Year Odds and Ends

As 2016 comes to a close, it has certainly been an interesting year. One year ends and another begins. I hope 2017 will be a better year and I hope I have the time to make more entries here. My current job takes up the vast majority of my time, but sooner or later, that will change.

A year ago, I figured Second Chance would have been published by now. Little did I know that my sixth book, Justice, will end up being my fifth published book. Justice is still in the editing process, but it's looking much better. After this post, I'm making the time to get some significant work done on it.

Since I haven't made a post since July, let's get down to business.

Congrats to the 59-103 Minnesota Twins. You are the 2016 MLB Kings of the Cellar. Even though you ended the year on a two game winning streak, you dominated the runner-up 68-94 Cincinnati Reds by nine games!

This week's NFL Kings of the Cellar, the 1-14 Cleveland Browns, are one loss away from the winning the beer in the NFL cellar. They face a playoff bound Pittsburgh Steelers team on the road, so their title is all but earned. Their only competition, the 2-13 San Francisco 49ers, will host the Seattle Seahawks. The title will go to who wants the beer more.

Now for some trivia. On December 22, 1979, the LSU Tigers faced off against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons in the Tangerine Bowl (now the Citrus Bowl). LSU won easily, 34-10. Here's some trivia about the players in that game.

• Wake Forest's head coach was John Mackovic. He had a 34-14 record there and went on to coach at Illinois (1988-91), Texas (1992-97), and Arizona (2001-03). His record was 95-82-3. 
• Mackovic was also a QB for the team from 1962-64. As QB, he threw 6 TD's and 26 INTs. This was his only bowl appearance with the Demon Deacons.
• Wake Forest WR Kenny Duckett was drafted in the 3rd round of the 1982 Draft.  He played for the Saints from 1982-85 and the Dallas Cowboys in 1985. Over his career, he caught 36 passes for 503 yards and 4 TD's.
• The was LSU head coach Charlie McClendon's last season with the Tigers. He coached the team for 18 seasons with a 137-59-7 record. His bowl record was 7-6.
• LSU QB David Woodley went on to get drafted in the 8th round of the 1980 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins. He played for Miami from 1980-83, including an appearance in Super Bowl XVII, and the Pittsburgh Steelers from 1983-85. Over his career, he passed for 8,558 yards 48 TD's and 63 INT's.
• LSU RB Hokie Gajan went on to get drafted in the 10th round of the 1981 Draft by the New Orleans Saints. He played for the team until 1985, when a knee injury ended his playing career. Over his career, he rushed 252 - 1358 yds and 11 TD's, for a Saints record of 5.4 yards per carry. He also caught 63 passes for 515 yards and 2 TD's. He went on to be a scout for the team and later, the color analyst for WWL radio. He passed away in 2016.
• LSU RB Carlos Carson was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the 5th round the the 1980 Draft. He played from 1980-89 with the Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles (1989). He played WR and caught 353 passes for 6,372 yards and 33 TD's.
• LSU WR Tracy Porter was drafted by the Detroit Lions in the 4th round of the 1981 Draft. He played for the Lions (1981-82) and the Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts (1983-84). He caught 79 passes for 1,161 yards and 3 TD's.
• LSU WR Orlando McDaniel was drafted in the 2nd round of the 1982 Draft by the Denver Broncos. This was his only season in the NFL. He played in 3 games, with no statistics.
• LSU TE Greg LaFleur went on to get drafted in the 3rd round of the 1981 Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles. However, he never played for the team. Instead, he played for the St. Louis Cardinals (1981-86) and the Indianapolis Colts (1986). He caught 64 passes for 729 yards and 3 TD's.
• LSU TE Malcolm Scott was drafted by the New York Giants in the 5th round of the 1983 Draft. This was his only year with the team. He played again during the 1987 players' strike with the Saints. Over his brief career, he caught 23 passes for 241 yards and no TD's.
• LSU DB Willie Teal went on the play for the Minnesota Vikings from 1980-86 and the Los Angeles Raiders in 1987.
• LSU DB Chris Williams went on to play for the Buffalo Bills from 1981-83.
  
  Here is a link to the video of the 1979 Tangerine Bowl on YouTube. Enjoy.
  
  Have a great day and Happy New Year!!!

Last Place Update - December 16

So much for the crowd thinning out. Once again, there's a three-way tie and this week, the 3-10 San Diego Chargers are Kings of the Cellar. It's true that the 3-10 Cleveland Browns and 3-10 Tennessee Titans deserve a seat in the Cellar, but the Chargers earned the title this week, because they have no division wins. That and they're 1-8 since October 4. Had the Browns lost last week, they would be in sole possession of last place. Oh well.

Okay Dirty Birds, break time's over. That's right. The 6-7 Atlanta Falcons rose up and are once again this week's honorable mention. They snatched the mention from the 8-5 Minnesota Vikings by getting shut out 38-0 by the 13-0 Carolina Panthers, Carolina's first ever shutout victory over the Dirty Birds. It's the first time Atlanta has been shut out since 2004, when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers spanked them 27-0. The last time Atlanta was shut out 38-0 was in 1987 by HOFer Rickey Jackson, HOF nominee Sam Mills (who should be in the Hall of Fame) and the New Orleans Saints.

Next loss...

The San Diego Chargers will host the 5-8 Miami Dolphins on Sunday. Miami leads the series 16-14 and are 2-9 against the Dolphins since 1995. They first met in 1966, back in the AFL, when the Chargers spanked Miami 44-10. Every postseason game these two teams played in was in the divisional round. Their last playoff game was in the 1994 season, when San Diego won 22-21 and went on to lose Super Bowl XXIX. That series is tied 2-2. They went to overtime three times and the Chargers won every one. They last time the two teams went to overtime was in 1984, a 34-28 Chargers win. The last time Miami shut out San Diego was 37-0 in 2014. The last time San Diego shut out Miami was 24-0 in 1967.

Here are some historical scores for games being played this week, from December 16,

1962  St. Louis Cardinals 45 - Philadelphia 35
1978  Pittsburgh 21 - Denver 7
2002  Tennessee 24 - New England 7
2012  Houston 29 - Indianapolis 17

Will San Diego hold on to their place in the Cellar? Will Atlanta rise up and lose the rest of their games? Will Cleveland even score against Seattle?

Stay tuned.

Have a great day!!!

Almost That Time of Year & A Pair of Kings

It's almost that time of year again. No, it's not Halloween, Thanksgiving, or even Christmas. In a few weeks, NaNoWriMo begins. For those of you who don't know, NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month, which occurs each November. Last year, I wrote Second Chance, which is in (I hope) the final editing stages. April and July are Camp NaNoWriMo months and I participated in each, writng Justice in April and Timewatch in July. Both novels are only completed first drafts.

Back in June, I struggled with what I wanted to write versus what wanted to be written. However, this time is much easier. Although I do have a couple of story ideas, such as the sequel to Justice and a story I've been mulling over for some time, there are short stories and two unfinished novels I could complete or transcribe. If I had to decide now, the choice would be to finish and transcribe handwritten stories. I have enough short stories for another book, plus a couple of others I'm thinking about writing. This was the other choice for July's Camp NaNoWriMo.

And then there's the third choice: Don't participate. As previously stated, I have two novels in first draft form that need editing. I'm also revamping or overhauling the books I already published. There's a LOT of editing to do and it may be a better idea to focus on that. There's still time to think about it and I may write one story and edit another.

Let's get to some sports.

Alas, there will be no three-peat. Congratulations to the 64-98 Arizona Diamondbacks. They are the 2014 Kings of the Cellar and all the beer goes to them. The 66-96 Colorado Rockies lost by two games. The 2012 and 2013 champion Houston Astros won enough games to end the season at 70-92.

And now for some football. The 0-5 Jacksonville Jaguars are this week's Kings of the Cellar. They are searching for their first win since December 5. The 0-4 Oakland Raiders are on Jacksonville's tail, going after their first win since November 17. Neither team is expected to win on Sunday. This week's honorable mention goes to the 1-4 Tennessee Titans, who the Jaguars play this week. This should be a fun game to watch. After winning the first game of the season, Tennessee hasn't won since.

The 3-2 Green Bay Packers travel to Miami to take on the 2-2 Dolphins. Miami leads the series 10-3. They last met in 2010, when the Dolphins won in the only overtime game in the series, 23-20. Green Bay last played in Miami in 2006, when Brett Favre led the Packers to its last victory over Joey Harrington and the Dolphins, 34-24. They first met in 1971, when the Dolphins trounced the Packers 27-6. Neither team has ever shut out the other nor have they met in the postseason.

The 2-2 Cleveland Browns, fresh off their record setting comeback win, host the 3-2 Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers lead the series 68-57 and barely survived last month's game in Pittsburgh, 30-27. The Browns last beat Pittsburgh in 2012, 20-14. They first met in 1950, when Cleveland won 30-17. They also faced each other in the playoffs twice. The Steelers won the 1995 AFC Divisional Round game 29-9 and the 2003 Wild Card round 36-33. Pittsburgh is 4-1 against the Browns in overtime. They first went to OT in 1978, when the Steelers won 15-9. Their last overtime game was in 2002, when the Steelers won 16-13. Cleveland's only OT victory was in 1986, 37-31. The last time Pittsburgh shut out Cleveland was 31-0 in 2008. The last time Cleveland shut out Pittsburgh was 51-0 in 1989.

If you haven't done so already, please visit my Facebook author page and my Amazon author page, and put a like on each. Thank you for reading my post and thank you for your support.

Until next time...have a great day!!!

Heisman Trophy Trivia

It's not often I do two entries in one day, but here we are.

   While watching the Ole Miss/LSU game, CBS posted their the trivia question of the game. It involved the two Mannings who were Ole Miss quarterbacks, Archie (1970) and Eli (2003). Both men were 3rd in the Heisman voting in their senior seasons. CBS asked the question who were ahead of Archie and Eli in the Heisman voting? Here is the answer.

   Archie was 3rd behind Joe Theismann and winner Jim Plunkett. Eli was 3rd behind Larry Fitzgerald and winner Jason White.

That trivia question inspired these two trivia questions.

1) Which NFL team drafted the most Heisman winners?

The Detroit Lions drafted 10 Heisman winners.

1936 Larry Kelley - E (Yale)
1937 Clint Frank - RB (Yale)
1942 Frank Sinkwich - RB (Georgia)
1946 Glenn Davis - RB (Army)
1949 Leon Hart - E (Notre Dame)
1955 Howard "Hopalong" Cassidy - RB (Ohio State)
1969 Steve Owens - RB (Oklahoma)
1978 Billy Sims - RB (Oklahoma)
1988 Barry Sanders - RB (Oklahoma State)
1989 Andre Ware - QB (Houston)

2) Which NFL teams have never drafted a Heisman Trophy winner?

There are 5 teams:

Miami Dolphins
Houston Texans
Jacksonville Jaguars
San Diego Chargers
Seattle Seahawks

There are three teams who drafted Heisman winners, but no longer exist:

   The Brooklyn Dodgers drafted 1939 winner Nile Kinnick from Iowa in 1940. The Dodgers were in the NFL from 1930-44. The Boston Yanks drafted QB Angelo Bertelli from Notre Dame with their first ever pick in the draft in 1944. Boston was in the NFL from 1944-49. The New York Bulldogs drafted RB Doak Walker from SMU in the first round. The Bulldogs were in the NFL from 1949-51. They were the Bulldogs in 1949 and the Yanks their last two years.

Today in 1986 - Miami Dolphins vs New York Jets

Today in 1986, the Miami Dolphins went to The Meadowlands to take on the New York Jets in an exciting Week 3 divisional contest between two members of the great quarterback class of 1983. The best way to describe this game is that it was a carpet bombing by both sides.

   The Jets got on the board first on a 32 yard field goal by Pat Leahy. The Dolphins responded with a touchdown pass from Dan Marino to James Pruitt. Miami led 7-3 at the end of the first quarter.

   Then the scorefest began. RB Johnny Hector scored both of his rushing touchdowns for the game, putting New York in the lead 17-7. Dan Marino responded in kind for Miami by throwing touchdown passes to TE Dan Johnson and WR Mark Duper. Ken O'Brien countered Marino by throwing two long touchdown passes of 50 and 65 yards to WR Wesley Walker. The Jets led 31-21 at halftime.

   The third quarter belonged to the Dolphins. Marino threw a 46 yard touchdown pass to WR Mark Duper. Fuad Reveiz later kicked a 44 yard field goal. Marino closed out the quarter by throwing a touchdown pass to TE Bruce Hardy. Miami led 38-31 at the end of the quarter.

   But the Jets would not be denied. RB Dennis Bligen tied the game on a 7 yard touchdown run. Miami drove and took the lead again on a 4 yard touchdown pass from Marino to WR Mark Clayton. On the last play of regulation, the Jets sent the game to overtime on a 21 yard touchdown pass from O'Brien to Walker tying the game 45-45.

   The Jets got the ball in overtime. There was a controversial call on the kickoff when Michael Harper fumbled and Mike Kozlowski recovered for the Dolphins. Before Miami could challenge the call, O'Brien quickly got the offense lined up and ran a play, which was a 15 yard pass from O'Brien to WR Al Toon. The Jets drove to the Dolphins 43 yard line where O'Brien threw the winning touchdown pass to Walker. The New York Jets beat the Miami Dolphins 51-45.

   For the Dolphins, Dan Marino threw 30-50 for 448 yards, 6 TDs and 2 INTs. Mark Clayton had 8 catches for 174 yards and a touchdown. Mark Duper had 7 catches for 154 yards and 2 touchdowns. Mark Brown had 2 sacks in the game, while Hugh Green had one sack.

   For the Jets, Ken O'Brien threw 29-43 for 479 yards, 4 TDs and 1 INT. Johnny Hector ran 22 times for 82 yards and 2 touchdowns. Al Toon had 7 receptions for 111 yards and Wesley Walker had 6 catches for 194 yards and 4 touchdowns. Joe Klecko had 1.5 sacks and Bob Crable had half a sack.

   The Jets improved to 2-1 with the win. They finished the season at 10-6, 2nd in the AFC East. They made the playoffs, losing in overtime in the divisional round against the Cleveland Browns 23-20. The Dolphins finished the season at 8-8, third in the AFC East and missed the playoffs.


Trivia

• There were 3 Hall of Famers present, all with the Dolphins: Dan Marino, Dwight Stephenson, and head coach Don Shula.
• This was Shula's 17th season with the Dolphins. He coached the team from 1970-95, leading the team to five Super Bowls, winning two of them (VII and VIII). He also was the head coach for the Baltimore Colts from 1963-69, winning the 1968 NFL Championship, but losing Super Bowl III to the New York Jets.
• This was Joe Walton's fourth season as head coach of the Jets. He coached the team from 1983-89.
• Shula played for the Cleveland Browns (1951-52), Baltimore Colts (1953-56), and Washington Redskins (1957).
• Walton played for the Washington Redskins (1957-60) and the New York Giants (1961-63).
• Shula and Walton were teammates with the Redskins in 1957.
• Dolphins defensive coordinator Chuck Studley was the interim head coach for the Houston Oilers in 1983.
• Jets WR Wesley Walker scored more touchdowns in this game (4) than he did for the entire season in 1977 (3),  1980 (1), 1987 (1), and 1990 (0).
• Jets offensive coordinator Rich Kotite was the head coach for the Philadelphia Eagles (1991-94) and the Jets (1995-96).
• Kotite was a tight end with the New York Giants (1967, 1979-72) and Pittsburgh Steelers (1968).
• Jets defensive coordinator Bud Carson was the head coach for the Cleveland Browns (1989-90).
• Dolphins LB Mark Brown had more sacks in this game (2) than he did for the entire season in 1984 (1), 1985 (1), 1987 (1), 1988 (0.5), 1989-91 (0). He had two sacks his rookie season in 1983 and five sacks in 1986. 
• Both teams accounted for 1,066 yards of total offense, with 884 net passing yards.
• The six touchdown passes Marino threw are the most of his career in one game. He threw five touchown passes in a game several times.
• Marino threw more touchdown passes against the Jets (72) than any other team in his career. His next most was the Baltimore/Indianapolis Colts (54). His least? The New York Giants (1).

The entire game is on YouTube in 15 parts. Here are the last two segments. I make no claim of ownership of any of the videos featured.

The end of regulation. The first two minutes and fourteen seconds of the video is blank, but the game continues after that with 1:11 left.

Overtime

Game stats can be found on Pro Football Reference at Miami Dolphins vs New York Jets - September 21, 1986.

Some NFL Divisional Playoff Series Trivia

January 14, 2012 - This year's divisional playoff games feature teams who are all division champions.  The last time all division champions played in the divisional round was in 2006.

   The New Orleans Saints visit Candlestick Park to play their former NFC West rivals, the San Francisco 49ers.  This is their first ever meeting in the playoffs.  San Francisco leads the series 45-24-2.  New Orleans is 9-2 against the Niners since 1999 and has won the last six games.  This is the longest win streak New Orleans ever had over San Francisco.  They went to overtime twice, in 1977 and 1980, both won by San Francisco.  The last time the Niners beat the Saints at home was 28-27 in 2001.  The last time San Francisco shut out New Orleans was 38-0 in 2001.  The Saints have never shut out the Niners.  Their two ties ended with the same score 20-20, in 1970 and 1972.  New Orleans should win, but it will probably not be a blowout.

   The New England Patriots host the Denver Broncos in their third ever playoff meeting.  Denver won the previous two playoff meetings in 1987 and 2005.  The Broncos lead the series 27-17 and is 18-6 against the Patriots since 1979.  They only went to overtime once, in 2009, when Denver won 20-17.  Neither team has ever shut out the other.  History should repeat itself, with New England easily beating Denver, but if Tebow makes good passing decisions and accurate passes, the Broncos could pull off its second consecutive upset.

   Tomorrow starts off with the Houston Texans invading M&T Bank Stadium to take on the Baltimore Ravens.  Since this is Houston's first ever playoff run, this is also obviously their first ever playoff meeting.  Baltimore is undefeated in the series 5-0.  Baltimore beat Houston earlier this season 29-14.  They went to overtime once, in 2010, and the Ravens won 34-28.  There has never been a shutout in the series.  Baltimore should win, but if the Texans get their run game in gear early, they could pull off the upset.

   The New York Giants go to the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field to take on the Green Bay Packers.  They have met in three pre-Super Bowl NFL Championships and once in the playoffs.  Green Bay leads the playoff series 4-2, with all four wins earning them NFL Championships in 1939, 1944, 1961, and 1962.  The Giants won one NFL Championship against the Packers in 1938 and their latest playoff meeting in 2008 23-20 in overtime.  Green Bay leads the series 31-23-2, but Green Bay is 6-2 against New York since 1995.  Their lone overtime game was the previously mentioned playoff game.  The last time Green Bay shut out New York was 37-0, their NFL Championship win in 1961.  The last time the Giants shut out the Packers was 24-0 in 1944.  Their last tie was 24-24 in 1947.  Green Bay should dominate the Giants, but if New York can keep Green Bay's offense off the field, they could win instead.  This is a long shot Upset Special.

On This Day

   In 1968, the Packers played the Oakland Raiders in Super Bowl II.  Green Bay dominated the  Raiders 33-14.  Bart Starr won his second consecutive Super Bowl MVP honor.  Both teams' destinies changed after that game.  Green Bay only had four winning seasons from 1968-88 and won their next playoff game in the strike shortened season of 1982.  Oakland became one of the dominant teams of the 1970's and 1980's, including three Super Bowl wins during that two decade span.

    In 1973, the Miami Dolphins capped its undefeated season by winning Super Bowl VII over the Washington Redskins 14-7.  Washington got its only score on the infamous Mike Bass pick six interception of a Garo Yepremian pass.  Miami quarterback Bob Griese started for the first time since Week 5 against San Diego, when Deacon Jones and Ron East sacked him and broke his ankle.  Earl Morrall started the rest of the season and the playoffs.  Strong safety Jake Scott was named the Super Bowl MVP.  Scott was the first Dolphin great to wear the number 13.   Of course, the other was Dan Marino.  In fact, Scott and Marino are the only players to ever wear the number 13 for the Miami Dolphins.

And we have another historical score, today in:

2005 - Denver 27 - New England 13

Today in 1995 - Miami Dolphins vs Buffalo Bills

Today in 1995, the Miami Dolphins went to the frigid cold of Rich Stadium to take on the Buffalo Bills in a Week 16 contest.

Buffalo provided the only scoring in the first quarter on a Steve Christie 24 field goal.  He kicked a 20 yard field goal in the second quarter to increase Buffalo’s lead to 6-0.  Miami responded with a 50 yard field goal by Pete Stoyanovich.  Thurman Thomas ran 2 yards for a touchdown to give Buffalo the halftime lead 13-3.

Miami scored first in the third quarter with a 30 yard Stoyanovich field goal.  The Dolphins tied the game on a 25 yard pass from Dan Marino to Eric Green.  The Bills took the lead again on an 11 yard pass from Jim Kelly to Thurman Thomas.

In the fourth quarter, the Dolphins tied the game 20-20 on a 5 yard run by Bernie Parmalee.  But Buffalo would not be denied.  The Bills took the lead for good on a Christie 25 yard field goal.  The Buffalo Bills beat the Miami Dolphins 23-20.

For the Dolphins, Dan Marino passed 17-27 for 244 yards with a touchdown and an interception.  O.J. McDuffie had 4 receptions for 79 yards.  Eric Green had 4 receptions for 38 yards and a touchdown.  Jeff Cross had a sack and Calvin Jackson had an interception.

For the Bills, Jim Kelly passed 16-28 for 139 yards with a touchdown and an interception.  Thurman Thomas rushed 35 times for 148 yards and a touchdown.  He also had a reception for 11 yards and a touchdown.  Phil Hansen and Bryce Paup each recorded 1.5 sacks and David White had an interception.

Miami fell to 8-7 with the loss.  They finished the season at 9-7, second in the AFC East.  They lost their rematch in Buffalo in the Wildcard Round of the playoffs 37-22. 

Buffalo went to 10-5 with the win.  They finished the season at 10-6 and were AFC East Champions.  The Bills lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers 40-21 in the Divisional Round of the playoffs.

Trivia

• There were 6 Hall of Famers present: Dan Marino and head coach Don Shula for the Dolphins, and Jim Kelly, Thurman Thomas, Bruce Smith, and head coach Marv Levy for the Bills.
  
• This was Don Shula’s last season as head coach of the Miami Dolphins.  He coached the team from 1970-95 and led the Dolphins to five Super Bowl appearances and two Super Bowl championships.
  
• This was Marv Levy’s 10^th season as head coach of the Bills.  He coached the team from 1986-97 and led the team to four consecutive Super Bowl appearances.  He was also the head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs from 1978-82.
  
• Shula was also the head coach of the Baltimore Colts from 1963-69.  He led the team to the fated Super Bowl III, losing to the New York Jets.
  
• Shula played defensive back for the Cleveland Browns (1951-52), Baltimore Colts (1953-56), and Washington Redskins (1957).  He wore the number 25 with the Colts.  Defensive back Jerraud Powers wears that number for the Colts today.
  
• Miami’s Terrell Buckley played one season in the Atlanta Braves farm system.
  
• Buffalo’s defensive coordinator was Wade Phillips.  His career has been featured in other entries.
  
• Miami backup quarterback Dan McGwire is the brother of St. Louis Cardinal slugger Mark McGwire.
  
• Buffalo backup quarterback Alex Van Pelt was the team’s offensive coordinator in 2009.

Here are some historical scores on this day for teams facing each other this week, on December 17, 2011

1966 – Cleveland 38 – St. Louis Cardinals 10

1972 – Denver 45 – New England 21

1977 – Miami 31 – Buffalo 14

1983 – Washington 31 – New York Giants 22

1988 – Denver 21 – New England 10

2006 – Buffalo 21 – Miami 0

Game stats can be found on Pro-Football-Reference.com at Miami Dolphins vs Buffalo Bills - December 17, 1995.

Some Lagniappe NFL Series Trivia

Here’s some random NFL trivia…

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers go to Lambeau Field to take on their former NFC Central rival Green Bay Packers.  Although Green Bay’s expected to win, Tampa Bay is 8-4 against the Packers since 1998.  They have gone to overtime five times in the series, the last time in 2003, when Green Bay won 17-14.  The last time Green Bay shut out Tampa Bay was 27-0 in 1991.  Tampa Bay has never shut out Green Bay.  Their only tie game was 14-14 in 1980.

The Carolina Panthers face the Detroit Lions for only the sixth time ever.  Detroit leads the series 4-1.  Carolina won their first ever meeting in 1999 and Detroit won the rest.  They last met in 2008.

The Oakland Raiders play the Minnesota Vikings for the 15^th time, including Super Bowl XI.  Oakland leads the series 10-4, but is 4-3 against the Vikings since 1987.  They last played in 2007, which Minnesota won.  Neither team has ever shut out the other.

The Washington Redskins host the Dallas Cowboys.  This is one of those rivalry games where you throw the records out the window, but Dallas is 21-7 against Washington since 1997.  They’ve gone to overtime twice, the last time in 1999.  Dallas last shut out Washington 17-0 in 2009.  Washington has never shut out Dallas.  Their last tie game was 35-35 in 1962.

The Buffalo Bills go to Miami to face the Dolphins.  This is another one of those “throw the records out” games.  In this case, they are 17-17 since 1995.  They’ve gone to overtime twice, the last time in 1987.  The last time Buffalo shut out Miami was 21-0 in 2006.  The last time Miami shut out Buffalo was 28-0 in 1985.  Their last tie game was 14-14 in 1968.

The Atlanta Falcons lead their series with the Tennessee Titans 7-5, winning their last five games in the series.  The Titans have never beaten the Falcons under the Tennessee name.  The last time they beat Atlanta was in 1993, when they were the Houston Oilers.

The Philadelphia Eagles/New York Giants rivalry is one of the older rivalries.  They’re meeting for the 146^th time.  They first played each other in 1940, but Philly is 6-2 against the Giants since 2008.  They’ve gone to overtime seven times, the last time in 2006.  The last time the Giants shut out the Eagles was 20-0 in 1998.  The last time the Eagles shut out the Giants was 24-0 in 1996.  Their last tie game was 23-23 in 1973.

On the college football front, the Valparaiso Crusaders got their first win since 2009, beating the Campbell Fighting Camels 34-31.  Congrats for breaking the longest active college football losing streak, Valpo!!

Here are some historical NFL scores on this day for teams facing each other this week, on November 18,

1951 – Chicago Cardinals 27 – San Francisco 21

1960 – Boston Patriots 42 – Dallas Texans (Chiefs) 14

1962 – New York Giants 19 – Philadelphia 14

1973 – Miami 17 – Buffalo 0

1979 – Washington 34 – Dallas 20

1991 – Buffalo 41 – Miami 27

2007 – Dallas 28 – Washington 23

2007 – Minnesota 29 – Oakland 22

Have a great weekend!!

Last Place Update

November 15, 2011 – As much as things change, they remain the same.  What’s the same?  Why it’s the 0-10 Colts, of course.  They lost to a struggling Jacksonville Jaguars 17-3 at home and the Colts continue their season long reign as Kings of the Cellar.  The Colts have a two and a half game lead over Minnesota, Carolina, St. Louis, and Miami, all 2-7.

What's different?  Miami's winning games.

By winning their second consecutive game over the 3-6 Washington Redskins, the Dolphins are off the Last Place radar for now.  However, because of Miami, Washington earns this week’s honorable mention.  The Skins lost five straight and face a resurgent Dallas Cowboys.

This week’s second honorable mention goes to the 4-5 San Diego Chargers, just beating out the 2-7 Carolina Panthers for the mention.  The Chargers were supposed to be the team to beat in the AFC West…well, they’re proving they can be beat, losing four straight.  This week, they go to the Windy City to face an improving Chicago Bears.

Next Loss

Here’s a guarantee.  The Indianapolis Colts will not lose this week.  Okay, they won’t lose because they have a bye.  They’ll face the Carolina Panthers next week in their quest for the first pick in the draft, the Andrew Luck sweepstakes.

Speaking of the Carolina Panthers, they will visit Ford Field to play the Detroit Lions.  Upset Special?  Nah.  Detroit will take their loss to Chicago out on the Panthers.

The Rams and Arizona Cardinals won last week.  St. Louis hosts the Seattle Seahawks and is my Upset Special.  The Rams will get their third win. The Cards will get torched at Candlestick by the San Francisco 49ers.

Here are some historical scores on this day for teams facing each other this week: November 15,

1964 – Denver 20 – New York Jets 16

1987 – New York Giants 20 – Philadelphia 17

Some Random Musings

November 11, 2011 - Just have some random thoughts:

• First of all, thank you veterans!!  Thank you for serving our country and for protecting our freedoms!!  You stepped up when others didn’t and we appreciate your sacrifices.
  
  
• The Tennessee Titans and Carolina Panthers are playing each other for only the fourth time ever.  Carolina won the first meeting in 1996, when Tennessee was still the Houston Oilers, but the Titans won the other two.  They last played each other in 2007.
  
  
• As with Tennessee and Carolina, the Baltimore Ravens play the Seattle Seahawks for the fourth time ever this week.  Baltimore also leads 2-1 and they last played each other in 2007.
  
  
• The Washington Redskins play the Miami Dolphins this week.  Miami leads the series 11-7, but the series is 3-3 since 1987.  They faced each other in two Super Bowls.  Miami won Super Bowl VII over the Skins 14-7 to cap off their perfect season.  Washington beat Miami ten years later in Super Bowl XVII 27-17.
  
  
• In another multiple Super Bowl rematch, the Dallas Cowboys host the Buffalo Bills.  Dallas leads the series 5-3 and hasn’t lost to the Bills since 1996. The Cowboys faced the Bills in two consecutive Super Bowls.  Dallas won Super Bowl XXVII over Buffalo 52-17 and Super Bowl XXVIII over the Bills 30-13.
  
  
• Since we’re talking about NFL Championship rematches, let’s go old school.  The team once from Cleveland, the St. Louis Rams go to the Dawg Pound to take on the Cleveland Browns.  Including the NFL Championship games, Cleveland leads the series 11-10.  Cleveland beat the Rams for the NFL Championship in 1950 and 1955.  The Rams beat the Browns for the NFL Championship in 1951.
  
  
• I haven’t talked about this in a while.  The Valparaiso Crusaders own NCAA Division I’s longest active losing streak.  They’ve lost 29 games in a row and go for number 30 this Saturday against the Campbell University Fighting Camels.  Valpo's last win came in their second game of the 2009 season when they beat Concordia University of Wisconsin 20-17.

Have a great weekend everybody!!