A Break from Our Usually Schedule Programming

So, this is usually a sports blog. We have always kept our posts related and relevant to the sports world. This is important to me because, despite many many opinions about politics, religion, current events and the world in general, I dont want to bore you, the reader, and I want to develop a sense of trust on this site. I want you to know that you can always come here to read something about the sports world, without being reminded that the world is slowly but surely coming to an end.

With all that being said, this blog post is going to be about something complete unrelated to sports. Matt Swanson, a frequent contributor to this blog, has recently written a science fiction novel. The novel is self published and available for purchase on Amazon. The title is Venerable Marcus, which is also the name of the main character. Basically it is humorous adventure story centered around the titular character, which is of course set in space. All said I think it is a pretty good read.

A Few Tidbits from Around the Web: Thursday Night Football

Thursday night football is annoying. It is an obvious money making gimmick from the NFL. It only exists to prop up the basically pointless NFL network. It doesnt hold the prestige of Monday Night Football, the other non-Sunday game. Anyways, you probably noticed, I am not a fan of Thursday Night Football. So, here is a link (I guess it should be A Tidbit From the Web, since there is only one, but whatever) related to abomination of a event.

• Larry Stone recently switched over from a baseball centric columnist to an all things sports columnist.  As was expected, because of his excellent baseball work, Stone hasn't missed a beat. In a column, prior to last weeks game, he wrote about the bad football presented on Thursday Night Football and completely nailed it.

Geno Smith Looks Like I Would, If I had to Play NFL QB

So, I haven't watched a ton of Geno Smith's games as the New York Jets starting quarterback. In fact I have only watch one game, MNF on Oct. 7th. However, as the starting QB for the Jets, Smith had plenty of air time during that game. The camera kept zooming in on him while he walked up to line and while he was under center.

Each time I saw Geno, I noticed something. His facial expressions is one of fear, nervousness or general confusion. I wish I had been at home and paused the live TV, so I could have taken a picture of his face. I searched all over the internet for a picture showing what I am talking about and I couldn't find a picture. You will have to believe me.

Smith's facial expressions were especially noticeable because they were nothing like the stereotypical all business NFL QB expressions. Think Peyton Manning or Drew Brees; Their eyes, and mouth show seriousness and determination. Those QB's are super focused. Smith was probably also focused, he had a pretty good game, but his eyes screamed otherwise.

Artist's Representation

I don't know if this is standard for Geno. Like I said I haven't seen any of his other NFL games. I also never saw him play at West Virgina. I am basing everything off a sample size of one so, I don't know if this is just how he is. Whatever the reason it was definitely weird.

Stop Letting Golden Tate Return Punts

Golden Tate has explosive open field skills. When the ball gets in his hands amazing can happen. So, he appears to be a natural punt returner. The thing is Golden Tate is terrible at punt returns! Last week he fielded a ball inside the 10. Another time he brought it out of the end zone. Who does that? Sure, it went for 32 yds and set up the winning score, but that isn't the point. He took a completely unnecessary risk. Earlier in the season Tate dove to catch a punt. He could have just let it bounce, but no, he decided to make a risky diving catch to keep the ball from rolling like four yards into the end zone. Seriously, the guy is awful a punt returns. Stop using him  now. Let Christine Michaels or Jeremy Lane try. That certainly couldn't be worse.

Stop With All the Pointless Games

Last week the top 25 FBS team won by an average score of 33.74 points. The only top 25 team that lost was Arizona State and that was because they played Stanford, another top 25 team. Take a look at the four scores below. They are the first four that show up on Yahoo Sports scores and schedules page. Only Georgia vs North Texas was even close, and saying that is a real stretch.

North Texas Almost had 'em

So, why do I bring this all up? Because FBS teams scheduling FCS (NCAA Division II) teams for a free win is getting out of control. It needs to stop.

If you exclude bowl games, most teams only get three out of conference games a season. These games are the only chance for fans of top teams to see how their team stacks up against other teams from around the country. If they schedule other Division I teams, fans would get to see top talent in the country up close and personal. The games would bring excitement to the season and they are sure to sell out. It would also keep season ticket holders from getting ripped off and having to pay big money to witness a blowout, as currently happens. Basically, scheduling Division I teams is an all around win for fans.

It is not just the fans that would benefit from improving the non conference schedules. Playing a tough out of conference schedule also gives teams a chance at a signature win. This kind of a win is really important for teams that want to make it into a BCS bowl game.It sticks i nthe voters minds. It is also important to help build a teams confidence in themselves. Even in a loss, as long as it isn't an embarrassment, knowing they can stay with a great team can build confidence as well. However, a win over a top tier opponent can rocket launch a team into their conference play.

Playing big games will also bring in more revenue as both teams and help the universities. Stations like ESPN, Fox and NBC would play big money to broadcast the game. For D1 versus D2 games, only regional channels will broadcast the game, which brings in way less money. ROOT just can't pay the same as ESPN. Compared to a match up like Idaho State vs Washington, where Washington had to pay Idaho for the right to throttle them, playing other Division I teams is a definite money maker.

If teams insist on playing push overs there are always bad Division I teams. The University of Washington Huskies scheduled Illinois, a team that plays in the Big ten but went 2-10 last year. They were basically a free win for the Dawgs. Yet, the Fighting Illini still offer a little bit of prestige, especially compared to a Division II team.

Basically, using your non conference schedule to play tomato cans is a waste. Only the teams record benefits. However, playing other Division I teams is a win for the fans, the teams and the university.

I Miss Summer Olympics Sports

For years I was a baseball fanatic. The Seattle Mariners were my favorite team bar none. I looked forward to opening day and the beginning of another season. Usually, I could count on the M's keeping my interest through at least the end of June. However, after ten plus seasons without playoff baseball and a 10-3 loss to the Astros, I lost interest a lot early this year. In fact, thanks to Facebook, we can see it was on April 24th.

So, to scratch my sports fan itch, I have had to turn to other sources. For one, I have gotten much more into the Sounders this season (and was repaid with a Clint Dempsey signing and a rapid rise the first place in the Western Conference). I joined a rec softball league. I ignored sports all together and played video games (Bioshock Infinite is a short but awesome game). I also started thinking about the Summer Olympics.

Specifically, I thought about all the sports that I don't get to watch, except during the games. So, I made a list of my three favorite Summer Olympic sports. Now the last Summer Olympics took place in London in 2012. This means the next ones aren't until Rio de Janeiro in the summer of 2016. So, I wont get to readily get to see any of these sports for the next three years, But I can type up a little about why I liked them. Maybe that will scratch my itch.

1. Olympic Style Boxing
I know, I know, boxing happens all over the place year round. Heck, I could even go down to the Emerald Queen Casino and watch a live match. The thing is, Olympic Boxing is different than all that. The matches take less time. Only three, five minute rounds.  The matches almost never have a knockout, but instead are settled by points. Mostly this is because the fighters wear headgear. The points make it a much more technical  fighting and I think interesting.

2. Volleyball
Most people like the beach volleyball in the Olympics, but personally I like the traditional indoor type. The court full of players and jumping in unison to block a smash or disguise the hitter never gets old. Plus there is constant action with players diving, digging and jumping all over the place. The only negative I see here is the length of the matches.

3. Field
I enjoy the sprints and hurdles as much as the next guy, but you can see people running all the time. The NCAA championships are usually broadcast on tv and often the world championships as well. However, what I find really interesting are all the field events. High jump and pole vault especially catch my interest. Something about people running really fast and then throwing themselves at a bar is captivating.

Praise for Pretty Boy Marc Burch

As an engineer and an American sports fan I love and rely heavily on stats to provide objective evidence for my claims. It is one of the reasons I love baseball and basketball so much; you can make your case by just pointing to the numbers. Not having proof, to back myself up, makes me hesitant to make arguments. I just don't like relying on my gut alone.

Soccer, by it's very nature, forces writers into the realm of subjective argument. There just aren't very many stats for non-forwards. Some of the very best players might go the whole season without scoring a goal. Coupling my innate reservation about making arguments without stats with my lack of a deep soccer background makes me nervous to write analysis of soccer players. However, I am going to try to do exactly that.

This season the Sounders have been doing really well. They have surged from a slow start to take over first place in the Western Conference with 49 points. With the team doing this well several players have found success. However, the quality of play for one non-star player has stuck out to me and I feel like he deserves some praise. Although he hasn't scored a goal for the Sounders, Marc Burch has been a constant quality contributor to the team.

Look at that gorgeous hair!

Despite being a natural defender, Burch has spent most of the 2013 season playing left midfield. From this position he has been able to control the ball and make good crossing passes into the goal box. He has excellent touch on the ball. Even if they dont always result in goals, Burch's passes give the Sounders good opportunities, which is key to a successful team.

Like most Sounders players, Burch is always hustling. He takes good lines and gets to the ball quickly. His background as a defender shows.Very rarely do you see him get beat and I have never seen him give up on a play. These attributes are really important to helping the team win.

At yesterday's Sounders FC vs Real Salt Lake match Burch again made his presence felt by positioning himself where he could make plays and making well placed crosses into the scoring area. While Obafemi Martins and Lamar Neagle scored the goals, Marc Burch clearly helped the Sounders beat RSL. The game was a great example of everything he brings to the team. Hopefully the coaches and fans realize what they have in Burch and he continues to get playing time.