The Weekend That Will Be...

Welcome back to The Weekend That Will Be...  This is the one where Plain White TS does the heavy lifting and I just fill in around the edges. 

Coaching Carousel

               

This year's head coaching firings and hirings in the NFL has been disappointing at best.  Virtually everyone who was on the hot seat when the season ended somewhow retained their jobs.  Only 3 men were fired as Dick Jauron (still vacant Buffalo) didn't last the season while Jim Zorn (Washington) and Jim Mora Jr (Seattle) were the only ones shitcanned.  It's that listed last position in the rainy Northwest that has the college football world scrambling.  As most of you know by now, Pete Carroll left the plushy confines of Southern Cal for Seattle...this opened up one of the most desired  jobs in sports.  However, current NFL coaches Jeff Fisher and Jack Del Rio turned it down, so AD Mike Garrett went out and got former assistant coach Lane Kiffin to helm the Trojans.  This opened up the position at Tennessee...one that head coaches at Air Force and Duke turned down.  On Friday, they settled for Louisiana Tech's Derek Dooley who was 17-20 in his four years at Ruston, LA.  My how far you've fallen, Tennessee.

Prediction: The East Carolina Pirates have the last "major" opening, and a perfect fit seems to be hiring the man who thinks he actually is a pirate...no, not Jimmy Buffett but former Texas Tech coach Mike Leach.  However, Leach still doesn't think he did anything wrong in the Adam James' case, so he doesn't view this as a reclamation project that warrants a contract discount.  And ECU is too cheap to make this happen otherwise...expect a no-name assistant to be named later in the week.

Bonus Prediction: No one seems interested in the Buffalo Bills head coaching job, so they go out and pluck Marc Trestman from the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL

At the Box Office

This weekend, three movies are opening nationwide.  The Book of Eli, The Lovely Bones, and The Spy Next Door...otherwise known as crap, crap, and more crap.  This is what we are stuck with in January.  Are the movie studios just laying down for Avatar?  This is worse than the Colts and Bengals performance in the last two regular season weeks against the Jets.  Why is everyone willing to fold to the egomaniac James Cameron?

                     

Instead, I'll use this space to highlight two movies that are coming out in the next couple of months that I am greatly anticipating.  First, comes the Mel Gibson vehicle Edge of Darkness.  It looks like a cross between Taken and Gone Baby Gone...and that is right in my wheelhouse.  Gibson's movies and antics in the last couple of years have left a bad taste in my mouth, but his spot as "The Colonel" on Jimmy Kimmel and his photo shoot for Empire have started winning him back fans here at DSB.

Possibly my most anticipated movie of the new year is Matthew Vaughn's Kick-Ass...if this red band trailer doesn't get you interested, I have no idea why you're reading DSB.

Prediction: Edge of Darkness will do okay at the box office, but Kick-Ass will do just that at the box office as fanboys unite.

Between the Pipes

                                      

As always, for all things hockey we turn to Plain White TS...

Pittsburgh Penguins:  The Penguins head into the weekend with their fourth game of the week on hand Saturday evening.  They remain north of the border after a win on Thursday over the Edmonton Oilers as they head to Vancouver to face the Canucks.  These two teams only meet once throughout the entire season.  The last matchup between these guys was early in last season, Nov ’08, which ended in a loss for the Pens.  We’ll see if the momentum can continue for “Bearcat’s Birds”.
Prediction:  Victory over the Canucks.  Pens return to Western Pa winning four out of five of the long road trip.

Philadelphia Flyers:  The Flyers have two days off before they face the Washington Capitals on the road Sunday.  The Flyers road game this month has not been up to par, winning only one of the four games thus far, including the loss they were dealt in Toronto Thursday by the Maple Leafs.  That being said, this will be the fourth meeting of the Flyers and Caps, Philly only finding the W in the first of those four.  I’m quite sure the fact they got hammered at home 8-2 by the Caps is still lingering in most players heads, and I would look to see the Fly-Guys seeking payback.  Note: Being I’m a Bears/Caps homer I hope the Caps kill them again.
Prediction:  L  in Washington.  Flyers road loss number grows
.  
Washington Capitals:  The Capitals will be back on home ice at The Verizon Center this weekend for a pair of games.  First they slammed the Toronto Maple Leafs on Friday night, and then face the Flyers on Sunday.  Sunday will also round out the regular season meetings for these two teams.  Hopefully newly named Captain, Alex Ovechkin, can lead his team against Philly they way he did Friday night as he scored 5 points on 1 goal and 4 assists.      
Prediction:  Caps continue to Rock the Red in “The Phone-Booth”

Hershey Bears:  First I would like to congratulate the boys of Chocolate and White as the Bears set another remarkable franchise record, winning twelve games in a row.  Unfortunately number thirteen slipped away Wednesday evening when the Norfolk Admirals fired to sink the Bears 4-3.  Still a definite marvel and much deserving the nod from this hockey nut.  Onto the games at hand.  Friday night saw the Bears take on the Albany River Rats.  After losing both previous meetings with the Rats, Hershey ran the score up on them as they won 10-4.  Following Friday night's games they return home, where they finish the weekend with the WB Scranton Pens on Saturday, and the Syracuse Crunch on Sunday.  Saturday’s game will be a good one as always when facing the baby Pens.  Bears have taken six out of the last eight games thus far this season.  Expect to see the hatred between these two shine thru on Saturday.  Sunday’s game is up in the air for me.  Bears rolled over the Crunch in their last meeting, but I’m always concerned when the third game in as many days comes to the table. 
Prediction:  Facing reality and putting my love for the team aside I see them returning home to win Saturday, and wanting a W on Sunday, but won’t be surprised to see a L.      

The Golden Globes

                                             

The Golden Globes are presented live on Sunday night on NBC...this awards show is the shining example of Hollywood's circle jerk come "awards season".  But, Ricky Gervais is hosting and alcohol is always flowing so the chance for both funny and disastrous loom as possibilities.  Fully expect Gervais to crack jokes about the Holocaust, AIDS, and every other "untouchable" subject.

Prediction: Up in the Air, It's Complicated, Mad Men, and 30 Rock are the major winners of the night.

Hoop it Up

                                           

Notre Dame (3) at UConn (1): I didn't realize that both teams were ranked so high.  Wait a minute...this is women's basketball?!?  Why in the hell is ESPN's College Gameday crew doing their show from Storrs on Saturday?  We get it...the Lady Huskies are good...real good.  We get it...Geno Auriemma is good...real good...but EVERYONE hates him, so stop bowing at his altar.

Prediction: Does anyone care? I don't.

Syracuse (5) at West Virginia (9)
Prediction: Syracuse's zone defense will force the Mountaineers to light it up from outside...which they will.  Because the game is in Morgantown, take West Virginia and give the 4.5 points.  Free throws down the stretch will stretch this to a 7-10 point game.

Georgia Tech (18) at North Carolina (13)
Prediction: Last Saturday, Tech came up with a big win against the Dukies at home...then on Wednesday night, they traveled to Charlottesville and shit the bed against UVa.  I know the Tar Heels are a young team, but I don't trust the Yellow Jackets as far as I can throw them.  However, UNC is favored by 7 and this one's going to come down to the final minute.  Take Tech and the points.

NFL Playoffs

                                   
All due respect to two writers I enjoy immensely, but Mike Tunison and Dan Levy are dead wrong.  This is not the best sports weekend of the year.  Call me during the first weekend of March Madness and tell me these 4 NFL games beat that.  I remember where I was for Syrcause/Vermont, do you remember where you were for the Cardinals/Panthers game last year?

Prediction: Check out DSB's Panel of Experts sometime on Saturday afternoon to know where to lay your cold hard cash

Thanks for coming and suckling Daddy's Sugar Ball...

Posted by Max Power at 1/16/2010 12:59 AM
Categories: uncategorized
Tags: Mike Leach Edge of Darkness ESPN Gameday Kick-Ass Lane Kiffin Washington Capitals Hershey Bears NFL Playoffs Pittsburgh Penguins Golden Globes Ricky Gervais Coaching Carousel Marc Trestman Philadelphia Flyers
 

What did you think of this article?




Trackbacks
Trackback specific URL for this post
  • No trackbacks exist for this post.
Comments
  • No comments exist for this post.
Leave a comment

Submitted comments are subject to moderation before being displayed.

 Name

 Email (will not be published)

 Website

Your comment is 0 characters limited to 3000 characters.