The last three places I’ve called home: Suffolk County, NY, Blacksburg, VA and Yorktown, VA.
What does that tell you? It doesn’t take much to get me going.
Saturday night, after Tech proved me wrong for the second week in a row, a pair of good Hokies, Rachel and Nikki, took me to the coolest place in Brooklyn. Well, the coolest place in Brooklyn that I've been to (the list isn't long).
From the outside, it looked no different than a homeless shelter, but on the inside, it’s a playground for any man born in the late ’70s or ’80s.
I’m talking about Barcade in the Williamsburg neighborhood. Basically, it’s about 30 of the most classic video games ever, a pool table and about 25 beers on tap I had never tried. You don’t go there to make friends. You go there with friends to beat them in video games.
Five dollars in the change machine gave me 20 chances to feel like I was 10 years old again playing Toobin, Punch Out, Frogger, Donkey Kong, the original Cruis’n USA (don’t remember the name), Tapper…the list goes on.
Anyway, I wanted to share my Saturday night experience with you. So, if you had a Nintendo as a kid and you’re ever in Brooklyn, hit up Union Avenue.
As for the football…I can’t say I watched much during the day. Two months of not accomplishing anything on off Saturdays caught up with me, but here’s what I did see and can talk about:
LSU-Tennessee: What a finish. What’s the deal with LSU JaMarcus Russell? The guy is a friggin’ monster with all the physical tools, but how far does his composure go? I’d argue that it goes a pretty long way, considering he engineered the game-winning drive in one of the largest stadiums in the country. But he did throw three picks before that, and he has been a big letdown in LSU’s two losses this year. If he could get his mind on par with his body, the sky’s the limit. As for Tennessee, the Vols get my props. I really thought they would get rolled in this game, but they threw everything but the kitchen sink at the Tigers, even without Erik Ainge. The future’s pretty bright in Knoxville.
Wake Forest-Boston College: WAKE FOREST IS FOR REAL. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. But they do finish with at game at Florida State, a home date with Virginia Tech and a potential play-in game with Maryland – who’s also atop the Atlantic Division, to face Georgia Tech for the ACC title. Oh, and Clemson went from a Top 10 team to unranked in about 14 days, dagger. OH! And Miami has four losses; this is turning into a bigger fall from grace than Brittney Spears.
Calvin Johnson: All year I’ve said this guy is the best player in college football, go and check the records. But, two weeks ago I say he’s not worthy of being in the Heisman discussion anymore, and what does he do? Nine catches, 168 yards, 2 TDs. Of course, it always works out that way.
Michigan & Ohio State: I guess they realized they have to win a few more ball games before they can slug it out on the 18th and it won’t be the cake walk they thought it would be. How funny would it have been if Ball State chirped its way to an upset? I would have laughed.
Louisville: I’m glad the Cardinals are No. 3 in the BCS. They deserve to be. After the WVU-UL game, senile Lou Holtz didn’t think they had proven enough yet because they didn’t win in convincing enough fashion. Basically, he said they won because WVU made mistakes. Seriously? Does he not think the Cardinals might have tried to make the Mountaineers make mistakes? I would think so. They shouldn’t let some people on TV.
Here’s how I’m seeing it…ordered list format (That’s HTML talk. Crazy, I know):
1. Ohio State
2. Louisville
3. Michigan
4. Florida
5. Texas
6. Auburn
7. Louisiana State
8. Arkansas
9. Southern California
10. Tennessee
11. California
12. West Virginia
13. Rutgers
14. Wisconsin
15. Notre Dame
16. Georgia Tech
17. Wake Forest
18. Boise State
19. Boston College
20. Virginia Tech
21. Iowa
22. Oregon
23. Oklahoma
24. Nebraska
25. Texas A&M
That’s it for now. I’ll talk to y’all on Wednesday about some Rutgers football. Keep on rocking in the free world.
Comments (2)
Enjoyed the article. Two question marks 1. You cannot complain about the analysis of Lou Holtz without addressing the real idiot in the booth, Mark May. 2. Don't jump the Louisville bandwagon just yet. The way they beat West Virginia was with defense and Special teams. Not with the high powered offense that had to settle for 3 FG's two of which came after entering the Red Zone. Things that can't happen against Michigan, Ohio State, and probably Florida and Texas.
Louisville was very impressive. I'm convinced they can beat Michigan or Florida (after watching the fights Ball State and Vandy put up). I don't know about Texas or Ohio State but after OSU's performance against Illinois, I am convinced anything is possible this season. The Cardinals are definitely deserving of the #3 spot in the country. Let's see if they can hold onto it against the Scarlet Knights this Thursday.