Thursday, January 28, 2016

Super Bowl XXXIX Memories





Super Bowl XXXIX - New England Patriots 24, Philadelphia Eagles 21. Played on February 6, 2005 at Alltel Stadium, Jacksonville, Florida. MVP Deion Branch. Favorite Patriots by 7. National anthem The combined choirs of the U.S. Military. Halftime show Paul McCartney. Attendance 78,125. Network Fox. Announcers Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, and Cris Collinsworth. Nielsen ratings 41.1. est. 86 million viewers. Market share 62. Cost of 30-second commercial US $2.4 million. Tom Brady 23/33 236 2 0, Deion Branch 11 133, Donovan McNabb 30/51 357 3 3, Terrell Owens 9 122


Unlike the previous Super Bowl, I did not think that this was a particularly interesting or exciting Super Bowl. It featured the two top teams in the league, most likely, as Philly dominated the NFC, and the Patriots convincingly plowed through the AFC playoffs, despite not having home field advantage.

Despite being close, the game was not remarkably well played. New England played well, but Donovan McNabb looked scared out there based on his facial expressions, and the Eagles....well, they did not play as well as they normally did.

Yes, the game was close, but the outcome never really seemed in question, like it did in other close Super Bowls. The Patriots were pretty well outplaying Philly from beginning to end, and there was no incredible finish to be had in this one.


Personal Memories: This was the year that my son was born, and I became a father. This overshadowed all else for this calendar year, and was my tremendous privilege.

http://www.infoplease.com/year/2002.html

Here are some of the major events that took place in 2005, the year this Super Bowl was played. The world's population was 6.4 billion people. Worldwide aid pours in to help the eleven Asian countries devastated by the Dec. 26, 2004, tsunami (Jan.). See Tsunami Factfile.   Mahmoud Abbas wins presidency of the Palestinian Authority in a landslide. This is the first presidential election for Palestinians since 1996 (Jan. 9).  The Sudanese government and Southern rebels sign a peace agreement to end a 20-year civil war that has claimed the lives of two million people (Jan. 9).  Iraqi elections to select a 275-seat National Assembly take place despite threats of violence (Jan. 30). See also Iraq; Iraq Timeline.  Former Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri—a nationalist who had called for Syria's withdrawal from Lebanon—is assassinated (Feb. 14). Weeks of protests ensue.   Violent protests follow elections in Kygyzstan (March 13), which international monitors deem severely flawed. President Askar Akayev flees the country and then resigns (April 4).  Pope John Paul II Dies (April 2). Benedict XVI becomes the next pope (April 24).  The Syrian military, stationed in Lebanon for 29 years, withdraws (April 26).  Tony Blair becomes first Labour Party prime minister to win three successive terms, but his party loses a large number of seats in the elections (May 5).  The European Union abandons plans to ratify the proposed European constitution by 2006 after both France and the Netherlands vote against it (June 16).  Former Teheran mayor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, a hard-line conservative, wins Iran's presidential election with 62% of the vote. He defiantly pursues Iran's nuclear ambitions over the course of his first year in office (June 24).   London hit by Islamic terrorist bombings, killing 52 and wounding about 700. It is Britain's worst attack since World War II (July 7).   Group of Eight industrial nations pledge to double aid to Africa to $50 billion a year by 2010, cancel the debt of many poor countries, and open trade (July 8).  Pentagon assessment finds Iraq's police force is, at best, "partially capable" of fighting the country's insurgency. The U.S.'s eventual withdrawal plan hinges upon Iraqi security forces replacing U.S. soldiers: "As Iraqis stand up, Americans will stand down," President Bush had stated (July 20). See also Iraq; Iraq Timeline.  The Irish Republican Army announces it is officially ending its violent campaign for a united Ireland and will instead pursue its goals politically (July 27). See also Northern Ireland Peace Process.  The Indonesian government and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) sign a peace accord to end their nearly 30-year-long civil war (Aug. 15).   Israel begins evacuating about 8,000 Israeli settlers from the Gaza Strip, which has been occupied by Israel for the last 38 years (Aug. 15).  A 7.6 earthquake centered in the Pakistani-controlled part of the Kashmir region kills more than 80,000 and leaves an estimated 4 million homeless (Oct. 2).  Angela Merkel, leader of the Christian Democratic Union, which narrowly prevailed over Chancellor Gerhard Schröder's Social Democratic Party in September elections becomes the country's first female chancellor (Oct. 10).  Millions of Iraqi voters ratify a new constitution (Oct. 15).   Former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein goes on trial for the killing of 143 people in the town of Dujail, Iraq, in 1982 (Oct 19).   Several weeks of violent rioting begins in the impoverished French-Arab and French-African suburbs of Paris after two boys are accidentally killed while hiding from police (Oct 27).   Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf becomes Africa's first woman elected head of state (Nov. 11).   Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon quits as head of the Likud Party, which he founded, to start a new, more centrist organization, called Kadima (Nov. 21).  About 11 million Iraqis (70% of the country's registered voters) turn out to select their first permanent Parliament since the overthrow of Saddam Hussein (Dec. 15).




http://boards.sportslogos.net/topic/98529-super-bowl-field-database-sb-xlvi-texture-added-122215/page-9

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Djokovic Wins Semifinal Showdown Against Federer

Novak Djokovic

Photo courtesy of Yann Caradec's Flickr Page - Novak Djokovic: https://www.flickr.com/photos/la_bretagne_a_paris/5763317762
Creative Commons License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/

This was the big match between what is arguably the greatest rivalry in the sport right now.

Djokovic versus Roger Federer. The two men who have been ranked number one for a combined nine of the last 12 years. Nadal holds the other three years, but they were broken up, coming in 2008, 2010, and finally, in 2013. That is undeniably an incredible achievement, although Federer and now Djokovic have now managed to hold the top ranking in men's tennis for years in a row, and the level of consistency that the two men have displayed has been virtually unprecedented, which spiced this rivalry up.

The rivalry was tied up at 22-22, with this being the de facto tie-breaker between the two men. Federer has won matches recently against Novak, although Djokovic has won the more important matches, particularly at the Grand Slams. And he notched another one earlier today.

Djokovic won the first two sets incredibly easily, and did so in less than one hour. However, Federer came alive in the third set, taking it 6-3, and playing very well, showing that he would not simply be pushed around.

Still, Djokovic is almost unbeatable once he takes a two sets to none lead in a Grand Slam tournament, and it proved to be the case today, as well, as he was able to close Federer out in the fourth set.

The final score was in favor of Djokovic, 6-1, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3.

Now, Novak will head to another Australian Open Final, where he will meet either the familiar Andy Murray of Britain or Milos Raonic, the Canadian star emerging as one of the dominant forces in men's tennis himself.
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Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Australian Open Semifinal Might Be Pivotal Match of Djoker-Federer Rivalry

Novak Djokovic

Photo courtesy of Yann Caradec's Flickr Page - Novak Djokovic: https://www.flickr.com/photos/la_bretagne_a_paris/5763317762
Creative Commons License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/





Why Aussie Open semifinal is pivotal match of Djoker-Fed rivalry by Peter Bodo, January 27, 2016:

http://espn.go.com/tennis/aus16/story/_/id/14658125/australian-open-2016-why-aussie-semifinal-most-pivotal-match-djokovic-federer-rivalry
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Super Bowl XXV 25 Years Later: A Giants Fan Reflects on Norwood's Missed Fieldgoal







Okay, I will admit it. As a Giants fan, I threw my arms up and jumped in celebration when Scott Norwood's kick sailed just wide, securing the back and forth contest in favor of the Giants. Game, set, match, and championship to the Giants.

At the time, it was all that I wanted, all that I could think of as a fan of the Giants for my entire life.

At the time, in fact, I recorded the game and would watch that historical moment, as well as the postgame interviews. And yes, a smile emerged on my face when Norwood's interview came up, and it was a mean-spirited smile that I am not proud of.

It's no excuse, but I was just a dumb, sixteen year old kid who was a little too happy that my favorite team won the Super Bowl. In retrospect, I can admit that, in large part, it was because not much else was going on in my life. I was a miserable high school student without a rich social life, and without a girlfriend. So, the 1990 football season, which was admittedly an unusually intense and entertaining one (at least for fans of the Giants, Bills, and 49ers), took on an unusual degree of importance in my life at the time. In the weeks that followed, I probably watched that game three or four times, and still got a bit nervous each time Norwood lined up to take the field goal, as if this time, he was destined to make it.

But he will always be remembered for missing that kick of a lifetime.

I grew up. Finally did some things to make my life more interesting. The Giants became less interesting as a result, although perhaps this was made easier by the fact that they were nowhere near as good as they had been. No longer was I religiously in front of the television, watching football games on Sundays. I still follow it, and sometimes catch parts of games, and always watch the playoffs and Super Bowl. But no longer am I what you would call a devoted fan glued to my television set whenever the Giants appear.

Yet, the memories still resonate for me. I still think of that game, that kick, and how much it meant to me. How happy it made me. Admittedly, I kind of look at that with some measure of distaste now, because I know that it should not have made me as happy as it ultimately did. In particular, I think back to how I was trying hard not to laugh during Norwood's postgame interview, because I knew that was wrong (even though no one was there to watch me).

The thing is, he seems like a decent guy. I really had nothing against him, and realize that it could just as easily have sailed through, and he would be remembered forever as the hero.

I think the reason that my reaction was so negative, despite my team having won in glorious, memorable, and exciting fashion that postseason not once, but twice, is that it was so close. The Giants could easily have lost that game. Hell, they could easily have lost the NFC Championship Game, for that matter. But they barely pulled off both games, and won an unlikely championship.

Yes, I said it. It was an unlikely championship because, admittedly, the Giants were probably not the best team in the league that season. The Bills were. It took me a long time to come to terms with that. But there came a point, as an adult, when I will admit that I felt at that time, and still feel now (yes, despite New York's victory in the big game) that Buffalo had the better football team that season.

Their offense was incredible and in sync. Their defense was loaded with talent, and disciplined. They caught fire at some point that season and, yes, they looked like the team of destiny. I do not know this for sure, but my suspicions are that they would have beaten the 49ers had San Francisco been in that Super Bowl. They almost beat the Giants instead.

Almost, but not quite. The Giants brought their A-game, and played a very physical (some might suggest boring, if they are not fans) style that wore the Bills out. Remember, that was a Buffalo team that had put up 44 points against Miami and tore the Raiders up 51-3 in the AFC Championship Game. The Giants had to keep that offense off the field, and they did, keeping possession of the ball for over 40 minutes, which still remains a Super Bowl record.

Still, they scraped by for the win. Had the time of possession been a bit more even, the Bills would have won. Hell, if there had not been a miracle play with Ingram's third and 13 conversion, breaking several tackles along the way, Buffalo likely would have won. If Hostetler had not tucked the ball in on the Buffalo safety, which could have been a touchdown, the Bills win. If Lofton takes that long bomb in for the TD, the Bills win. And even after all of that, even after less than 20 minutes of possession time total (at one point, the Bills offense had barely touched the ball for roughly one hour in real time), the Bills could have won with a field goal. Had it been a little closer, they likely would have won. had it been a bit longer, according to Frank Reich (the backup QB and placekicker on the play for the Bills), the kick likely would have gone through, and the Bills would have won.

Instead, the kick sailed wide right, by about two feet.

It was a moment in time that would live on for me for quite some time, but there was something that felt wrong about it.

Ironically, the moment that I remember best from that championship season was the week before, when the Giants, wearing my favorite road white jerseys, beat the "Team of the Decade" 49ers in San Francisco, because Matt Bahr managed to kick the field goal through the uprights to win the game, in a situation very similar to the one that Norwood would be in the next week. It felt right because that kick won it for the Giants, while Norwood's miss lost it for the Bills. To that point, despite all of the things that went wrong for them in that game, they still were dictating play and in a position to earn the win.

Instead, the kick sailed wide right, by about two feet.

In time, that mean-spirited joy over someone else's pain withered, and I thought about Norwood himself from time to time. I was pulling for the Bills the next few years, when they returned to the Super Bowl, and was disheartened when they lost. I remember pulling for Scott Norwood in particular in 1991, and wondering where he was after the 1991 season ended. Buffalo had a new placekicker for 1992, and no one picked up Norwood otherwise.

I felt bad, but life goes on.

Then, I met some Bills fans, and they spoke about that Super Bowl, and how much they hated my Giants. Some suggested that the Bills were the better team, and when I thought about it, found myself  actually agreeing. Remember, the Bills had beaten the Giants at the Meadowlands only about one month and change before the two teams would meet in Tampa for Super Bowl XXV.

Had that been the first meeting between the two teams that season (in other words, had that been Super Bowl XXV), then Buffalo would likely have won that Super Bowl.

Instead, the kick sailed wide right, by about two feet.

At the time, I could not have been more thrilled.

As the years went by, I began to think a little bit differently about it. When I met those Bills fans, and when I went to the city of Buffalo, I thought more deeply about it. Every now and then, I looked up Scott Norwood online, to see what was going on in his life now, where he was all of these years later.

Buffalo is a relatively nice city. It has character, and there are certainly nice parts of the city. I love the cities right along a big body of water, like one of the Great Lakes, and Buffalo has that, obviously. It also is in close proximity to Niagara Falls, and has some wonderful countryside in the surrounding area that provides pristine rural, pastoral scenes.

Plus, Buffalo has an interesting architectural history that a former girlfriend of mine awoke me to. She took me to the old rail line terminal, and pointed out some buildings of historical and architectural interests during a visit to the city, and she even contemplated a move up to Buffalo.

Unfortunately, Buffalo is too often overlooked. Niagara Falls is nearby, but it is not Buffalo itself. The city is pretty big, yet more overlooked in New York State (and for reasons that should be obvious) than similar cities are in other states, such as Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and Cincinnati. And, of course, in terms of sports, this is the city that seems to come close to winning championships, but never quite gets there. The Sabres have gone to the Stanley Cup Finals twice, but failed to win. And the Bills went to those four straight Super Bowls, which really is a remarkable feat that sets this franchise apart. Yet, all that people harp on is that they lost them all.

The Buffalo Bills were robbed of their stature of greatness by those four losses. From 1988 until 1993, the Bills were right next to being the winningest team in the NFL. They went 12-4 in 1988, 9-7 in 1989, 13-3 in 1990, 13-3 in 1991, 11-5 in 1992, and 12-4 in 1993. Put that all together, and they enjoyed a 70-26 mark. That is second next to San Francisco's 72-24 mark during that time, but the Bills had 10 postseason wins to add to that, while the 49ers had nine. Both won five division titles during that stretch, but the Bills made it to the playoffs in each of those years, which San Francisco cannot claim. The Niners won two Super Bowls, however, while the Bills won none. But Buffalo came within a few feet of seeing that field goal attempt go through the uprights, and who knows how things would have turned out differently then? The Bills of the early 90's deserve to be recognized as one of the most successful teams. Four straight Super Bowls, and do not forget about the greatest come back in NFL history!

Yet, all that people remember is that the Bills lost those four Super Bowls, like the Broncos and Vikings had at that time before them (Denver has since won two Super Bowls). It is most unfortunate that such a great Bills team should be remembered in such a negative, pessimistic way.


Buffalo, NY
Photo courtesy of JasonParis - Buffalo, NY: https://www.flickr.com/photos/jasonparis/3579975929
Creative Commons License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

One Bills fan that I met (a particularly immature one for someone over thirty years old, I might add) said that if Norwood walked through the door at any given moment, he would punch him right in the face. I reject such a stupid and unforgiving sentiment.

Ridiculous.

As I already mentioned, the guy seems like a really decent guy. Here is a clip from a few years ago showing Norwood receiving some official distinction for his charity work behind the scenes:

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ANNOUNCEMENT! Members Being Decreased on Google Blogs

I am not entirely sure why this is happening.

Still, I noticed that several members suddenly disappeared from the list of followers, and so I decided to explore a little. As it turns out, Google accounts is eliminating members from any source but Google, which will make it more difficult for people to follow these blogs.

To me, it seems like a case of if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

However, if you found yourself booted off and were not sure why, please understand that I certainly do not want to bounce anyone following this blog, but unfortunately, I also have no control over this. It is annoying and, it seems, counterproductive, not to mention a little too wrapped up in product exclusivity.

It seems like it is also the new reality. If you were following before and are still interested, please feel welcome to come back and rejoin! You are always welcome here!

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Super Bowl XXXVIII Memories




Super Bowl XXXVIII  – New England Patriots 32, Carolina Panthers 29. Played on February 1, 2004 at Reliant Stadium, Houston, Texas. MVP Tom Brady. Favorite Patriots by 7. National anthem Beyonce Knowles, Halftime show Spirit of Houston, Janet Jackson, Justin Timberlake, OutKast, P. Diddy, Kid Rock, and Nelly. Attendance 71,525. Network CBS. Announcers Greg Gumbel and Phil Simms. Nielsen ratings 41.3. est. 89.8 million viewers. Market share 63. Cost of 30-second commercial US $2.2 million. Janet Jackson, Justin Timberlake wardrobe malfunction DVD. Jake Delhomme 16/33 323 3 0, Mushin Muhammad 4 140 1, Tom Brady 32/48 354 3 1, Deion Branch 10 143 1.




This was an excellent Super Bowl, yet few people seem to remember it as such. Perhaps that is because it was overshadowed by something that happened on the field that had nothing to do with football, with Janet Jackson's infamous "wardrobe malfunction," when Justin Timberlake ripped off the covering over her breast (her nipple was covered, although it still caused a tremendous scandal). Or, perhaps it is overshadowed because it involved the New England Patriots, the team that most football fans now seem to be sick of, and many accuse of cheating. Or, perhaps, it is just that there have been other exciting Super Bowls since that kind of cast this particular Super Bowl in the shadows.

Whatever it is, this was a remarkably entertaining Super Bowl. It had a little of everything. If you liked tough, defensive football, than you could enjoy the majority of the first half, which remained scoreless until fairly late in that first half. After a small explosion of points by both teams late in the second quarter, things returned to a defensive gridlock in the third quarter. But if you like offensive shootouts, then the end of the second quarter, and all of the fourth quarter, was for you, as both teams came up with some incredible plays in what was truly some explosive and brilliant football.

The New England Patriots were emerging as a dynasty, as they won three second Super Bowl in three seasons. After getting blown out, 31-0, at Buffalo in week one, and then losing to Washington in week four, the Pats stood at 2-2, and looked decidedly mediocre. That was when they went on a tear, running the tables with 12 straight wins to end the season at 14-2, earning home field advantage. They defeated the Tennessee Titans by a field goal in the divisional round, then met the Indianapolis Colts, in what would be the first of five playoff meeting between Tom Brady and Peyton Manning (three while Manning played for the Colts, two while Manning played for Denver). The Patriots beat the Colts soundly, and then survived the huge Super Bowl challenge that the upstart Panthers provided. Couple that with their 6-0 start the following season, and you have that historic 21-game winning streak, which remains the NFL record.

Personal Memories: This was the first of ten straight Super Bowls that I would watch while working at my weekend job at Prudential. The Iraq war was well under way, although by now, a lot more people were realizing that it had been a pretty huge mistake. George W. Bush's popularity stagnated, although his approval ratings never actually dipped far enough to give Democratic challenger John F. Kerry a chance at the White House, and Bush got a second term. Spain had it's own version of 9/11, as terrorist attacks on 4 trains more or less simultaneously shook the country.


http://www.infoplease.com/year/2004.html

Here are some of the major events that took place in 2004, the year this Super Bowl was played. The world's population was 6.4 billion people. About one third of Iran’s Parliament steps down to protest hard-line Guardian Council’s banning of more than 2,000 reformists from running in parliamentary elections (Feb. 1).  A. Q. Khan, founder of Pakistan's nuclear program, admits he sold nuclear-weapons designs to other countries, including North Korea, Iran, and Libya (Feb. 4).  Armed rebels in Haiti force President Aristide to resign and flee the country (Feb. 29).   Spain is rocked by terrorist attacks, killing more than 200. Al Qaeda takes responsibility (March 11).  Spain's governing Popular Party loses election to opposition Socialists. Outcome seen as a reaction to terrorist attacks days before and Popular Party's support of the U.S.-led war in Iraq (March 14).   North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) formally admits 7 new countries: Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia (March 29).   Israeli prime minister Sharon announces plan to unilaterally withdraw from Gaza Strip (April 12).   Greek Cypriots reject UN reunification plan with Turkish Cypriots (April 24).  Sudan rebels (SPLA) and government reach accord to end 21-year civil war. However, separate war in western Darfur region between Arab militias and black Africans continues unabated (May 26).  U.S. troops launch offensive in Falluja in response to killing and mutilation on March 31 of four U.S. civilian contractors. (April 5–May 1).   U.S. hands over power to Iraqi interim government; Iyad Allawi becomes prime minister (June 28).   Security Council demands Sudanese government disarm militias in Darfur that are massacring civilians (July 30).   Summer Olympics take place in Athens, Greece (Aug. 13–29).  Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez survives recall referendum (Aug. 16).  Chechen terrorists take about 1,200 schoolchildren and others hostage in Beslan, Russia; 340 people die when militant detonate explosives (Sept. 1–3).   UN Atomic Energy Agency tells Iran to stop enriching uranium; a nascent nuclear weapons program suspected (Sept. 18).  About 380 tons of explosives reported missing in Iraq (Oct. 25).   Yasir Arafat dies in Paris (Nov. 11).   U.S. troops launch attack on Falluja, stronghold of the Iraqi insurgency (Nov. 8).   Ukraine presidential election declared fraudulent (Nov. 21).  Hamid Karzai inaugurated as Afghanistan's first popularly elected president (Dec. 7).   Massive protests by supporters of opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko's lead to a new Ukrainian election; Yushchenko eventually declared prime minister (Dec. 26).   Enormous tsunami devastates Asia; 200,000 killed (Dec. 26).




http://boards.sportslogos.net/topic/98529-super-bowl-field-database-sb-xlvi-texture-added-122215/page-9

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Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Australia Day




January 26 - Australia Day

It was on this day in 1788 that 11 British ships commanded by Governor Arthur Phillip, and carrying convicts, arrived on the banks of Port Jackson in New South Wales. Phillip also raised the Union Jack, and the beginnings of what is now modern-day Australia came to be.

Initially, Australia was designed as a penal colony, as an agricultural working camp for British convicts.

It was rough going early on, but the colony eventually managed to survive.

In 1818, January 26th was honored as the anniversary of the founding of Australia. Once Australia gained independence, this date was recognized as "Australia Day", a national holiday honoring the arrival of Phillip and the British.

Understandably, this holiday is recognized in different ways, particularly along the color lines. While whites in Australia generally celebrate in a similar manner as Americans celebrate Independence Day and the French Celebrate Bastille Day, Aborigines generally recognize it as a day of mourning, not all that dissimilar to native Americans regarding Thanksgiving. For them, the day marks the beginning of the end of their traditional way of life, as the British began the process of spreading out across the continent.

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