Thoughts on a Sunday Night

Many things to discuss. Here's what my sports mind is thinking right now.

-Vikes needed that win today in a big way. The offense was actually decent after Gus recovered from the early pick. They were riding the kid Adrian Peterson in the fourth quarter. AD always seems to be at his best late in the game when the defense is wearing down. Speaking of defense, ours was fantastic for the most part today. Jared Allen came up with two huge sacks to seal the game, which is why we pay him the big bucks. Great to see Bernard Berrian developing a chemistry with Gus. He's been the explosive threat we need ever since Frerrotte took over as the starter. Also, nice to see Madieu Williams finally out on the field and contributing in a big way with the INT. Gus had his best game of the year by far. We limited huge mistakes aside from the INT, which is why we won today. Huge collision next week in the Dome with the hated Packers. I still think either the Pack or Vikes win this division, so next week is very big indeed. Should be fun. Childress needs to find a way to beat Green Bay. 0-5 just won't cut it.

-What a terrible loss for the Minnesota Timberwolves tonight in Oklahoma City against probably the worst team in the NBA. Didn't get to see the game, but after talking to some people who did and looking at the box score, it is clear that Randy Foye lost us the game. You can't have your point guard going for 2 points on 0-10 shooting. That is just dreadful. I really thought Foye would have a breakout year, but it hasn't started too well. With that being said, there still is time for him to turn it around. The draft day trade of Roy for Foye is starting to look worse by the day, however. Randy has to get it together if this team is to have any success this year. Mike Miller has made only one three pointer in three games so far this year, which is a bit of a concern. He is supposed to be lights out from the outside, yet he seems too willing to pass up shots. Hopefully, a little more time to adjust to the offense and he will be right back to form. Big Al is doing his thing, but like last year, the question about who will step up to help him will be there every single night. I'll have more thoughts on the broader outlook for the season when I get around to it and have some more free time.

-College football really needs some kind of playoff system. Again, I plan to do a long blog on this sometime, but it becomes apparent around this time every year how screwed up the BCS is. All you need to know is that a Big Ten team (Penn State) could have an undefeated season and still not have a chance to play for a national title. If that doesn't strike you as blatantly unfair and wrong, I don't know what's wrong with you. Every other college and professional sport does it, and so should college football. Don't give me this crap about the bowl system not being able to be part of a playoff, because it could definitely be worked in. And also, my opinion isn't based off USC's situation. I've had this view for a long time, well before I came to USC.

-Speaking of college football, what a phenomenal end to the Texas-Texas Tech game last night. Very happy I got to see it live. Michael Crabtree might have vaulted himself into Heisman contention with that amazing catch on the national stage against the number one team in the country. Wow. Just a terrific play by a terrific player. Graham Harrel also out played Colt McCoy in this game, something very few people saw coming. Tech is the real deal, but they have Oklahoma State and Oklahoma the next two weeks. I still think Texas is the favorite in the Big 12 because of their remaining schedule. But as we saw in the final weeks of last season, anything can happen. USC needed that Texas loss. Now we need some more Big 12 and SEC chaos, and hopefully, a Penn State loss at Iowa next week. National Championship seems unlikely, but you never know. 'Bama at LSU is a big one next week, along with Tech hosting Oklahoma State. Get your popcorn ready. Oh yeah, USC won 56-0 in dominating fashion over Washington. Fight On.

-Very excited for the start of college basketball season. Expect a lot of analysis on this blog about the Trojan squad that should contend for the Pac-10 title this season and challenge the hated Bruins. I am giddy to see DeMar Derozan take the floor. Personally, I am more of a college basketball fan than college football because there are more games, the NCAA Tournament is one of the best events in sports, and I just prefer basketball to football. I had a great time watching O.J. Mayo first hand last year, and I'm ready to see what this year's squad can do. Again, expect analysis before and after every game right here.

-Excited for Summer of Stun to begin their off season pursuit of improvement. Much analysis to come on that as well. I'm definitely feeling a big name coming to 'Sota this off-season to try to push the Twins over the hump in the AL Central and make them a true World Series contender. It's always tough for me during baseball off-season, but I'm making it through ok so far. That being said, there's a long way to go. Being in the sun doesn't hurt though. Last year in the Dome next year...We're Comin.

Have a great week. Fight On.

Thanks for reading.