like the band, the mascots are a big deal.  They typically get a scholarship for all of their hard work throughout the season.  Capital One is even hosting a contest to choose the best mascot for College Football.   They have narrowed down the field to the top 12.  I went out to the site and had a few initial reactions…First, the mascot costumes could use a fashion update…the material that the costumes are made of are awful, they look so hot (temperature hot that is).  I think a better contest would be for fashion designers to create new mascot uniforms and then we pick the winner for each school…that would get girls involved…it actually could be another reality show since those seem to be the only tv shows that don’t get cancelled (I am bitter that Lipstick Jungle got cancelled!).  My second observation is that I really hope that besides the free ride to school that these universities pick up the dermatologist bills that these mascots probably have piling up….seriously, take a look at these uniforms…if they don’t cause a breakout for the whole season, then I want these kids’ genes.  

The BYU Cougar...doesn't it look like it's wearing UGGs???

 

OK…i figure that I will list the mascots for the Top 25 teams…

#1 – Alabama Crimson Tide (Mascot:  Elephant called “Big Al”)

#2 – Texas Tech Red Raider (Mascot: The Masked Rider – only allowed at home games since it incorporates a live horse…so for other games, the Red Raider is the mascot)

#3 – Texas Longhorns (Mascot:  Bevo – a “longhorn” cattle)

#4 – Florida Gators (Mascot:  Albert E. Gator…get it…”Al E Gator”

#5 – Oklahoma Sooners (Mascot: The Sooner Scooner – its an old school covered wagon pulled by two white ponies called Boomer and Sooner)

#6 – USC Trojans (Mascot: Traveller the Horse – doesn’t sound that initimadating)

#7 – Utah Utes ( Mascot: Swoop – a red tailed hawk)

#8 – Penn State Nittany Lions (Mascot: Nittany Lion – refers to a mountain lion on Mount Nittany)

#9 – Boise State Broncos (Mascot: Buster Bronco)

#10 – Georgia Bulldogs (Macot: Uga -its an actual bulldog…the most recent bulldog died earlier this year, so this year’s Uga is a brand new dog)

#11 – Ohio State Buckeyes (Mascot: Brutus Buckeye – the Buckeye is a nut…literally a nut from a tree…I can’t imagine it usually intimidates the opponent’s mascot)

#12 – Missouri  Tigers (Mascot: Truman the Tiger – named after President Harry Truman)

#13 - Oklahoma State Cowboys (Mascot: Pistol Pete…a Cowboy obviously)

#14 – Ball State Cardinals (Mascot: Charlie Cardinal…unoffical mascot is David Letterman…he went there and always talks about them)

#15 – Michigan State  Spartans (Mascot: Sparty the Spartan….not too original)

#16 – North Carolina Tar Heels (Mascot: Rameses the Ram…again, not too original)

#17 – BYU Cougars (Mascot:  Cosmo the Couger…on the Capital One mascot website…his quote is “Like any cougar, he likes his meat well-seasoned.”  From my perspective cougars are usually the ones that are well seasoned and are looking for fresh blood…so this is an interesting quote. )

#18 – TCU Horned Frogs (Mascot: SuperFrog the Horned Frog…I think Horned Frogs are some sort of lizard…not a fan of this one at all)

#19 – Florida State Seminoles (Mascot: Chief Osceola – a Seminole Indian…he rides in on a horse called Renegade)

#20 – LSU Tigers (Mascot: Mike the Tiger…he’s an actual Tiger they keep in a cage on the sidelines…I am thinking that the opponents probably don’t try to steal this mascot before big games…)

#21 – Pittsburgh Panthers (Mascot: ROC the Panther)

#22 – Cincinnatti Bearcats (Mascot: Bearcat…literally that is it)

#23 – Tulsa Golden Hurricane (Mascot: Captain Cane the Hurricane – if you decide to look this one up…you might agree that it doesn’t really look like a hurricane)

#24 – Wake Forest Demon Deacons (Mascot: The Deamon Deacon…its an old man with a top hat)

#25 – South Carolina GameCocks (Mascot: Cocky the Gamecock..its a rooster of sorts)

 

Now that I have read up on all of these mascots, I will reiterate that I think these mascots need a 21st century update…the costumes, the names, everything about them are “old school.”  And most of them are not that inimidating….

Alright, have a fantastic Saturday…I’ll be back with the NFL information for the weekend…

-sportsgirl

“College GameDay” Takes a Detour…

College Gameday is taking an interesting detour on their weekly journey through the best games in the country.   Since the schedule this week doesn’t have the typical match-ups of top contending BCS teams, College Game Day is making their first trip to the campus of a historically African-American college… the game?  Hampton at Florida A&M.  I know nothing about either school…I didn’t even know there was a school called Hampton…but it should be an exciting day for both of these schools!

Hampton & Florida A&M (1:00 EST)

• Florida A&M is located in Tallahassee, FL, more commonly recognized as the home of Florida State.  A&M was named the #1 college in America for African-Americans by “Black Enterprise” magazine in 2006, pretty impressive…  their sports teams are known as the Rattlers.
• Florida A&M’s band is a bit more famous than its football team… the “Marching 100″, as they are known, has performed at four Super Bowls, two presidential inauguration parades, and at the Grammys with Kanye West… not bad.  I’m betting they will get some air time on Gameday tomorrow morning.
• The Rattlers’ opponents are the Hampton Pirates, from Hampton University in Virginia.  Also a historically African-American school, some of Hampton’s most famous alumni include Wanda Sykes, Spencer Christian, and Booker T. Washington
• Whatever hat he decides to put on, Corso will feel right at home, since he attended Florida State right across town.  Although you probably wouldn’t guess it  by looking at him now, Lee Corso was an outstanding athlete, he starred in football and baseball during his time at Florida State.  Fun fact for you ladies to show off:  Corso’s college roomate was Burt Reynolds.  Can you imagine the stories the two of them could tell about their nights on the town in Tallahassee?

South Carolina at Florida (3:30 EST, CBS)

• As I mentioned before, there aren’t a lot of great games this weekend, but any time Steve Spurrier returns to the Swamp it makes for an interesting game.  Spurrier coached the Gators from 1990 – 2001 before leaving to take a shot at the NFL with the Redskins.   When that didn’t work out he returned to the college ranks, deciding to accept an offer to coach one of his former school’s biggest rivals in the SEC (sound familiar, anyone?  If not, you weren’t reading girlonsports.com last week!)
• Florida still has national championship hopes, and the Gamecocks will be hoping to spoil them.  The Gators are ranked #4 in the BCS and would need some help to get to the championship game, but they largely control their own destiny, since they will get to play #1 Alabama in the SEC Championship game on December 5th. 

Alright…lots of new stuff this weekend…be back tomorrow with NFL stuff.

-sportsgirl