Cheap Shots #20.

1) It's not a presidential campaign without a candidate fucking up a sports analogy. [Deadspin]
2) Reenacting Jose Canseco's bar fight. [You Been Blinded]
3) An interview with Spencer Haywood, the NBA's Curt Flood. [The Starting Five]
4) Making a case for instant replay in MLB. [The Sports Flow]
5) Charles Barkley, speaking on things not basketball. He reads like Jason Whitlock, except it seems he doesn't hate black people. [The New Republic - free registration required]
6) Speaking of Whitlock, Wizards center Etan Thomas writes him an open letter. [TrueHoop]
7) Capitals fans, and most fans in general, should heed the word of the Nats owner when it comes to picking up big free agents. [Off Wing Opinion]
8) Catching up with Mo Vaughn. [The Feed]
9) Josh Beckett, fulfilling his Tremendous Upside Potential? [And Here Come The Pretzels!]
10) Shameless Commerce Division: Phoenix Suns sell a T-shirt with a #13 band aid design. [SportsByBrooks]

Cheap Shots #19.

All the crap I didn't get to or couldn't think of anything funny or insightful to write about, other people did ten times better. Read them below.

1) A gargantuan task, indeed, as the Channel 4 News Team's Fearless Leader is looking for your entries to assemble the Douchebaggery Scale. [Awful Announcing]
2) Ladies, Joe Mauer is available, and you could win a date with him. [Babes Love Baseball]
3) In NBC's never ending desperation for programming (House was produced originally by their studio, yet the Peacock heads passed on it and let Fox have another hit), they're going to feature tennis player Mark Phillippousis in a reality dating show. [AOL FanHouse]
4) The suck-ass quality of CBS Sportsline. [Why Don't We Get Drunk And Blog?]
5) Larry hadn't seen the ESPN awfulness that is Madden Nation before now, and it's made him fairly ill. [Larry Brown Sports]
6) Evander Holyfield clearly had his brain beaten out of him, because he wants to fight again. [Rumors and Rants]
7) Hey, Shakira's hips take precedence over soccer for me too, and I LIKE the sport. [The Beautiful Game]
8) Five good questions with a Brewer beat writer. (Really, keep checking Stiles for these interview series. They get better and better.) [Stiles Points]
9) The booze bans in some MLB clubhouses are knee-jerk BS. [The Hater Nation]
10) Planning on heading to China for the Olympics next year? Prepare to shell out some serious yuan for the bottled water. [Lion in Oil]
11) One college hoops junkie is calling this year's NBA playoffs more exciting. [Just Call Me Juice]
12) A fly on the wall catches Peyton Manning's brush with royalty. [Shot to Nothing]
13) There's a Sports Blog Formula? Possibly. [The Starting Five]

As usual, if you have interesting bits that you'd like to send in, the email is s2nblog@gmail.com.

Cheap Shots #18.

No inspiration, plus I woke up late. Mondays are never good for the A-game.

1) Summing up some extra vitriol for Mr. Clemens. [Babes Love Baseball]
2) T-Mac's taking that playoff loss hard. [Leave the Man Alone]
3) The Royals often put up a lot of bagels on the scoreboard, but Panera Bread didn't think they'd put up 13 or more hits, and are now paying for it. [Our Book of Scrap]
4) More piling on Brady Quinn. [WBRS Sports Blog]
5) A Clippers sideline reporter and her double entendre, captured on YouTube. [With Leather]
6) So soccer doesn't bring the faith leaders together like it used to, huh? [Seal Clubbers]
7) Georgetown, pay JT3 his money. [FanHouse]
8) I thought they sent all the busted memorabilia to Africa. Guess not. [EDSBS]
9) Running down Saturday's fight (which I saw most of, the party I went to had coughed up for it.) [Rumors and Rants]
10) We start with Clemens and end with him, as the Ladies have found his ego-pumping appearance yesterday at Yankee Stadium on video. [Ladies...]

Cheap Shots #17.

Special "I Cracked 50K Visits!" edition:

1) "Mr. Van Pelt, this is the Federal Communications Commission." [Larry Brown Sports]
2) Academic Progress Rate? Annual Pipsqueak Reaming describes the NCAA's "academic" report better. [EDSBS and Journo Rock]
3) Who knew there was an NFL in the UK? [Extrapolater]
4) Greg Olson, worse than Imus? Downfall of the Bears? Windy City sports columnists need to breathe a little. [Foul Balls]
5) Donovan McNabb and Andy Reid discuss the Eagles' draft strategy. [Kissing Suzy Kolber]
6) I still can't care about boxing, but this isn't a bad way to get me to try to give a crap about De La Hoya/Mayweather on Saturday. [Rumors and Rants]
7) If technology has improved the way we watch sports, why aren't the leagues using it to ensure the right calls in the actual game? [The Starting Five]
8) All the Kentucky Derby preps you need are over at Stiles' place, and here's one entry for a sample, you degenerate gamblers, you. [Stiles Points]
9) Wait, so you take the ball used for an unassisted triple play and throw it into the stands? Troy Tulowitzki has my permission to beat Todd Helton six ways to Sunday. [Our Book of Scrap].
10. Amazing. Adam makes observing Seahawk cheerleader tryouts boring, as if that were possible. Still a good read. [The Big Picture]
11. "Stu, seriously. Just put this ballgag in your mouth when you're not hosting SportsCenter. It's for your own good. If the gag's too much, we'll use duct tape, OK?" [Awful Announcing]

(Tangent: I swear Skip Bayless is in love with his own cliches. I think he slams KG and AI just so he can say "Kevin Gar-NOTT" and "Allen Me Myself and Iverson" repeatedly. He's like the bad cop version of Berman.)

Cheap Shots #16.

Let's start the week off right:

1) Meet the non-Jarvis Moss picks of the Denver Broncos. [Big Money, No Whammies]
2) Tony LaRussa isn't happy with his city's local paper, and there's audio, too. [Larry Brown Sports, audio here]
3) If you missed it on Friday, the charges of assault against PSU players are in. [Run Up The Score!]
4) What would happen if college football coaches allowed famous alums to make videos like Will Ferrell does for USC? [Rumors and Rants]
5) An opinion on the Ted Ginn pick that isn't a pan. [Shot to Nothing]
6) The third part of an extensive Jemele Hill interview. [The Starting Five]
7) Best names in the draft. [Awful Announcing]
8) Measuring Joe Mauer's intangibles. [Extrapolater]
9) A warning for Pats fans considering purchasing a Randy Moss jersey. [Just Call Me Juice]
10) There's something funny about Steve Spurrier in that Under Armour ad. [Gheorghe: The Blog]

Cheap Shots #15.

Yesterday's hit total has to be a freakin' record for this site, but what do I expect when I send out a link about cheerleaders and threatening letters? Anyway, hopefully some of you who came via various links will stick around (eventually, I will develop a feature or two).

Now, it's time to give that love back. Since these link fests seem to be a twice-weekly thing now (or whenever I get lazy), if you've got something interesting, send it to s2nblog of the Google mail variety (or just click on the "Contact the Management" link on the right.)

1) I'm shocked, SHOCKED, that Larry Brown is going to interview for the Grizzlies job. [Just Call Me Juice]
2) Pedro Martinez or Sandy Koufax. Who ya got? [Complete Sports]
3) Given the obvious double-entendre of going five-hole, a quiz about hockey and sex is only natural. [Hockey Rants]
4) Nick Saban hasn't signed a contract in Tuscaloosa? What could possibly go wrong? [The Feed]
5) Why I hate being a Bronco fan on draft weekend: Shanny's crap track record. [Orange Bucksnorts]
6) Rule #1 for publicists: keep the lies straight. Michael Vick's publicist fails at this. [WBRS Sports Blog]
7) An interview with Carl Pavano's hottie ex, and I'm pretty sure it actually happened. [Why Don't We Get Drunk and Blog?]
8) Sanchez is still trying to get you all to see the beauty in rugby. [Shot to Nothing]
9) The Fourth Stage of Las Cronicas de Boss Hawg -- lawyers get involved, accusing the school of not investigating emails with scurrilous charges against Houston Nutt. [EDSBS]
10) Inspired by Julio Franco's apparent discovery of the Fountain of Youth, a look at other diamond oldies. [One More Dying Quail]
11) Some of the better (read: nastier) head shots in sports caught on video. [Seal Clubbers]
12) A round table of sorts on the structure of the NCAA hoops tourney (yes, I was invited, so it's semi-self promoting.) [Sports Shows On Mute]
13) Sandy Belle shows us in song how she'd support the troops. [Run Up The Score!]

Cheap Shots #14.

Because today was a travel day, and 3.5 hours in a car make me too tired to think. On a mini-vacation in L.A. prior to next week, when sweeps period begins, and no one gets to take a day off during sweeps. There will be posting, but because I'm kind of disoriented using a Mac, it'll take some getting used to again.

1) Taking on the anti-intellectualism behind the critique of Keith Olbermann's hiring for Sunday Night Football. [Pacifist Viking]
2) Lionel Messi is a bad ass, and now, we have online video evidence. [With Leather]
3) I would have gone with Steely Dan for a lyrical come-on to a 19-year old myself, but romancing Sidney Crosby with Winger works. [Girls Gone Sports]
4) Reminding us of the NFL draft's hit and miss nature, defensive edition. [Stiles Points]
5) As much of a dick as Joey Crawford was a few days ago, Doug Eddings takes the cake. [The Hater Nation]
6) Speaking of Crawford, here's some more context to place his Duncan ejection in. [The Starting Five]
7) Teams that call Madison Square Garden home have trouble staying away from sexual harassment claims, apparently. [WBRS Sports Blog]
8) The Bulls just screwed themselves by losing last night, because their first round opponent gets every foul call known to man. [Foul Balls]
9) Wait a minute. How the hell are you coach and owner of an NHL franchise and someone makes a trade you say no to? Shenanigans on you, Great One! [Chip Shots]
10) (Clicking "yes" to accept friend requests from "SirCharles", "KennyTheJet" and "MillerTime31.") [Sports Media Watch]
11) Someone in semi-professional media finally takes a whack at Whitlock. [AOL Sports]
12) You stay classy, Bob Costas. Seriously. [Awful Announcing]
13) Kevin Garnett, a man among (Timber)wolves. [And Here Come The Pretzels!]

Cheap Shots #13.

After doing another double shift from 2:30 yesterday afternoon to 8 this morning, I'm kind of tapped out right now. I can't watch any more wall to wall VA Tech coverage for a while without getting cynical, and I need to preserve some empathy for an awful event.

So, we're going to hit the links.

1) David Stern owns his league, and lets Jerry Joey Crawford know he does not approve of his little tiff with Tim Duncan. [Awful Announcing]
2) Steve Phillips: shitty Mets GM, even shittier ESPN analyst. [One More Dying Quail]
3) Keith Olbermann gets added to NBC's Football Night In America lineup. [Sports Media Watch]
4) Obviously, some people were never taught the definition of satire. [With Leather]
5) Alyssa Milano is blogging about baseball, albeit with a bit of fashion line promotion. [Touch 'Em All]
6) Said Milano fashion line gets reviewed. [Ladies...]
7) Gentlemen, if you'd like to ensure involuntary celibacy, please see these NFL bedroom sets. [Shot to Nothing]
8) Please remove Vince Young from your fantasy draft list this year. [Foul Balls]
9) Counting down the NBA MVP candidates. [Complete Sports]
10) The list of top sports tax cheats. [The Wade Blogs]
11) Gene Upshaw continues to screw over the NFL old-timers. [The Feed]
12) Finally, forget going after rappers. Let's focus that Imus attention on another person who really, really deserves it. [Why Don't We Get Drunk And Blog?]

(I gotta say, I admire the way Lozo tackles his posts.)

Cheap Shots #12.

Because I'm too busy laughing at the massive Mock Draft threads to produce any copy of value right now (read: also lazy.)

1) ESPN's ombudswoman continues to layeth the smacketh down. [ESPN, hat tip Awful Announcing]
2) Whitlock on TV? Good Lord, he fits right in with every other blowhard in the cable news rolodex. [The Big Lead]
3) SA is crushing on Jeff Francoeur and evaluates the Braves. [Ladies...]
4) The "Would You Do..." is back for another round. [The Big Picture]
5) Paul Pierce is on the shelf, and the young Celts are being given a trial by fire (just don't call it tanking.) [One More Dying Quail]
6) The Don Imus kerfuffle represents another missed opportunity to discuss race, sexism, and other problems honestly. [Pacifist Viking]
7) Another week, another bit of Houston Nutt nuttiness. [Journo Rock, EDSBS]
8) Speaking of college football, some videos on the lengths some will go to root for their school. [The Hater Nation]
9) A retirement card for Drew Bledsoe from some notable co-workers. [WBRS Sports Blog]
10) Mandy's tribute to The Alien That Is Sam Cassell. [Girls Gone Sports]

New blogroll additions: Orange Bucksnorts and Piles of What.

Got a wedding to attend this weekend, with all the friends coming back to town to chug beer and whiskey shots. Hopefully my mock draft pick comes before I'm totally sloshed and able to pick coherently.

Cheap Shots #11.

Hope you like the new visual look. I did it because the old format was kind of hard to read for me. Also, there's a new sidebar called "Features and Series." If I ever happen to write another multi-part monster like the one on Whitlock's quick fix for the NCAA, it'll go there for future reference and easier reading.

OK, link time.

1) Jeff Baker of the Colorado Rockies seems a rugged man who can hit. [The Extrapolater]
2) As much crap as Carmelo Anthony gets, if a guy was harassing you and calling you a punk, your friends would beat him down too. [The Feed]
3) Jonathan Papelbon = the balls. [Larry Brown Sports]
4) Stiles continues his series with NFL beat writers. [Stiles Points]
5) Eddie the Eagle's in trouble with the law again. [The Big Lead]
6) I bet Jerry Jones really does draft like this. [Kissing Suzy Kolber]
7) Joe Mauer is still growing at 24? [Babes Love Baseball]
8) The latest in very low Wonderlic test scores [Every Day Should Be Saturday]
9) Mike Hampton is cursed. [One More Dying Quail]
10) AA is (gasp) actually liking Stephen A. Smith in his new roles [Awful Announcing]

I can't believe it either, AA.

Cheap Shots #10.

1. Phony Gwynn pens a love letter to the WNBA's Becky Hammon. [And Here Come The Pretzels!]
2. More WNBA love; TJ at GTB looks at that league's draft. [Gheorghe: The Blog]
3. D-Wil finds some rarely heard knowledge on troubled athletes and applies it to Pac-Man Jones at his new home, which you ought to bookmark. [The Starting Five]
4. Math models predict the Yanks will win over 100 games. Something tells me those models are wrong. [Seal Clubbers]
5. Boy, this Giants fan is really pissed about Jason Schmidt leaving. [Larry Brown Sports]
6. God, please don't let Florida get hot and dominate another college sport. [Shot to Nothing]
7. So tell us what you really think about Rick Barnes, Ted. [A Price Above Bip Roberts]
8. The class that Huggy Bear recruited for K-State is stuck in Manhattan, whether they like it or not. [Rumors and Rants]
9. Putting an innocuous Jim Lampley interview in context. [The Feed]
10. On a non-sports note, Ex is looking for good lies for his high school reunion. [Extrapolater]

(I'm dying to go to my 10th in a few years, just to see the rich kids still living off Daddy's money.)

Cheap Shots #9, Plus Extra Meta.

Since I have weekends off now and the advantage of living in the Pacific time zone, I'm thinking of doing live blogging here (if I can get Blogger to accept the damn code for a "read more" type of deal; what they have in the help section just turns up an error). Would anyone even be remotely interested in a regular Sunday night live-blog? I can't imagine doing it for baseball (but maybe), but probably for basketball, hockey playoffs, and definitely come baseball season. Let me know in comments.

1) MJD finds an interesting piece on Baron Davis trying to up black enrollment at his alma mater, UCLA.
2) Paulsen at Sports Media Watch revamps announcing teams.
3) Marco has your non-sports funny video of the week over at JCMJ.
4) Sanchez is trying to make sense of the Dolphin QB rumor mill over at Shot to Nothing.
5) The Head Chick feels let down over the new Nike college hoops unis.
6) Scrap shows us that colleges will give you credit for anything, even attending the Final Four.
7) Our friend Eric at Seal Clubbers shows us the hard-luck jeans have hit the Cornhusker football team.
8) If you have not read it already, go take a look at Complete Sports' compilation of possible Jim Nantz cliches for the Final Four.
9) BD is trying something new -- running his MLB picks against a video game.
10) Awful Announcing just continues to stoke my Erin Andrews fix.

Cheap Shots, #8: Double Shift Edition.

Because I'm lazy, tired, and about to go to work again after being there from 2:30 PM yesterday until 7:30 this morning. Enjoy the links.

1) Our friend Extra P. gets himself published someplace respectable. [Extrapolater]
2) Joe Lunardi takes Marco's questions. [Just Call Me Juice]
3) Greg Oden lists some obvious goals. [One More Dying Quail]
4) Friends don't let celebrities drive their million dollar sports cars. [Run Up The Score!]
5) God, my crush on Erin Andrews is really sickening. Oh well, here's a quickie interview with her done by the CSTV guys. That smile is worth dying for. [Awful Announcing]
6) Speaking of EA, she takes on Melissa Stark in the Final Four of the Would You Do tourney. [The Big Picture]
7) Reggie, my man: Kim Kardashian is not an upgrade from Ciara. [Leave the Man Alone]
8) A female ump is going to call a spring training game. [Babes Love Baseball]
9) A paean to Al McGuire. [Stiles Points]
10) Last night's Sheed 70-foot shot = a dagger in my heart, and video still makes it hurt. [Girls Gone Sports]

Cheap Shots, #7.

1) Crimson Tide fans, some of your ilk are just giving Auburn die-hards more material. [EDSBS]
2) I got a term for what happened to my bracket last night due to Calipari. [Why Don't We Get Drunk and Blog?]
3) Safe bet that Michigan is looking into SIU coach Chris Lowery, but probably not for these reasons. [The Feed]
4) Comparing the Washington Nationals to sitcoms is an entertaining exercise in masochism. [Gheorghe: The Blog]
5) Which countries would you draft? Can't believe they passed on Spain. [Kissing Suzy Kolber]
6) Sanchez watched the figure skating championships so you didn't have to, and notes the winner is a douchebag. [Shot to Nothing]
7) Sooze reduces the Mets and others to haiku previews. [Babes Love Baseball]
8) The Chiefs are looking to start Brodie Croyle? Seriously? [Journalism is for Rockstars]
9) A Georgetown alum taps out an essay to the Hoyas' run. [A Price Above Bip Roberts]
10) In my eyes, this gives Tony Dungy a little bit of the "dickish" label. [AOL FanHouse].
11) Hey, leave Ron Mexico alone -- he was just talking about his hemp necklace. [Deadspin]
12) Texas Gal looks at the really important aspect of the Matt Schaub trade. [Ladies...]

cheap shots #7.

I'm headed to L.A. for the weekend post-work, which means de-camping, watching college basketball, and probably not posting despite the well of inspiration that the NCAAs provide.

1) A Price Above Bip Roberts imagines a new career for Billy Packer.
2) Shot to Nothing's theory about Tom Brady and Matt Leinart could shatter the space-time continuum.
3) Run Up the Score takes ESPN to task for running a puff piece on the last person who deserves one.
4) The Hater Nation wants to see the Pornstache in silver and black.
5) Awful Officiating thinks fouls for flopping are a good idea.
6) Extrapolater continues his crusade for a jazz band at the NCAAs.
7) The Head Chick runs Jason Whitlock. Literally.
8) The Babes track the silly saga that is Roger Clemens.
9) The Sports Dad brings our attention to an early contender for this year's Darwin Awards.

Be back Tuesday, unless I watch an absolutely amazing game. Have fun!

cheap shots #6.

First, some new adds to the blogroll this week: say hi to Shot to Nothing, The Sports Dad, Money Players, and the Feed. Second, I'm honored that some of you actually e-mail me items, and I want it known that they are actually read. Third, Blogger is bugging the fuck out of me; I'm considering a switch -- is WordPress worth it?

Now, can we hit it and quit it? Yeah!

1) The Feed unleashes their inner Tufnel and takes their baseball previews to 11. Start with the latest on the Marlins and work your way back.

2) Money Players takes a look at pensions across the major sports.

3) Extrapolater runs down another team (Marist) you probably know nothing about. I know they're Bill O'Reilly's alma mater, and for that reason, I'll be rooting against them (sorry, boys.)

4) D-Wil takes another hack at the Barry Bonds growth bit. You may agree, you may not, but it's worth reading.

5) One More Dying Quail wrote about the rich dentist suing Cory Lidle's estate, so now I really don't have to (he did a hundred times better anyway.)

6) In his tireless quest, Scrap comes across this plan for NBC's ratings to drop even further -- that's right, a reality show about the Beckhams moving to the U.S.

7) Business or Leisure at And Here Come the Pretzels is really looking forward to baseball.

8) Sooze tells us of the story of one pitcher who'll have mad bank without even throwing a fastball.

9) RUTS informs us of a middle school principal in Pennsylvania with some interesting extracurricular activities. (I so wanted to use the phrase "extracurricular activities" for a tease tonight, but I got outvoted.)

10) Twins gets you ready for your fantasy baseball draft -- the latest edition is all about the guys up the middle.

11) The Hack thinks Ted Leo's bass player is a fugly bastard. He is, but so is the drummer with that Grizzly Adams look. Plus, ugliness means more rock power -- just ask Lemmy! -- and Ted Leo and the Pharmacists rule.

12) If there's a championship out there to be contested this year, Sanchez is all over it.

13) Deadspin gives us a story sure to rob you of your appetite (it involves infection, rupture, and gonads) while you grimace in pain.

14) With Leather exposes us to a disturbing reality: people are actually writing to Ron Artest for advice.

15) And despite the name of her blog, the Head Chick just won't leave Jason Whitlock alone (and we're all better off for it.)

cheap shots #5.

Site note: somehow I've cracked the top 100,000 on the Technorati links. I'm golf clapping for myself.

Now, let's hit the links.

1) Pacifist Viking's series on the Next Ten best in the NBA has been nothing short of great, especially with the comparisons to great poets -- do you have suggestions for the last member of the group?

2) The Head Chick explains what really happened when Pacman brought that $81K in ones to a strip club.

3) Eric at Seal Clubbers writes off JaMarcus Russell's career before it even began due to who will draft him.

4) When your attempt at a Great Moment in Hook-Up History fails, you gotta have a backup, and Scrap has found a Booty Call Contract.

5) Speaking of booty calls, the Newspaper Hack takes a hack at the maudlin hang-wringing over women and the college hook-up culture.

6) Lozo at Why Don't We Get Drunk and Blog has had trouble with the A-Rod/Jeter sleepover comments, so much so he's started another blog.

7) The Big Picture has prepared a "Would you do..." tourney so you can get your picking skills sharp for March Madness. My first round upset pick: Sam Ryan over Rachel Nichols.

8) Mr. Irrelevant gives us some serious nightmare fuel with old school Charlie Hustle ads.

9) Awful Officiating looks at the NBA's given that long-time players will get foul calls to go their way and wonders why it's accepted.

10) And finally, With Leather has enlisted Sarah Spain as the underground's Jenn Sterger, and got her visit to Vegas for All-Star weekend.

cheap shots #4.

Gotta head to work -- let's reel these off quickly.

1) Sports Media Watch puts together a disgustingly plausible theory regarding ESPN's hawking of John Amaechi and Tim Hardaway's comments.

2) Just Call Me Juice continues his series of interviews with those who know NCAA hoops better than he does, as he put it.

3) Pacifist Viking weighs the pros and cons of the Vikes possibly making a run for David Carr.

4) GTB previews the hapless Nationals on the eve of spring training.

5) The Head Chick noticed that ESPN knocked off ATH and PTI for NASCAR inundation.

6) Awful Announcing says the Pipemaker may already be out the door. Note to ESPN: NOW he's a ticking time bomb?

7) OMDQ is trying another experiment to add to his growing list of side features. This one involves playing a college football playoff via XBox.

8) The essential question at the Big Picture today: Would you do Stacey Dales?

9) And finally, EDSBS issues the latest in its series, "Las Cronicas de Boss Hawg" (read: Arkansas head coach Houston Nutt, for the uninformed.)

cheap shots #3.

I've added a new RSS feed to the right, mostly because I've started to use Google Reader myself -- it's a stealthier way to read all the blogs, headlines, and commentary I want during work's down hours.

Google: making slackerdom easier.

Let's hit 'em up big-style:

1) Sports Media Watch takes a look at the State of the Networks, hitting NBC and ABC so far.
2) D-Wil at Sports on My Mind nails down my perennially underachieving Nuggets and the effect of GOP huckster Matthew Dowd on David Stern's iron-fisted rule.
3) Dwyane Wade talks smack about Dirk Nowitzki, and the Head Chick approves.
4) Complete Sports asks the question - Oden or Durant?
5) Run Up the Score has the latest rumor of Gruden replacing Reid as Iggles coach.
6) Off Wing Opinion says it's blasphemy that the NHL hasn't gotten a highlights show out of Versus -- I agree.
7) Dan Shanoff compares Agent Zero to Barack Obama.
8) AwfulAnnouncing gets ahold of some funny video of an announcer talking about the hotness of a women's b-ball coach.
9) And finally, Our Book of Scrap tipped me off to this dandy Pistol Pete highlight reel:

oh, right; they're playing a game this weekend.

Bears over Colts, 24-20, mostly because I think defense and special teams wins these games, and the Bears are better on both. Peyton will have a good game -- but the Bears will run well, Rex will make the downfield throw when he needs to, and Robbie Gould, while not playoff clutch like Vinatieri, has been damn close to automatic.

Now that I've written this, given my record on this year's playoffs, Indy fans should be happy. Whatever. Let's get to the link fest:

1) Leave the Man Alone looks at the "black coach" factor.
2) Pacifist Viking tries to determine what's in a name, specifically Troy Polamalu's.
3) Just because I've not written about Barbaro doesn't mean others haven't -- the Mighty MJD has the funniest take.
4) One More Dying Quail digs into the details of hitting .400.
5) True Hoop predicts coach Eric Musselman getting busted for DUI signals some serious problems for the Sacramento Kings.
6) Rich Kotite Banged Your Mom happened to get ahold of a letter from Tom Brady to Rex Grossman, and let's just say Dreamboat disapproves of Rextasy's other nickname of "Sex Cannon."
7) The Big Picture is hitting its two best features lately, interviewing Deadspin's Will Leitch and posing whether its readers find CBS' Sam Ryan attractive.

I'll make this meta #2 as well -- anything you few readers out there would like to see more of from me? Say so. The posting might be better and more frequent -- I'm officially now off the graveyard shift at work. I'll also thank you for reading, and thank the big grown-ups at Deadspin, the Big Lead, and Mr. Irrelevant for linking and/or accepting my blogwhoring lately.