Well, my winning streak came to a screeching halt last week as I finished with only 3 correctly picked games, but two total points as I lost my “Lock of the Week.” Jim, also missed on his “LotW,” but was able to finish with 4 total points and thus, becomes the only competitor to beat me twice this season. With his 4-2 victory, here are our standings as we have hit the home stretch:

Jim +5
Matt +4
Kristen +1
Chris -1
Harry -1
Dave -3
Amanda -3
Ryan -6

This week sees the first of two consecutive needed miracle weeks for Chris and Harry. With Harry up for Week 14, let’s take a look at our picks. For posterity’s sake, we both made our Thursday picks before the game. He emailed it to me and I confided in Amanda and as you’ll see, neither of us are lying.

Jason’s Picks
Pittsburgh (-10) over Cleveland
New Orleans (-10.5) over Atlanta *
Detroit (+14) over Baltimore
Green Bay (-3) over Chicago
Houston (-5.5) over Seattle
Denver (+7.5) over Indianapolis
Miami (+2.5) over Jacksonville
Buffalo (+1) over Kansas City
Cincinnati (+7) over Minnesota
New England (-13) over Carolina
Tampa Bay (+5) over New York Jets
Tennessee (-14) over St. Louis
Washington (PK) over Oakland
Dallas (-2.5) over San Diego
Philadelphia (PK) over New York Giants
San Francisco (+3) over Arizona

Harry’s Picks
Pittsburgh (-10) over Cleveland
New Orleans (-10.5) over Atlanta
Detroit (+14) over Baltimore *
Green Bay (-3) over Chicago
Seattle (+5.5) over Houston
Denver (+7.5) over Indianapolis
Miami (+2.5) over Jacksonville
Buffalo (+1) over Kansas City
Minnesota (-7) over Cincinnati
New England (-13) over Carolina
New York Jets (-5) over Tampa Bay
St. Louis (+14) over Tennessee
Oakland (PK) over Washington
Dallas (-2.5) over San Diego
Philadelphia (PK) over New York Giants
Arizona (-3) over San Francisco

There was a lot that happened yesterday in college football that made me wonder, “Why do I love this stuff?” For all of the angst and frustration that I feel, there almost isn’t enough enjoyment to balance it out. Especially on days like yesterday. First, the enjoyment:

The Cincinnati/Pittsburgh game was not a well played football game. Neither team was capable of making a real defensive stand, with the exception of Cincinnati’s final stand. But what it lacked in defensive execution, it entirely made up for in “I can’t believe this is happening” joy. I called the game over in the second quarter when Cincinnati looked dead, down 3 TD’s, just before Mardy Gilyard returned a kickoff for touchdown to breathe some life into the team. The turning point was when Tony Pike decided to wake up and be the quarterback he’s capable of. Cincy won the game because of a missed extra point (each team missed a PAT) and won the Big East and a trip to a BCS game.

And then Alabama dismantled Florida. There’s not much else to say. Alabama outplayed Florida on both sides of the football. Greg McElroy looked like a real quarterback and Mark Ingram won the Heisman Trophy with his performance (apologies to Toby Gehrhart who didn’t have a game yesterday). Tim Tebow, on the other hand, looked like a mediocre college quarterback. And it was sad. I’d go into detail about how much respect I have for him, but there is a time for that in the future. For now, kudos to a deserving Alabama team. They looked unbeatable yesterday.

Texas on the other hand, should have lost and even though they won, and read me clearly here, DO NOT DESERVE TO PLAY ALABAMA IN THE BCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME. Texas should have lost a game to a Nebraska team that cannot score points. The clock ran out on Texas and they got another chance from the referees. How often do we see a field goal go through and an extra second runs off the clock? 80% of the time? 90%? How can we tell when the ball hits the ground on the sideline? The clock ran out on Texas’ season and the refs let them off the hook. They gave Texas a chance to win a game they did not deserve. And they were able to sneak a field goal around an upright and backdoor their sorry behinds into a game against Alabama where if all goes well, they’ll get the tar beaten out of them by Rolando McClain and Terrence Cody.

Make no mistake about it, Texas Christian University deserves to play Alabama in the title game and this is only about money. The University of Texas is a bigger ratings draw. And money and ratings means far more to the NCAA than fairness does or ever will. There is nothing fairer than a playoff. There are three undefeated teams (TCU, Cincinnati, and Boise State) who will not have a chance to play for a National Championship. As of 8:30 tonight, when the BCS games are announced, TCU, Boise, and Cincinnati’s seasons will essentially be over as they’ll be forced to play a meaningless game that solely exists for the NCAA to make more money off of 20 year olds. The NCAA is the real criminal here. The university presidents and conference commissioners who keep us from having an 8 or 16 team FBS playoff are nothing, if not money hungry, greedy, and selfish.

I’m not the first person to say this and I won’t be the last, but the BCS was designed to keep from having a questionable outcome to the college football season. Last year, Oklahoma and Texas had one loss each. Texas beat Oklahoma head-to-head. But Texas didn’t get to play in the National Championship game. Does that seem fair? In 2004, Auburn and Utah finished their seasons undefeated. Neither had a chance to play for a National Championship. The year before, Louisiana State and Southern California split a National Championship with each other. Did they play to determine a sole winner? Nope. We just say that they both won the National Championship that year. Fair? Nope. Logical? Not at all. Stupid? Absolutely.

And that, above all else, is what the BCS is. It is a stupid and unfair system to make more money for the NCAA through sponsorships and television contracts. In the old Mid-Atlantic Bias, I outlined a sensible and easy way to have a playoff. Many people have done this. The NCAA doesn’t care. The NCAA won’t care. I also blame the television networks. They are the only ones who can fix this. If Fox and ABC and CBS and NBC refused to bid for the rights to broadcast games, the NCAA would adopt a playoff faster than Elin Nordgren Woods renegotiated her prenuptial agreement. Until that happens though, Horned Frogs, Bearcats, and Broncos won’t be given the opportunity that they deserve. It’s high time that we stop punishing teams for being perfect. What more can you be than perfect? To the NCAA: Money.

So, I’ve made a mistake or two in my life. Human and all. But to me, the biggest mistake of my life and one that I’ll never be able to right, is my choice of college. I didn’t try hard enough in high school. If I had, I could have gone to a better school than I did. Money was a factor too. Neither of my parents went to college and I don’t think either had any idea how college gets paid for. And thus, I ended up at a state college 20 miles from my home, just like I had said I wouldn’t throughout my childhood.

If you could indulge me in a fit of grandeur, I’d like to be 17 again and get to choose where I would spend the next five years of my life (Yes, I’m going to take an extra year too).

There’s a lot that plays into the decision of where to go to college. Majors. That’s very important. I went to a school whose broadcasting/communication department was markedly behind the facilities I used in high school. I probably could have done some investigation into that matter prior to applying to BSC. But I didn’t. And my dream of being a broadcaster was sort of dead on arrival.

Beyond education, there’s a lot more though that should go into the undergrad decision. Like athletics (if you like that sort of thing). And location. And thus, weather. Internship opportunities are huge because you don’t get a job without one unless you’re lucky or “know people” (neither of these apply to me). And there’s other stuff too. So where should 25 year old Jason pretending he’s 17 years old go to college? Let’s break it down.

I’m going to major in communication no matter what, I feel. It’s just what I enjoy. I don’t have the voice for broadcasting though, so I’ll need to learn how to do other things. I’m thinking I’d like to be a video editor. Or maybe a more successful version of what I am now. A cool advance person. So who has a great communication program and the opportunity to intern in a place where I can get my foot in the door? (I’m using U.S. News and World Report) Carnegie-Mellon University is regarded as the best school for Communication/Media. And I like Pittsburgh a lot. But the weather would be tough and the school isn’t exactly an athletic juggernaut. The next two, California Institute of the Arts and Rhode Island School of Design have obvious flaws (athletics, one of them is in Rhode Island). Needing a school with athletics, my options in the top 10 are UCLA, USC, and Virginia Commonwealth. The latter is eliminated because it is in Richmond, VA. The other two are too easy. Huge athletic programs. In Los Angeles. Lots of feelings of entitlement. I’ve never encountered a person in my life from either school that could be considered “down to earth,” and it’s understandable. I mean, it’s L.A. And it’s not for me.

So I resign myself to the fact that I’m not going to get a Top-10 school, but really, I’m not exactly Top-10 material.

Now is probably a good time to describe what I want in the athletic world. I want a school where there is a passionate fanbase and a successful basketball or football (preferably the latter) team, but not USC successful. I don’t necesarily want to root for a football factory. I want a program. And a Division I program. So every state school that doesn’t have a Division I basketball and football program, please take a hike.

When it comes to weather, I’m flexible. I don’t need to be in Hawaii. In fact, it would be too expensive. I also don’t want the University of Maine (for a variety of reasons). My ideal climate is whatever you call Berkeley, California’s climate. Or something close to it.

So here we are. I want a school with good athletics, enjoyable weather, decent opportunity for post-college success, and a communication program that is better than my high school’s. But there’s something that we’ve missed. Location! What if I could get all of these things while also living in a big city without all of L.A.’s pretense? Where can I do that?

University of Washington

I’d have a Pac-10 athletic program. Not too much success, but enough that I’d want to go to all of the games and root for the teams. The weather is not a problem. I’m not that concerned about it being cloudy. I would have plenty of internship opportunities living in Seattle. Oh, and I’d live in Seattle. And, low and behold, they have my major.

So now it’s your turn, readers of the Mid-Atlantic Bias (now the Pacific Northwest Bias). If you could do it all again, where would you end up?

(Editor’s Note: Jim pointed out in the comments section that upon my initial posting, I forgot to include his lock of the week. Consider it included. Thank you James.)

Week 12 saw my winning streak continue with a 6-4 victory over Dave, with us both hitting on our Locks of the Week. Here are our standings as we get closer to the championship week:

Matt +4
Jim +3
Kristen +1
Chris -1
Harry -1
Dave -3
Amanda -3
Ryan -6

This week sees Jim attempting to essentially lock up the second championship spot (with Matt almost assured of the other) barring a big week by Harry or Chris. Here are our picks:

Jason’s Picks
Buffalo (+1) over New York Jets
Philadelphia (-5) over Atlanta
Carolina (-6.5) over Tampa Bay
Chicago (-9.5) over St. Louis
Cincinnati (-14) over Detroit
Tennessee (+8) over Indianapolis
Houston (PK) over Jacksonville
Denver (-4) over Kansas City
Pittsburgh (-11.5) over Oakland
New Orleans (-9.5) over Washington
New England (-5) over Miami
San Diego (-13.5) over Cleveland
Dallas (-1) over New York Giants
San Francisco (-1) over Seattle
Minnesota (-4.5) over Arizona *
Baltimore (+3) over Green Bay

Jim’s Picks
New York Jets (-1) over Buffalo
Atlanta (+5) over Philadelphia
Carolina (-6.5) over Tampa Bay
Chicago (-9.5) over St. Louis
Cincinnati (-14) over Detroit
Tennessee (+8) over Indianapolis
Jacksonville (PK) over Houston
Denver (-4) over Kansas City
Pittsburgh (-11.5) over Oakland
New Orleans (-9.5) over Washington
New England (-5) over Miami
San Diego (-13.5) over Cleveland
Dallas (-1) over New York Giants
San Francisco (-1) over Seattle
Minnesota (-4.5) over Arizona *
Green Bay (-3) over Baltimore

There was a time many years ago (like 4) when I started to realize that my favorite athletes were getting younger than me. Kevin Durant was a big one for me. The biggest was LeBron James. He may only be two months younger than I, but he’s a world more accomplished than I’ll ever be. And was at the age of 16. I feared for a while that I would begin to dislike sports because the athletes were going to be getting younger than I. And while I began to dislike sports a little, or at least like them in a different way, it was never really because the athletes were younger. I found that, yes, I could root for “kids.”

Now, admire kids, that was another story. I never thought that I’d be able to look at someone 4 years my junior and think, “Now there’s someone I can look up to.” That was until Tim Tebow came along.

During Tebow’s first year at the University of Florida he rubbed me the wrong way. He celebrated two yard runs like he was winning an Olympic medal. He was like a vulture. Chris Leak would drive the Gators down the field while the Gator fans sat on their hands. And then they’d get to the two-yard line and bring in the big fullback/quarterback Freshman guy, the fans would go bananas, he’d jump pass into the endzone, flail his arms around, and everyone would be happy. And then the Gators won the National Title. And his legacy grew, even if Chris Leak was immeasurably more responsible for that title than Tebow.

Something happened though during that National Title dismantling of Ohio State. I grew to appreciate Tebow. I could sense that he was more happy than everyone else, especially the always vanilla Leak, to be playing football. I didn’t think he could be successful as a full-time starter (I was wrong), but I began to love his genuine energy and enjoyment of football.

On the football field, I admire Tim Tebow because there is something different about his celebrations. There is nothing calculated about them. He is like a volcano. His lava bubbles to the surface pre-snap, and by the time the whistle blows the play dead, everything around Tim Tebow becomes Pompeii. He loves the game that he is so good at. He cares so much about winning and trying his best. You know, all that cliche stuff that is never really genuine. Except it is with him. With Tebow, I get the feeling that he knows that he’s not supremely blessed with football talents. He’s not a good passer. His mechanics are atrocious. He is not fast. I would be surprised if he runs a 4.6 40-yard dash at the combine. He’s hardly ever taken a traditional snap and thus has hardly ever executed a traditional hand off to a running back. But for all of those holes in his Quarterbacking game, there is no shortage of passion and love for football. Tim Tebow loves what he does more than you do. And I do. And almost anyone does.

Off the football field, Tim Tebow is a perfect person. Tebow performs missionary work, preaches, goes to class, doesn’t have a cocktail waitress mistress, and is somehow still a virgin despite the fact that anyone would sleep with him (oh, and he goes to the University of Florida). Watching Tim Tebow during his tenure at Florida has made me wish I had a son to share him with.

Whether you’re a Gator, a Nole, a Cane, or have no idea what I’m talking about, take a moment this weekend (Saturday at 4 p.m. on CBS) to watch Tebow perform his craft in the SEC Championship Game and de facto National Seminfinal game. No matter the result, it will be Tebow’s second-to-last college game. So do yourself a favor, while you can and even if you don’t love football, watch someone work so hard to be as good at their job as they can possibly be. Tebow has never played halfheartedly. And he assuredly won’t do so on Saturday. His beloved Gators may lose to Alabama, but it won’t be because Tim Tebow left anything in his tank. He leaves everything on every field that he ever steps on. One of the many reasons that I admire him and will miss him greatly when his college career is over.

While I was away, there were a few news stories that captured the imagination of the Americas. I’d like to talk about these stories.

The big sports story of the moment actually has far more to do with TMZ (feel free to go back and watch my video now) than with ESPN, though the Leader has decided to up the ante on their coverage of this story, reporting pieces of “investigative” “journalism” from TMZ as though they were from the NYT. There’s a world of things that may have happened between Tiger and Elin Woods. He may have cheated on her with a sunglasses aficionado. She may have smacked him in the face with a 3 wood. She may have smashed the windows on his Cadillac Escalade. He may have a golf cart sitting in his front yard. The one definite in this story is that Tiger Woods and his PR machine botched this story worse than OJ and AC botched their trip to Mexico in 1994. How easy would it have been for Tiger Woods to just tell “the truth?” I mean, what’s more likely? That Tiger Woods was leaving his house at 2:30 in the morning, backed out of the driveway, hit a fire hydrant, careened into a neighbors yard, hit a tree, and was knocked unconscious or that he got into a fight with his wife, tried to leave, and boom went the dynamite? As it stands right now, his career path has changed. He is no longer immaculate. And there will always be a cloud over him until he comes clean. It’s not that he owes it to us. It’s that he owes it to himself.

The big non-story of the moment has everything to do with TMZ. I’m not one to criticize those who are obsessed with celebrity. My TMZ video is clearly the highpoint of the first 25 years of my life. But I do have a bit of a problem with wealthy blowhards who are obsessed with being more wealthy and famous. I am of course, talking about the Salahi’s, who “attended” the first White House state dinner. Watching these two morons I get the feeling that the man, Tareq, is just along for the ride while his smiling wife Michelle (whose name I refuse to spell “correctly”) tries her darnedest to get famous. People like this just make me so unnecessarily angry. The silver lining of all of this is that hopefully the White House security will be extra careful all the time. The turd-colored lining is if these two nitwits give an idea to some other nitwit who wants to “meet” the President and his family. I hope that the Salahi’s go to jail for as long a time as possible. Maybe they can get famous there.

The winning streak is alive and well, much like the sound of music. I was able to squeak out a one-point victory over Kristen in Week 11. We both missed wildly on our “Locks of the Week,” so ultimately, this week came down to Green Bay’s slight victory (against the spread) over San Francisco. I hit 7 picks and Kristen hit 6. Here are our standings heading into this week:

Matt +4
Jim +3
Kristen +1
Dave -1
Chris -1
Harry -1
Amanda -3
Ryan -6

This week, we’ve had to flip-flop order a bit. While it is Jim’s turn to pick this week, I have switched he and Dave for convenience purposes (I’m typing this at Dave’s apartment as we speak). Therefore, Dave will pick in Week 12 and Jim will pick in Week 13. If anyone has a problem with this, they probably don’t have a lot to do with their time. On to our picks.

Jason’s Picks
Green Bay (-11) over Detroit
Oakland (+14) over Dallas
New York Giants (-6) over Denver
Tampa Bay (+12.5) over Atlanta
Miami (-3) over Buffalo
Cleveland (+15) over Cincinnati
Indianapolis (-4) over Houston *
Carolina (+2.5) over New York Jets
Philadelphia (-9) over Washington
Seattle (-2.5) over St. Louis
Kansas City (+14.5) over San Diego
Jacksonville (+3) over San Francisco
Minnesota (-9.5) over Chicago
Tennessee (-3) over Arizona
Pittsburgh (+2) over Baltimore
New England (+2.5) over New Orleans

Dave’s Picks
Detroit (+11) over Green Bay
Oakland (+14) over Dallas
New York Giants (-6) over Denver
Tampa Bay (+12.5) over Atlanta
Miami (-3) over Buffalo
Cincinnati (-15) over Cleveland
Houston (+4) over Indianapolis
Carolina (+2.5) over New York Jets
Philadelphia (-9) over Washington
St. Louis (+2.5) over Seattle
Kansas City (+14.5) over San Diego
San Francisco (-3) over Jacksonville
Chicago (+9.5) over Minnesota
Arizona (+3) over Tennessee
Baltimore (-2) over Pittsburgh
New Orleans (-2.5) over New England *

Intentions and their subsequent results often vary greatly and this is one of those cases. I have in my Inbox, a probably 1/3 written blog entry. It will never see the light of day, however. At least not in the near future. It was going to be a literary Venn diagram comparing and contrasting my two homes, Taunton, MA and Washington DC. However, I have not the time to complete the other 2/3.

With that, I will be gone for 10 days from the Mid-Atlantic Bias. I will make every effort to get a picks column up for Week 12, but other than that, you’ll have to read something else.

Have a great Thanksgiving folks! I’ll be seeing some/most of you very soon.

(Editor’s Note: Spelling errors need to be ignored. I got this up before 8:00 P.M. which is a miracle in its own right)

Well, I took it upon myself to try to make this a little more competitive, or at least give everyone else a shot at first place, and I must say, I’m fairly satisfied with my redemptive victory last week. Matthew destroyed me in week 2, as you’ll remember, but I was able to get back two of the points he gained with an 8-6 victory. The big key was Matt losing on his “Lock of the Week” (despite the Colts winning the game) and me just scraping by on mine (Baltimore (-12) over Cleveland). After 10 weeks of fun, here are our standings:

Matthew +4
Jim +3
Kristen +2
David -1
Chris -1
Harry -1
Amanda -3
Ryan -6

This week is another intriguing matchup, as Kristen looks to hypothetically lock up a bid in our Week 17 title game. To do that, she’ll have to stop my 5 week winning streak. (As a sort of side note, I’d like to thank Kristen for making these picks, as Matt did last week, on very short notice. I really appreciate it.)

Jason’s Picks
Carolina (-3.5) over Miami *
Indianapolis (-1) over Baltimore
Washington (+12) over Dallas
Detroit (-3.5) over Cleveland
Green Bay (-5.5) over San Francisco
Jacksonville (-8) over Buffalo
Pittsburgh (-10) over Kansas City
Minnesota (-11) over Seattle
New York Giants (-7) over Atlanta
Tampa Bay (+11.5) over New Orleans
Arizona (-9) over St. Louis
San Diego (PK) over Denver
New England (-10.5) over New York Jets
Cincinnati (-9.5) over Oakland
Philadelphia (-2) over Chicago
Tennessee (+3.5) over Houston

Kristen’s Picks
Carolina (-3.5) over Miami
Indianapolis (-1) over Baltimore
Dallas (-12) over Washington
Detroit (-3.5) over Cleveland
San Francisco (+5.5) over Green Bay
Jacksonville (-8) over Buffalo
Pittsburgh (-10) over Kansas City
Seattle (+11) over Minnesota *
Atlanta (+7) over New York Giants
Tampa Bay (+11.5) over New Orleans
Arizona (-9) over St. Louis
San Diego (PK) over Denver
New England (-10.5) over New York Jets
Oakland (+9.5) over Cincinnati
Philadelphia (-2) over Chicago
Tennessee (+3.5) over Houston

One of my favorite George Carlin bits, found in his books, was “Short Takes.” Sometimes, the best comedy is one-liners. Most of my favorites I choose not to publish in this mostly family friendly space. But, for example:

“Griddle cakes, pancakes, hotcakes, flapjack: why are there four names for grilled batter and only one word for love?”

With that, I’m in a bit of a scatter-brained mood, so allow me to rip off perhaps the best stand up comedian in history with a few of the thoughts that have been troubling me recently. Some will be intended jokes, other observations:

-Who invented stand up comedy and why do people enjoy watching some guy or girl talk about how pathetic their life is?

-This college kid on the train today kept talking to his friend about the concept of “loneliness” and how the concept is not real. His “argument” was that society makes us believe in it. And while his banter was just typical college-kid nonsense, I really hoped that about twenty years from now, he comes home from work to find that his wife and two children have packed up and left him alone.

-How much money do you think those two guys from Los del Rio made from one song?

-On that subject, listen to the “Macarena” and tell yourself that you couldn’t have come up with that song.

-There are so many awful sports announcers. I find myself constantly yelling at the TV having to correct things and I wonder, “Why is it so hard to get a job in sports media?”

-Also on the train today, a man with visible chunks of dandruff kept scratching his head and I could see the pieces of dead scalp falling to the ground and I thought, “Hat?”

-The MAAC will get two teams in this year’s NCAA tournament: Siena and Niagara.

-Why do people still watch “Family Guy?” The same thing happens every episode.

-I really enjoy that I live so close to West Virginia. Sunday, I wanted to go for a drive, so I just drove to West Virginia. That used to take 10 hours. Now it takes 1.

-I know everyone loves revenge and all, but the death penalty is just really stupid. A man was put to death in Virginia today who murdered two people 8 years ago. It was the only crime he ever commit and he did it to impress a stripper. Do you think maybe life in prison and psychiatric counseling would have worked a little bit better than lethal injection?

-I’m making progress on my “Best Of The Decade” mix. I have successfully listed every album of worth that I own from this decade and my next project will be to list my favorite song from each album. I will then whittle down the list to 15 or so, saving room for great singles.

-When I watch college basketball or football, I really wish I had gone to a Division I university.

And that’s it for now. A cheap way to have a blog post and thus feel like a productive person. I’ll leave you with another Carlin gem:

“You live eighty years, and the best you get is about six minutes of pure magic.”