Meanwhile in a Swing State...

While College Football was under the radar on a particular Thursday night in September, the Cincinnati Bearcats weren't distracted. In their opener in the last Big East season as we know it, where a BCS bid will still ultimately be at stake, Cincy routed ACC-bound Pitt 34-10.

While RB George Winn made the lead of most stories with his 58-yard TD run on the Bearcats' first play from scrimmage, it's the Quarterback play that will eventually put them in the middle of the national discussion.

Meet Munchie.  Junior QB Benton Shannon "Munchie" Legaux was a big-time dual-threat recruit out of New Orleans, who filled in well for the injured Zach Collaros last season. Now it's his show.

Legaux, at 6'5" 199, is a bit unconventional with a long, loopy throwing motion. But he threw for 205 and 2 TD last night, and ran for 117 on top of that. And if you combine Butch Jones' system with Cincinnati's schedule, you could see Denard Robinson numbers by season's end (provided he stays healthy).

With West Virginia's exit for the Big 12, I only see two games the Bearcats won't be favored: Sept. 29 vs Virginia Tech (Fedex Field - Landover, MD) and October 26 at Louisville.

There are sneaky games like November 10 at Temple and home Nov. 23 vs South Florida, but the schedule sets up as nicely as any legit darkhorse could expect. If there wasn't enough to watch in Ohio this fall.

2012 DNC: Roof Or Consequences

If you are one of tens of thousands possessing a ticket or pass for the 2012 Democratic National Convention on Thursday September 6 at Bank Of America Stadium, so sorry. And unlike a baseball game, you can't really get a rain check.

As was part of the risk of an outdoor event of this size, there's a 40% chance of rain with scattered thunderstorms for the Charlotte area this evening. So the DNC made the call in advance to bring it back inside to Time Warner Cable Arena.

Naturally the second-guessers are already out: Is the President afraid of a little rain? Was the DNC afraid President Obama couldn't fill a football stadium like he did in Denver in 2008 - what with the "enthusiasm gap" and all?

The President has given speeches in the driving rain, and done it recently.

But this is no ordinary deal. The political conventions, for both sides, are essentially choreographed pageants. A lot more goes into them than just a speech. They rarely go off-script, or off-timing.

And there's the audience to think about too. You'd be asking them to (possibly) stand around in the rain, sponging through Kerry and Biden until BO goes at 10:20 Eastern. If no enthusiasm gap existed before, there might be by then. So they're playing it safe, or for lack of any better word, conservatively.

I was faced with a similar situation before my outdoor wedding. We had to make the call 48 hours in advance whether we wanted to "tent the wedding" or bring it inside. Fortunately my wife-to-be was a member of the American Meteorological Society, and we decided not to lay out the additional expense and took our chances with Mother Nature.

It turns out there wasn't a drop, but July 5, 2003 turned out to be the hottest day of the year in NYC. For the comfort of our guests we should have moved it indoors. And in hindsight, maybe we could have used a little rain on our wedding day.

What's That About Objects In The Rearview? Never Mind, They're Already Here

It's September 5th. You might have one eye on the political landscape or the start of football season. But the Yankees have had one eye over their shoulder, where the Orioles have moved from 10 games back to a flat-footed tie for first. All while the Yankees do their best September impersonation of the New York Mets.

It's September 5th. And for the last 14 seasons the O's average AL East deficit on this date was 22 games behind.

The only reason to watch the Birds late in the season was to see if they could spoil anyone else's success - which is exactly what they did September 28, 20011 - when they came back with 2 outs in the 9th against Jonathan Papelbon and knocked the Red Sox out of the playoffs. That precipitated the ultimate domino theory with Boston revamping their entire managerial structure, which led to the trading off of their most expensive players a couple of weeks ago.

1997 was the last time the Orioles made the playoffs, losing a classic ALCS to the Indians. And to lend some perspective to how long ago that was, the Indians were in that series because they defeated the Yankees and Mariano Rivera in his first season as the closer.

In 1997, the O's lineup featured a still-steady Cal Ripken, Hall-Of-Famer Roberto Alomar, would-be Hall-Of-Famer Rafael Palmeiro (whoops), and an awesome 1-2 punch at the front of the rotation with Mike Mussina and Scott Erickson.

In 1997, the O's were still the most prominent thing in Baltimore. The Wire was just a spark in David Simon's head while Homicide: Life On The Street was playing out the string. And Ray Lewis had not yet been to 13 Pro Bowl or led the Ravens to a championship.

Now in his 3rd season managing the Orioles, one-time Yankee manager William Nathaniel "Buck" Showalter III, has a team that may be ready to take down the team that had groomed him and later washed their hands of him.

Tomorrow begins a 4-game weekend set at Camden Yards. After that we'll know how real the Orioles are, and if the Yankees can get off the mat.

When A Game Is Not A Game

Oklahoma State 84, Savannah State 0. Take all the cliches, "one down at a time," "play to the final gun," "give it the old college try," and they all add up to -- what's the point?

Some may point the finger at Mike Gundy and the Oklahoma State Cowboys for hanging such a loaded score on their poor opposition. That's preposterous. At what margin do you stop playing? 63-0? 70-0? Do you start taking knees in the middle of the 3rd quarter?

Oklahoma State played all 95 players who dressed, and 9 of their 12 touchdowns were runs. In fact two of their 2nd half TDs were 1-yard passes, theoretically less probable for a score than bucking it into the line.

The oddsmakers had installed Oklahoma State as a 67 1/2 point favorite so the outcome wasn't that far off from the hypothesis.

Do you blame Oklahoma State for scheduling a patsy? Maybe, but most major-conference schools schedule a lower division opponent to fill up their home calendar. Maybe they didn't realize, despite SSU's status as an FCS (1-AA) school, how downtrodden they've been - or maybe they did.

The result has also caught the attention of national college sportswriters like the New York Daily News' Dick "Hoops" Weiss. He knows exactly where to place the blame:

...if Savannah State administrators had any concern for the safety, welfare and psyche of their overmatched players, they should have taken a pass. We understand smaller schools that support football have bills to pay, but the idea of using players to balance an athletic budget is sad.

The payday for Savannah State to endure certain humiliation in Stillwater was $385,000. 

This is standard practice at underfunded HBCU institutions, but it is more practical in basketball when your traveling party is fewer than 20 and there's no equipment to haul, thus fewer expenses to manage or mismanage. And fewer souls to console.

Ron "Fang" Mitchell perennially takes his Coppin State Eagles basketball squad on the road to every national power you can think of, and those appearances fund the entire athletic department. And it's not without benefit. Coppin State scored one of the great upsets in NCAA tournament history as a #15 against #2 South Carolina. Of course that was 15 years ago.

Savannah State's men's basketball under Horace Broadnax has mirrored Mitchell's plan, and it's been somewhat successful. The Tigers play top-notch competition, and it helped shape them into 2012 MEAC regular season champions, gaining an NIT berth and a national TV game at Tennessee.

But to apply that business model to the football program only lends itself to making your school name a national punchline: 84-0. It couldn't possibly get any worse than that, could it? 

Savannah State at Florida State - Saturday. The Seminoles can name their score, but the game on the field is irrelevant. Chalk up another $475K.

Hard To Break The Habit

While Breaking Bad, Season 5 hit some snags off it's usual 99% purity - mostly related to Walter White's character and some uncharacteristic over-dialogue, things all fell into place for the mid-season finale. And as we reach crescendo, there are no scenes for next week. All addicts eventually go into withdrawal.

****CAUTION-SPOILERS****

The consolidation of events set to music is a common movie & TV trick to avoid characters bantering to catch us up on current events. 

The use of Tommy James & The Shondells' "Crystal Blue Persuasion" as the backdrop for the manufacturing, distribution, payoffs, and money laundering of Walter White's product might have been the best lyrical montage ever edited. 

And the use of Fred & Ginger's "Pick Yourself Up" as the soundtrack for the 10 simultaneous prison murders might be second. Just like that, the possibility of anyone from the previous regime who could talk was done in the start and stop of Walt's watch.

The cold and calculated cutthroat methods that Walt employed to achieve his goal do in fact fit his character. Gus, Mike, and countless others were just standing in the way of his utopian empire, one without drama, hassle or subjugation. He wasn't just the chemist, he was born to be the kingpin. And the end result was greater than his wildest dreams. 

Even Skyler - whose job was to track the money - admits she has "no earthly idea" how much it is. She asks Walt if it's everything he's worked for, and how much is enough?

After making peace with the oncologist's office paper towel dispenser Walt bashed in several seasons prior when he realized what risk he had engaged in when his cancer was in fact in remission, he made amends with Jesse.

After reminiscing about their early RV cooking days, Walt dropped the presumably $5 Million due to Jesse. Expecting the worst (with good reason) Jesse melts to the floor when realizing the situation wasn't life-or-death, and releases the safety from the handgun that he had at the ready.

Walt confesses to Skyler that he's "out," and the family seems to be repaired with his goal achieved. But we all knew it couldn't be - there are 8 episodes left. So Hank the supersleuth stumbles on the smoking gun while on Walt's shitter. 

Do you think the writers left Walt Whitman's "Leaves in the Grass" around as a prop for no reason? Walt had been tempting fate with Hank on many occasions. This is where the character arc now fits so well. Walt can only hide in plain sight for so long, he has to exert his intellectual superiority. It's a classic criminal downfall. Why do you think The Joker left clues for Batman, or Moriarty was compelled to toy with Holmes?

Now it's Hank's move. Can he take down his own family? And even more than that, can he swallow his own pride with his DEA buddies, that someone so close masterminded such an enormous criminal enterprise under his nose? 

Stay tuned...no...wait...

Breaking Bad Going On...Hiatus

Tonight's episode will be Episode 8 of Season 5. The final 8 episodes will run early in 2013. This "split season" set up seems relatively new in the TV world. But it does give a chance for a dramatic plot point for us to stew on for the next several months. As if the relentless drama to this point hasn't been enough.

****CAUTION-SPOILED****

First Walt cut Jesse out of a deal that would've allowed him to get $5 Million and get out. Then Walt shamed him with his past drug use and love of mindless video games and go-karts to try to make their business the meaningful thing in Jesse's life and pull him back in. Jesse did the right thing and walked.

Walt's character has been headed down this path for some time. He's gone rogue on his partners, and just killed another one. It wasn't to save his own skin, or to take out a rival. It was because Mike told Walt the truth - that his ego caused the whole mess - that he didn't know his place.

Devoted fans of the show have seen Walt extricate himself out of one situation after another throughout the history of the show, and have probably pulled for him. But there is no redeeming quality to his personality, only his mastermind instincts. We all know he's going down - it's just a matter of how and when, and most importantly - who. 

Besides the body count, the "legacy costs" are gone with Mike's stash of cash. The remaining members of Fring's crew in jail are going to start talking about the operation, and Walt and Jesse. A happy crew is a quiet crew. 

And there's nobody left for Walt to turn to - except maybe Todd (whom Jesse calls "Ricky Hitler") and his uncle's prison connections. Walt's alienated his wife and eliminated his partners. It's just Walt and the flash forward of an assault weapon purchase. So there are certain to be fireworks of some sort for the mid-season finale.

Paper Backtime: Rather's Journey in Journalism

I saw Tom Brokaw in an elevator once. I was carrying a copy of Jeff Shaara's Gods and Generals. He mumbled, "good book." I instantly felt more intelligent.

I informally met Peter Jennings several times while I was at ABC Sports. I would edit college football teases in the basement and he would occasionally go down there to sneak a smoke.

I had always thought of Dan Rather as the stodgiest of the Big 3 of my generation. He was the dry anchor at the old, white guy network. I never thought of him as a progressive crusader, the way the right wing painted him in 2004 when Bush 43 was running for reelection.

The report on George W. Bush's missing time from his National Guard service in 1972 and 1973 created a political firestorm that ultimately led to his ouster from CBS. Rather admits that he learned after the fact that a source was tainted, and the chain of evidence of the notorious Killian documents couldn't be completely accounted for.

But he stands by the story that ran as factually correct. And no evidence has been presented to dispute it. And he goes to great lengths detailing his lawsuit vs CBS (which was thrown out by The Court of Appeals before the first suit was ever tried), and about the political pressure that super-corporation Viacom was under not to allow CBS News to cast the President in a negative light in an election year.

But "George Bush and the Texas Air National Guard" is only Chapter 2; Chapter 1 is titled "Abu Grahib," after CBS News first broke the pictures and report from the infamous Iraq prison. The pushback Rather received from his superiors was his first indicator that the network's brand (he often refers to the CBS eye figuratively tattooed on his ass) was compromised.

It had been the network of Murrow and Cronkite. Now it was a "nit on the nut of a gnat" in Viacom world. CBS News was expected not to upset the corporate business with the FCC or any other branch of government.

After the first two chapters, Rather then tells the story of his life from his humble beginnings in the depression-era and the "poorest white neighborhood in Houston" and the remarkable journey to a network anchor chair.

His time at CBS is really a map of the history of network news as we know (knew?) it. He draws a line from Civil Rights to the Kennedy Assassination to Vietnam to Watergate, and he's right in the middle of it all.

Rather credits the pictures provided by television news to the advancement of Civil Rights. He was on the ground in Oxford, Mississippi and Albany, Georgia and Birmingham, Alabama. And people knew who he was, so he frequently had to switch hotels and hotel rooms from night to night, while Civil Rights leaders kept updating their plan as well.

They needed to get their story out - visually. And perhaps most of all, they needed to find a police chief that was so filled with racial hatred, and was such a dumbass that he didn't care what the pictures looked like.

That was Birmingham's Bull Connor, who ordered that the high-pressure fire hoses be turned on children. The pictures live to this day.

On the Kennedy Assassination, Rather was the Dallas bureau chief. He was covering the President's visit, and wound up being on the air around the clock for days.

He rotated out of his position as London correspondent to spend the better part of a year on the ground in Vietnam, with a crew getting the real action.

And Rather (down the list from other CBS newsmen) made Nixon's Enemies List amid the Watergate hearings. While newspapermen broke the story, America was introduced to the cast of CREEPy characters through TV coverage of live hearings.

Ultimately Rather is in a good place now with HDNet's Dan Rather Reports, and is still going strong at age 80. The book's epilogue is titled "Corporatization, Politicization, and Trivialization of the News."

In 1823 Thomas Jefferson put it succinctly: "The only security of all is in a free press." Alas, when you have a press that has become compliant to politicians, owned by corporations and staffed by people who only want to entertain and obey their corporate masters, the plan fails. The "free press" is no longer a check on power. It has instead become part of the power apparatus itself.

It's (sort of) the mission of HBO's The Newsroom, a show Rather has endorsed, if you take away the cringe-inducing romance and endless monologuing.

My one critique of the book is as he describes 60 Minutes producer Jeff Fager, now CBS News honcho who Rather greatly respects, despite how it ended:

He's not a great writer - often the mark of a really good producer

What the hell does that mean? A "hard news" man like yourself probably wouldn't title his book something so pithy as Rather Outspoken. 

Would You, Rather?