From Paxton
At the beginning of the MLB year I called in and we both agreed that a NL team would win the World Series. You still agree? I do.
Paxton -
It will depend on matches, like it always does.
If the Red Sox get to the Series, I think they win it.
If the NL is going to win the Series over Boston, I think the Giants are the only team that can do that, and the Giants may not get by the Cubs. (The Cubs are the only team in this we'd favor over San Francisco and Madison Bumgarner, who likely will only get one start in the NLDS.)
I think the Red Sox's lineup is the best in baseball - their No. 7 hitter, Jackie Bradley Jr., had 26 homers and 87 RBIs this year, for Pete's sake - and if they make it through the short series with the Indians, then we think Boston runs the table. (Unless it sees the Giants staff.)
Of course, if the Cubs get there and face anyone but the Red Sox, we think the Cubs win it. So, the answer to your question, Pax, is a hard and definite kind of.
If we had to be in Vegas, NL or AL, we'd go NL because of the better options. But we kind of feel a story book ending for David Ortiz, you know? Side note: While we are here, Game 1 of the Indians-Red Sox series last night was a delight. And while all the national gasbags were defending Buck Showalter for not using his best reliever at all in the AL Wildcard game and said the 20-20 hindsight of second-guessing made it easy, well, they better not be giving credit to Cleveland manager Terry Francona then.
All Francona did was bring in his best reliever to pitch two innings - one out in the fifth, the sixth and two outs in the seventh - when the Red Sox were threatening with the heart of their order coming up. It was genius, and it was the right call. Yes, it was right because it worked, but it also was right because he played his best against their best in the first 'save' situation that popped up, not the last one.
Francona's move was aggressive and put the vaunted Boston lineup on its heels and made it realize that time was running out of the series opener. And whether it worked or didn't work, Francona went down swinging with the best weapon he had. Show alter left his show pony in the pen, and that logic at its core is amazingly flawed.
Period.
Tennessee head coach Butch Jones hugs quarterback Joshua Dobbs (11) after defeating Georgia 34-31 in an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 1, 2016, in Athens, Ga. Dobbs completed a last-second pass to wide receiver Jauan Jennings to give Tennessee the victory. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)From Justin M.
@jgreesontfp how dare you compare Saturday to The Replacements. #footstepsfalco What would Hurd's infamy name be? #humblehurd #hurdtheturd
Justin -
As you are well aware, The Replacement comparisons in our purview is of high praise.
(Rushmore of funny moments in The Replacements: The kicker flipping the smoke before his field goal, Falco clicking the car alarm on his truck after the striking players turn it over, the John Madden fat guy touchdown rant, and almost every unintentional comedy scenes with Keanu Reeves doing Keanu Reeves things. Seriously, is there a better genre for rewatchable, so bad they're good movies than the sports angle. Unnecessary Roughness. So many boxing movies and karate movies. The extra Major Leagues. Yes, great sports movies are all-time classics; but the so-bad-they're-enjoyable (SBTE) sports genre with classics like Replacements and Tin Cup and so many more - and that's not even getting into the kid sports collection for Pete's sake - are glorious. Now this is not the truly bad movie, like "The Fan" or some other sports dreck. Nope, this is the SBTE sports movie, and they are like Falco's classic and cliched big-game speech at the end: "I know you're tired, I know you're hurtin' ... I wish I could say something that's classy and inspirational ... but it wouldn't be our style. Pain heals, chicks dig scars ... glory lasts forever." Amen.)
As for Tennessee's amazing comeback over Georgia, well, it was on our Rushmore of college football endings, with the Kick Six, Flutie's Hail Mary and the prayer at Jordan-Hare. All of those moments last forever just like The Replacements.
(One more side question on The Replacements: Does any actor in movie history have the most perfect character and the most imperfect character in the same profession than Gene Hackman? Dude was the carved statute of all-time greatness of coaches among sports movies with Norman Dale. Then he plays the coach in The Replacements by picking up a Landry knock-off fedora, a stuffy sports coat and dropping one cliche after another. Hackman's effort was so phoned in, here's betting they shot all his scenes in three days in Santa Barbara and he wanted to get paid up front.)
The bigger story line to your question Justin is what happens from here with Jalen Hurd? Dude is within reach of being the all-time Tennessee rushing leader. Yes, really, and with all the stud duck running backs the Vols have produced, that's saying something.
Now we don't know if he's injured, in the dog house, a combination of both or just plain no longer part of the plan. It's strange, really, and Butch Jones' seven-second answer about it this week hardly shed any light on any of the above options.
When asked about Hurd, who was allegedly suffering from a lower extremity injury late against Georgia, being on the field for the final kickoff and his potential injury, Jones said: "That was an end-game deal We don't discuss injuries He's day-to-day."
Now saying you don't discuss injuries is fine, but Butch discusses injuries every week. And saying you don't discuss injuries but then saying someone with an injury is 'day-to-day' is technically discussing the injury.
Alas. And right now, if we're going with a name in infamy, considering the unknown, can we start with Jalen Leaves Maybe?
Thoughts?
New England Patriots defensive end Chandler Jones (95) fights off a block by Tennessee Titans tackle Taylor Lewan (77) to strip the ball from Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota (8) in the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 20, 2015, in Foxborough, Mass. Patriots defensive tackle Akiem Hicks recovered the ball for a touchdown. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa) From Chris
Chris Chancey @Chanceamillion9 Oct 4
@jgreesontfp (Taylor) Lewan once again the best left tackle in the league, two weeks in a row. Yet you have been labeling him a "bust"
Chris -
For the back story for the 5-at-10ers around these parts, we went on a Taylor Lewan rant a couple of weeks ago after his stupid, classless and immature personal foul penalty cost the Titans a real chance to force overtime and potentially beat the Raiders.
It was arguably the dumbest play of an NFL season filled so many levels of silliness, you'd expect Steve Carell or Jim Carey to be the head referees come Sunday night.
The rant was how Lewan - and his line mates of first-round picks - had hardly done much to help an offense that is among the last in the league in points scored. We even suggested that if Lewan couldn't control his actions and play, that he should be benched or even cut.
Chris took offense to that, and has pointed out that since the penalty Lewan has graded out as the best left tackle in the league by Pro Football Focus.
But to that end, maybe a come to Jesus discussion happened behind closed doors after the penalty and maybe it was made clear to Mr. Lewan how underwhelming his performance to that point had been for a guy the organization spent a top pick on and hopes can be a franchise left tackle. (And coming into the year 'bust' was not an unfair term for Lewan, considering the Titans took another tackle in round one this year as protecting if they let Lewan walk after his rookie deal is up.)
But top your point Chris, the last two weeks, Lewan has answered the bell and been very efficient. It still has not translated to a lot of points - and let's remember that last week, he did it against a Houston defensive front without JJ Watt - but Lewan has been very sharp since his awful penalty.
Tennessee's Colton Jumper (53) celebrates as he leaves the field after the Vols's victory over Florida. The Florida Gators visited the Tennessee Volunteers in a important SEC football contest at Neyland Stadium on September 24, 2016.From Stewwie
Keep Miami in the playoff discussion. They're undefeated and get to dodge both Clemson and Louisville in the regular season. Games against Florida St. and Notre Dame don't look so tough now. If even a one-loss Miami team beats Clemson in the ACCCG, they would be in a good position to make the CFBSP.
Is UT-Knoxville the luckiest 5-0 team of all-time? And grown men shouldn't ever be crying after a win. That said, I think Butch's face-covered kneel to the turf was all fake emotion. A high jumping fist-pump in the air straight to a solemn kneel-down? It looked ridiculous.
Stewwie -
First, on your first point, yes, Miami is definitely in the discussion. And Saturday is a big chance for the Hurricanes and Mark Richt. First, they get the national 8 p.m. spotlight game, a spot that Georgia fans will forever say Richt floundered in during his time in Athens. Second, if they drop the hammer on FSU, it devalues Louisville's biggest win to date and the Cardinals are still ahead of the 'Canes in the polls.
As for the other, UT is on the short list of most fortunate 5-0 teams in recent memory, that's for sure. And I think we all agree - from the biggest Johnny Vols Fan to Jomo - that if the Vols continue to dig a double-digit hole these next couple of weeks, it could get extremely ugly.
You bring up an amazingly interesting point about Butch's postgame reactions.
On one hand, Jones is more scripted than an presidential speech. From his midweek quotes to his postgame answers, he has a message and a select few number of talking points and he never deviates from them. Ever. (And to make matters worse, when we asked him about that very thing before the season, he said he speaks from the heart. If that's true he has the most scripted heart this side of anatomy class.)
So maybe it was fake emotion. (Could you image the folks in the room as Butch possibly practiced his postgame reaction? Dear Lord that would be YouTube gold, Jerry. Gold.)
Still that said, maybe it was real and responsive, considering the knowledge that the Vols all-but-locked up the East hit him and it made him buckle to the turf. And we're of the belief that the bouncing back was not from sobbing but from maniacally laughter and Butch buried his face so not to be seen truly and heartily and deliriously laughing in the moment of so much UGA pain.
We concur that 99-times-out-of-a-100, grown men should not be crying after a win. Or a loss for that matter, especially in a regular season game.
Still, it's not absolute. A long-time Cubs fan will get a waiver should they be the last team standing come late October. And in truth, it gets a little dusty at the end every time we watch "Miracle" and we know how that turns out.
(Now if you are misty when Falco hits the deaf dude for the score to win in The Replacements, well, you may nee to seek some emotional support.)
Atlanta Braves players take the field after winning their final baseball game at Turner Field, against the Detroit Tigers, Sunday, Oct. 2, 2016, in Atlanta. The franchise is planning on starting next season at SunTrust Park which is under construction in Cobb County. (AP Photo/John Amis)
From Steve
Jay- I've been to The Ted several times but nothing spectacular happened while I was there, well, except opening day 2010 when J-Hey hit his first home run at his first MLB at-bat. What is your fondest memory from a game you attended at The Ted?
Steve -
Chief on the list will be taking my kids to their first MLB game there. It was a blast, and you never have another first time, so that's on there.
As for moments, we were there with Randy Johnson pitched a perfect game in 2004. We were there when Andrew Jones had a walk-off walk in Game 6 of the 1999 NLCS.
But in truth, our personal memories of Fulton County are way better.
We were a sleeping 3-year-old in April 1974 when Hank Aaron hit No. 715 off of Al Dowling. We were for Game 6 in 1995 when the Braves won it all. We were there in 1992 when Otis Nixon climbed the wall to rob a homer in a 1-0 win over the Pirates. We were there for the gold medal baseball game in 1996 Olympics between Japan and Cuba. (Yes we thought the U.S. was going to be in that one, oh well.)
Growing up in Smyrna, 15 minutes from the old park - and our childhood home is about four minutes from the new park - we've been blessed to see a lot of great Braves memories.
Great question.
Enjoy the weekend gang.