Because there is no better way to roll into the weekend than with a Dalai Lama quote well a slow afternoon of day drinking is pretty sweet too anyhow, here’s today’s thought from the Lama. (Big hitter the Lama. Long.)
“We all want to live a happy life, so we have to learn to live together in trust and mutual respect. We do have differences of race, nationality, religious faith and so on, but these differences are secondary in comparison to our equality in being human.”
To the mailbag people.
From Steve
Man, if you were a multi,multi millionaire such as Davis, could you not find someone that could take that mop and make something decent out of it? I would add President Trump to this as well, though I like Trump, you have a billion dollars, not to mention you are the POTUS and probably get free haircuts! You did famous hair not long ago, but if you did a Rushmore of rich people with bad hair, you would have to start with those two right?
Steve –
Yes, if we are going to start a Rushmore of rich folks with awful hair, Mark Davis and President Trump are Jordan and LeBron of the conversation.
There are a slew of performers who purposely choose bad hair, but if we were going to add two more, we’d likely go Keith Urban and Phil Spector maybe.
Which leads us to this week’s Rushmores.
Georgia coach Kirby Smart has led the Bulldogs to two SEC East titles in three seasons as their head coach.From Jules
True or False for you Jay:If Kirby just runs the ball on 4th down, it’s not a big deal. It’s not running it up if you just hand it off. Kicking the field goal kinda is. But FAKING the field goal, that seems personal and we haven’t seen that side of him yet. Wonder what that’s about?
Another True or False:You’ve never seen a bigger punk stunt like that (by a head coach) than when Meyer called his timeouts at the end of the UGA-Florida game in 2008. I know I see red and black but seriously.
Jules –
Not sure what the deal was with Kirby there, but it did feel like an attempt to run it up a bit.
May have been from the lingering hurt feelings from last November, but you’d think the SEC title game kind of eased that.
Considering the discussions of how many recruits were in the stands, that could have very well been a part of it. It also was a no-lose-situation that somewhere down the road could cause folks not to sell-out for the block because of the potential of a fake.
That said, we’ve always believed that if you don’t want someone to run the score up on you, then stop them from scoring. Period.
False. Not defending Urban Liar by any means, but there is a long line of punk stunts. And that UGA-Florida game was the year after the ‘celebration’ game no? You knew there was going to be some raw emotions on that day.
Former Tennessee football head coach Butch Jones, now an offensive analyst at Alabama, runs off the field after the top-ranked Crimson Tide routed the host Volunteers on Saturday afternoon in Knoxville.From Chas
For Friday: Should Papa John U. hire Butch?
Isn’t ranking the middle eight SEC teams like trying to nail jello to a tree?
With last night’s win, UK basketball has now beaten a team from each of our 50 states. Only the state of Connecticut holds a winning record (4-3) over KY. Stupid Shabazz!
Are the Wolves better without Butler? K-AT had 25/10, plus a bad AD stuff in a big win.
Most debates about the NBA GOAT are LBJ v. MJ, but they are only # 5 and #4 on the all-time list. Why are they better than Kareem, Malone and Kobe?
Finally, Kareem or Wilt?
Chas –
OK, we have our rapid fire winner of the week.
No on Butch. If you are going to pay the monster buyout that Petrino has, here’s believing that the folks at Papa John’s U. have to move Heaven and Earth to get Jeff Brohm. List starts and stops there.
Yes. Seriously. And since your team and mine each got beat by the Vols, who could finish in the bottom three of the standings if they lose out, well, in truth other than Alabama 1, Georgia 2, LSU 3 and Arkansas 14, good luck with the rest of that.
Depends on how well the shooters Minnesota got from Philly blend into the system and around KAT. Here’s his chance to be the Alpha. Whether he embraces it or not will be fun to watch because he has a world of skills. But, does he have the mental make-up to be an NBA Alpha if he is noticeably intimidated by a teammate?
We frequently mention Kareem in that conversation, but those three dudes are not mentioned as often because there were long stretches of their careers in which they were not even the clear Alpha on their own team. Kareem behind The Big O early and Magic late. Stockton deserves a lot of credit for the Mailman’s monster number of deliveries. Kobe was Pippen to Shaq’s MJ for the first three titles.
Kareem. But Wilt is on the Rushmore of athletes if you picked up from a previous generation he would be right at home in today’s game. Right there with Ruth, Jim Brown and Johnny U.
From Don
On another side “note”, how about those CMAs last night?
Don –
Unbelievably bad.
Somewhere tonight Chris Stapleton is going to pour a tall glass of something brown that makes your chest warm and think to himself “Dear Lord I was born at the wrong time. What in the world is this.”
Luke Bryan? Pick one of those cats and we can’t help but wonder what Waylon and Johnny are thinking upstairs.
Side question: As bad as the ice cream man white suits the Florida-Georgia Line dudes wore were, does anyone else wonder if the other guy in that duo – is he the Florida or the Georgia part of the line – even has a mic that works?
Seriously, that guy is Garfunkel if there ever was one.
Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant (35) warms up as the basketball team’s practiced during the NBA Finals, Wednesday, June 7, 2018, in Cleveland. The Warriors lead the series 3-0 with Game 4 on Thursday. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)From Alejandro
If you need some mailbag, I’m the man. Well I’m the man whether you need mailbag or not.
What is the best story in sports at the present moment? Tua and Bama, Zion at Duke, Lebron going to pass MJ for scoring this season, KD going to leave the best team of all time, or something else?
Also need some advice on the best way to introduce a girl to the family. I know you’ve done that one before.
Big Al –
I am remiss for not having more on Zion to be honest. That dude is mesmerizing. Seriously.
It’s been since Shag at LSU that an athlete has arrived in college basketball like this as a teenager and completely become the story.
Goodness. If we had to rank your story suggestions our personal preference would be Zion, the warring Warriors – they got hammered again last night; sneaky big part of this is how this will really help Steph Curry’s MVP case considering how the wheels are wobbling without the baby-faced gunner – Tua and Bama and LeBron passing MJ. Yes we are a LeBron homer, but we knew this was coming at some point many, many moons ago.
Now, for the biggie.
The ideal place for the initial meeting for a girl to meet your parents is a tailgate, considering your college age and your locale. Casual. Everyone is joined by a common goal. There may be a cocktail or two involved to help everyone relax a smudge. There is food, and gobs of conversations points from the game to the spread to, well, you name it.
The holidays are out for the first meeting of a girl that could be a contender and the immediate family. Simply do not do it.
Too many pratfalls that could become relationship-changing obstacles. There is the loud uncle (we could call him Greg, but, you know) who is going to say something embarrassing no matter who is there. There is already a slew of pressure. There are too many kids who likely are too cooped up and spastic. Plus, a guy’s momma expects the holidays – especially during the college years when the empty nest is still raw – to be about momma. Not some newcomer.
Yes, at some point, if the young lady has a shot at the title, she’s going to have to meet the whole family. But we’d set the over/under at now fewer than five extended interactions with your parents/siblings before that even becomes a real option. Yes, the timing may be difficult to make that a hard and fast rule. but you want the young lady to have plenty of time to make a solid impression on the parents. That way the words can be spread among the aunts and uncles and such about her good qualities. (Also, when possible, work some extra angles – like an influential cousin maybe – to lay some extra positive ground work as well.)
Now, as for meeting her parents, and this is every bit as important.
Only one way to do it. Nice dinner. Period. End of talk.
We would advise to do this away from campus. The last thing you want is to see three buddies who drop a drinking story in front of the group or worse. (Yes, you’re in college. Yes you drink, and heck, her dad likely drank in college too. But, just like you are in a relationship that involve physical interaction with this man’s daughter, you want to do everything in your power not to try to make him forget you are a college guy. He was a college guy. He knows the drill.)
At dinner, follow his lead on the drinks. The only alcohol that we’d suggest is one glass of wine. (Underrated part of being an impressive young man, learn some basic wine companions. The brands that go best with meat or seafood or Italian.)
Also, offer to pay, but just once. Do not turn the check into a tug o’ war rope because the absolute last thing you want to do is even come close to embarrassing him in front of her.
In a perfect world, her hometown would be close to yours and you can do it during a weekend in which you both are going home.
In truth, remember this: She is the one that’s going to feel uncomfortable in each meeting. So make sure she has a home game in each setting. On campus with your parents; her hometown with hers. (And if she lives in, say, Nashville, unless she is absolutely adamant about it, if you have to stay overnight, have a conversation about whether she – and in turn her dad – would be more comfortable with you staying in a nearby hotel.)
Great question, and remember, the details have to be managed for the opposite parent. Your momma and her daddy. Everything else is gravy, and we believe you will have a much better springboard with her daddy than I did with the Mrs. 5-at-10’s daddy.
First time I met him, we played golf. Second hole, about 165 from the middle – he’s in the woods to the right looking for his Titleist – and we hit a hozzle-rocket that goes screaming right at him. We freeze – no fore, no head’s up, no nothing – and the ball hits flush in the middle of a tree about 4 feet above his head.
No one says a thing for the next three holes, and I’m shook. Posted something like Jenny’s phone number the next seven holes – 8-6-7-5-3-0-9 – and I know I’m not Tiger but I’m not a bad golfer either.
Kathleen and I giggle about it every now and then. Pretty sure her dad and I have never spoken of it.
From Davis
Great to see @DavidSPaschall pick the mighty @MizzouFootball and not the homer choice all @Vol_Football fans wanted. What will Tiger hater @jgreesontfp do?
Davis –
Fair question, and I am happy to offer picks here on games that are not part of the Fab 4 picks.
We think Missouri wins, and if we had to lean one way or the other, we’d likely lay the 6 and take the Tigers. Again, we purposely did not put that among the games we think has the most entertainment potential.
But the UT-Mizzou affair has a chance to be quite entertaining. And as a side point, the chance for each of those programs to get an extra turn on the prime platform that is the CBS stage is a bigger deal than most may realize.
We are used to Alabama and Georgia being in that spotlight, but this is a chance to shine for each, a chance for success for each. And considering the last six times UT has been on CBS the Vols are 0-6 with an average margin of defeat of 41.3-12.3. UT’s last CBS win was a 63-37 victory over these Tigers with Josh Dobbs at the helm near the end of the 2016 season.
Saturday, CBS’s lead crew will spend ample time discussing the Vols improvement. As well as Missouri potentially having the first quarterback in the draft.
A win for UT would generate a bigger megaphone for the improvement message. (We’re thinking Tigers 30, UT 20, however.)
Not exactly fan mail
How could you write a piece on Jim Acosta having his press pass revoked by the White House by not even mentioning that the White House and Sarah Sanders shared an altered video of the event in question? The press is suppose to report the truth. Your omission of the full truth in your biased opinion piece falls short of reporting the truth. Your comparison of Jim Acosta to Howard Stern and Tucker Carlson is laughable, it is such a stretch. I usually don’t agree with your “points”, but you lost a lot of credibility as a journalist in my mind with this piece.
And we’re off
Who ever gave you a job writing was dumb. You are so overrated.
Getting closer
Do you ever shut-up? No one cares about what you think!!!!
And finally (the extra exclamation points really drive it home, don’t you think?)
I hate you!!!
Good talk. Enjoy the weekend friends.