Holy bleep
This has to be the silliest of all silly seasons in terms of college football moves, right?
Now, if Josh Heupel is in play and the Tennessee Twitter gets rolling, well, I'm not sure we're ready for that.
I was at basketball practice - coaching a 4/5th grade girls team; we could be great, as long as we can overcome our coaching shortcomings - and someone said, "So Brian Kelly to LSU, huh?"
I thought he was kidding.
Turns out the joke is on the Irish, and the punchline is anything we thought before no longer counts.
Also, this feels like the right time to offer, any coach in the modern age who wants to bad-mouth someone getting in the transfer portal can simply stick that nonsense in the bottom drawer of a filing cabinet on the next space shuttle to Uranus. And while we're here, the complaints about players getting a taste with NIL deals tainting the game and its integrity, yeah, stuff that one in there too.
Reports have LSU offering Kelly, who has made Notre Dame Notre Dame again, in the neighborhood of $15 million annually.
Yes, $15 million. To coach football. Of course that means that Saban will be making $16 mil before MLK Day and Kirby's gonna start asking how much does Georgia value his contributions to his alma mater.
So there's that, and in some ways this is the baseline truth that everyone needs to see.
We can tailgate and fawn over Aga or when the Eagle flies into the stadium. We can dress our kids up in gear and stand and wave when the players and coaches march into the stadium. We can cross our fingers and pray that Johnny Five Star will pick our school or that Jimmy OC will stay one more year.
But this move - leaving one of the pinnacle jobs in all of sports, not just college football for the much, Much, MUCH greener pastures of $15 million - is the exclamation point on the sentence we all know but want to pretend is only part of the story.
This is business. Huge business. Period. And our emotion, while it helps fund this 10-figure operation, is meaningless.
So Vader, pleased with this hire or no? And now, who does the Irish make a move for?
And one more question: Is there a move out there that would truly stun you at this point? Saban to Texas maybe?
NFL Power Poll
So could Aaron Rodgers be the mustachioed-mug, man-bun wearing face of the anti-COVID crowd?
Could be interesting considering the politics and the pull from all sides that the reigning MVP - who is an absolute football magician - is leading what appears to be as good a team in the most popular pop culture venue around.
This would be like Iron Man saying, "Yeah, COVID, not so much." Side question: Who is the MVP of the Marvel Universe? Discuss.
So, like the elves with the toys headed to the reindeer take-off, let's get to the poll.
Powerful
1 Green Bay. The truly magical QBs make do with whatever skill position folks they are handed. Those magicians also turn good receivers into gold-jacket-wearing Hall of Famers. Peyton did it with Wayne and Harrison. Aaron Rodgers is doing it now with Davante Adams. Imagine what Larry Fitzgerald's numbers could have been with an extended run of just above-average QB play.
2 Tampa Bay. That was an impressive win at Indy on Sunday. And know this: Indy is a team no one is gonna wanna dance with come January. Is there any player in any team sport that inspires the same confidence that Tom Brady does? If you are a Bucs fan and it's a close game come the fourth quarter, you simply know you have the edge because you have Brady.
3 New England. Here they come, and when they get there - they are a half-game back of the injury-ravaged Ravens for best record in the AFC - and grab homefield, who in the AFC can you see going to Foxboro and winning in January.
4 Arizona. Yes, the Cards have the best record in the (cue Jaws) THE NATIONAL Football League. But are you a believer? And more importantly, why is Cards coach Kliff Kingsbury being so coy about being a candidate for the Oklahoma job. And more importantly still, how great are those insurance commercials about the therapist helping people not become their parents? Can't get enough of them if I'm being honest.
5 Kansas City. Yes, the Ravens have a better record and beat the Chiefs earlier this year. But the Chiefs have Mahomes. Edge Chiefs.
Powerless
28 Seattle. Yes, Seattle. The Seahawks are 3-8. How'd they ever win three? It's a miracle. Serious question: Is Russell Wilson a top-10 QB any more? It's certainly a lot more clear why he wanted out of Seattle before the season, though.
29 New York Jets. So, how was your Thanksgiving holiday. And Jets-Texans may be a worse game last week than Lions-Bears, oh my.
30 Jacksonville. Anyone else expect more out of Trevor Lawrence this deep into the season? Yeah, me too.
31 Houston. Losing to the J-E-T-S, Jets, Jets, Jets, is less than impressive.
32 Detroit. Social media was far from kind last Thursday as the Lions were about to give another game away, this one to the hapless Bears on a Thanksgiving day game that was only pretty if you had the Bears minus-1.5.
Cat out of the bag
So Tiger Woods spoke with Golf Digest.
In the interview came a slew of tidbits.
I had no idea how bad his car accident in February really was apparently. He told GD that he almost had to have his leg amputated.
Woods said that he plans to return to the PGA Tour at some point. That's the good news.
Woods also said that he'll never be a full-time Tour player again. That's the bad news.
This is the latest lily pad in the pond-jumping roller coaster that has been one of the most amazing runs in sports.
Seriously, Tiger Woods folks. Is he with Ali, Pele and maybe MJ as the most famous athletes of the last 50-plus years?
He is the walking definition of arguably the best to ever do it in his sport and still underachieved in a lot of ways. Try to get your head around that for a second.
I can foresee - and this is hardly Magic 8 Ball kind of insight - like we all can Woods wearing his TW hat and the Swoosh at Augusta for the next decade or so, but even the most diehard Tiger supporters among us have to know this was the first statements of the end of the most important run in golf history.
In truth, it feels like the beginning of the end of the era that made golf bigger and better than anyone could have imagined. And the era that golf will never be able to replicate.
This and that
- OK speaking of coaches, I saw this stat on Twitter and it floored me. Know the coach with the best all-time FBS winning percentage? Nope Saban is second behind Tom Osborne, who had a .836 winning percentage at Nebraska. Saban is second, but for Saban to catch Coach Osborne, Nick would need to win his next 74 games in a row. Oy vey.
- Speaking of eye-popping numbers, now that they have added Max Scherzer, the New York Mets have the highest payroll in baseball. Alex Anthopoulos to the white courtesy phone. Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos to the white courtesy phone, please.
- You know the rules. Here's Paschall on the chemistry between the two QBs atop the depth chart for the Bulldogs bunch atop the rankings.
- Buckle up. The Warriors have been the class of the NBA through the first quarter of this season. And now it appears that Klay Thompson is close to returning. Game on.
Today's questions
True or false, it's Tuesday.
True or false, Brian Kelly will win a natty at LSU before Lincoln Riley wins one at USC.
True or false, neither Kelly or Riley will win a natty at their new digs.
True or false, your opinion about Aaron Rodgers has changed because of his COVID decisions.
True or false, Tiger will never win another major.
True or false, Tiger is the most famous global athlete since Ali.
As for today, the last day in November, let's review.
Wow, on this day in 1979, "The Wall" by Pink Floyd was released. On this day in 1982 "Thriller" was released.
Rushmore of best albums of all-time. (And yes, this one is next-to-impossible.)
Go.