George Takei pokes fun at himself and at Tim Hardaway at the same time for the latter’s recent comments regarding gay people. It’s absolutely hilarious!
Here it is:

Takei’s cackle at the end of the PSA reminded me of his one-shot role in ”Blow’d Up!”

Yes, you read right. That’s the University of Michigan opening their 2007 Football Season against the 2006 Division I-AA National Champions, the Appalachian State Mountaineers! I would most certainly say that some Michigan Fans are already taken aback at this prospect:

Jason Johnson, 29, from Madison Heights, is not pleased with the opener.
“Who is Appalachian State anyway?” he said. “That is a joke. I definitely wouldn’t pay to see that game. I’d rather pay to see the Lions play Troy High.”

Come to think of it, the Lions usually play the Girl Scouts and the Disabled Korean War Veterans during their season and for the Lions, a touchdown is worth 21 points. But let’s look at it from another angle.
Who is to say that because Appalachian State is a I-AA school that they have an inferior football program. I’d never heard of Boise State (which moved from I-AA to I-A only ten years ago) until they played against Oklahoma...and beat them!...in this year’s Tostitos Fiesta Bowl. Or consider that Steve “Air” McNair, who has played for Houston, Tennessee, and (ugh) Baltimore in the NFL, hailed from Alcorn State, a Division I-AA school.
I think we’re going to see more and more matchups such as this, which will ultimately benefit the I-AA schools, especially money-wise; Appalachian State’s going to take home $400,000 for their appearance in Ann Arbor and for them, that’s no chump change. In addition, the NFL and the developmental leagues (CFL, NFL Europa) will also start to take a harder look at I-AA talent.

And I don’t think I’ll be doing a lot of posting today for the obvious reasons. It should be fun to watch because of the weather forecast: wind and rain. In other words, a Super Bowl which is not under ideal weather conditions. This won’t bother the athletes in the least...but it will bother the NFL and Prince, for if their show gets rained out, look out! Actually, I hope it does...I don’t want to see another wardrobe malfunction!
It’s too bad the NFL has wimped out and not scheduled any Super Bowls in open-air stadiums up north, like, say, Soldier Field in Chicago or Lambeau Field in Green Bay. THAT would be REAL Football Weather!
So, with all that said...GO BEARS!!

I have a few friends who live in the Miami area; they are Fraternity Brothers. I should poll them and find out how close they live to the one-mile ‘No Tailgating’ zone the NFL has imposed for Super Bowl Sunday.
It seems to me that as the years pass, even events such as these, and the participants, become more and more insulated from the public. They might as well put a moat around the field and the stadium for that matter.
So sad...so sad....

NFC: DA BEARS 39, Saints 14
AFC: Colts 38. Patriots 34
Now, have you figured out yet who I’m going to root for?

Word is now out that David Beckham, husband of Posh Spice, has signed a five-year contract to play for the Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer. This could be as significant a development for US Soccer as Pelé’s signing thirty years ago to play for the New York Cosmos of the old North American Soccer League.
I don’t mind watching soccer, as I played it when I was a kid living over in Naples, Italy, only about a half-mile from a soccer stadium, and I understand how the game works. This might provide me with at least another reason to lure me to visit LA.

Florida 41, Ohio State 14.
Let’s face it, the Big Ten has always (in my eyes at least) held a football attitude of “three yards and a cloud of dust,” and that the SEC has been screwed over so many times by sportswriters when it comes to national rankings. I’m actually glad to see the Gators win this one.
And the Illegals’ protest was a bust too. Not only that, the Donks can get back to work.

After actually watching a Rose Bowl game on TV for the first time in quite a while, which resulted in Michigan getting whacked by USC 32-18, and with Lloyd Carr’s bowl record now at 5-7, I have to wonder how much longer he should remain at the Wolverines’ helm. In addition, since it seems Michigan can’t bring home the big trophy more often than it can, I also have to wonder if they should even be renovating Michigan Stadium, for which my Fraternity Brother’s wife gave up her season tickets her family had held since 1938 on account of the $1000 PSL they now charge.
Like the NFL, the NCAA is pricing the college football game out of the reach of the average Joe and his family, and I think that sucks.

This, from The Rag: the former heavyweight boxing champion was arrested this morning after nearly striking a Sheriff’s vehicle upon leaving a Scottsdale nightclub (read: t*tt* bar!). He voluntarily submitted to a sobriety test; when he failed that, the Sheriff’s Deputies searched his car and found cocaine! So they booked him at the Maricopa County Jail, where he will now get to experience Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s famous brand of hospitality.
Seems like this guy can never stay out of trouble with The Law.

Here’s another opportunity where I didn’t have to blow eighteen bucks on a ticket and concessions (I wouldn’t doubt it if it’s up to twenty by now). Instead, I stayed home and watched a DVD gift which I received from my workplace’s White Elephant game(?) on Friday: ”Invincible”, starring Mark Wahlberg as Vince Papale, a 30-year-old NFL rookie and South Philly “native,” (yes, that word’s in parentheses, more on that later) who made the cut and played three seasons for the Philadelphia Eagles, from 1976 to 1978.
The movie accurately depicted the economic hardship Philadelphia and many other American cities enduring during that time frame; the soundtrack brought back songs songs of the period. And the Eagles were terrible. Enter Dick Vermeil (Greg Kinnear), fresh from a Rose Bowl victory at UCLA. He announced an open tryout, and in the movie, this is where Papale was spotted and asked by Vermeil to come to training camp...one of the many inaccuracies I later found out about.
Hollywood’s desire to make a feel-good movie (and don’t get me wrong, this is achieved here and actually compares quite well to Rocky) leads filmmakers to bend the truth a little. Still, the real Vince Papale, now a successful mortgage broker, lent his support to the effort and met Wahlberg during filming.
Invincible is rated PG for sports action and some mild language. Now that it’s out on DVD only four months after its theatrical release, no need to plunk down the money; I wish they had done a better job with continuity. My rating: 7.5

I don’t care what other College Football Fans say about their alma maters, there are only two big regular-season games each and every year. One is where Michigan plays Ohio State (which the Buckeyes won in a squeaker 42-39 in the wake of Bo’s death), and the other happens today as USC hosts Notre Dame.
Let me put it to you this way: I wonder if there is a resourceful USC Fan who has taken the time to concoct a parody of the Notre Dame Fight Song by changing the lyrics to favor the Trojans. Besides, a school whose women’s teams are nicknamed The Women of Troy has earned some Class points with me.

One of the greatest coaches in all of College Football, Bo Schembechler, passed away today at the age of 77, the day before the Big Game between Michigan and Ohio State. The passing of this great icon, who was born in Ohio but found his fame in Ann Arbor, will, in my opinion, drive the Wolverines to win one for Bo.
I found out about this while I was at work this afternoon. I got through it OK. When it comes to College Football I’ve always been a Michigan Fan, and the rivalry with Ohio State has been an honorable one (it’s Notre Dame I can’t stand). Even the Buckeye Faithful will give Bo the respect he earned over the years. And a good many College Football Fans around the world will also mourn his passing.

It’s the well-rested Detroit Tigers vs. the beaten-up St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series! I LIKE this combo, so much so that I may just dust off and fire up the old TV to watch the games!
My prediction: Tigers in six games.

Guess what! Ramadan in 2012 occurs from July 21 to August 20, and the Games of the XXX Olympiad in London occurs from July 27 to August 12. You know what that means....
CONFLICT!
Yep, looks the IOC will have to kowtow to the Muslims if they want to avoid riots in London and other Olympic venues. But before they do that, they’ll have to do some research on past Olympic/Ramadan conflicts and see if they griped back then.
But that was then. This is 2012 we’re talking about, and judging from the last couple of years of Ramadan riots and in every year afterward, this will be a significant problem. Let the IOC solve it.

Hey Folks! Remember the giant grounded UFO named Cardinals Stadium over in Glendale? In two Sundays, it will no longer be known as Cardinals Stadium; the University of Phoenix signed a 20-year naming rights deal with the Arizona Cardinals, saving the stadium and the team from certain ridicule.
This gives the Cardinals a huge shot in the arm, since naming rights are not covered by the NFL’s revenue-sharing agreement. This means they can go get some better players and build themselves into a Super Bowl caliber team, instead of the NCAA Division I caliber they currently are. Yeah, I can definitely go to University of Phoenix Stadium now.