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Why Does Duke Football Suck?

Or, if Rutgers can find the wins, why can't we?
(Apologies to CaseyBoy.)

Now, don't get me wrong, I'm a big Duke fan, as well as a Duke grad and an Iron Dukes member. But what I really can't figure out is how the football program has gotten to be so bad - currently riding a 14 game losing streak, dating back to last season. And a steady fixture in ESPN.com's Bottom 10 (see this week's edition). It's maddening because there doesn't seem to be only one problem that can be fixed. So where to begin?

I have no solutions, but can identify a few potential problem areas. Any solution suggestions are welcome. I don't know if they'll do any good, but it can't hurt.

Coaching. Been a revolving door. Lack of stability means too many changes that the existing players have to implement. But how long of a leash do you provide?

Play calling. Even good coaches call bad plays. But how do you differentiate between bad coaching and bad play calling? Other than the obvious - that a bad coach will consistently call bad plays.

Recruiting. Is the talent just not there? Not really sure about this one. High school talent is not the same as college-level talent. Of course, injuries don't help.

Facilities. This is something that the school admits has been lacking in the past, and has been throwing dollars at the problem to correct it. So this is about neutral.

This has got to end sooner or later - hopefully sooner. In the mid-1990's it was Northwestern. This year, it's Rutgers. So it's not impossible for a bottom-feeding program to crawl from the wreckage. But it's a rare occurrence.

Butley - Kinda boring

I went to see the preview edition of Nathan Lane's revival of Butley this past weekend. Being a fan of Nathan Lane (having seen him on stage six times), I had high expectations. Apparently, I should've looked into the story a little deeper - I was bored at times. I even dozed off a little, as did my wife and my father. The moments of comedy were dry at best and few and far between. A character study of a man whose life goes into the toilet from the get-go, this is almost a one-man show. I just couldn't really get into it, mainly because I was expecting a bit more comedy in the mix.

Got soaked heading home today

I have absolutely the worst sense of timing when it comes to leaving work during bad weather. A few weeks ago, I had a late afternoon dentist appointment. It was pouring rain. I went two blocks and got soaked.

Today, I had to leave when I did to be able to make the two buses to get home. I had to run for the first one, after crossing the recently-repaved-but-poorly-draining 17th Street (i.e., a frickin' lake at the crosswalk). Running for the bus wouldn't have been so bad by itself, except for the fact that I was wearing a suit and loafers - not exactly running gear. And the umbrella didn't help while running. I got initially wet.

Then I had to wait for the second bus, the always-late 57 South. At least I got to wait somewhere dry and even dried out a little bit on the ride down to my stop. I got off the bus when it was pouring. Within about 15 seconds, I was soaked again. I knew there was no way to stay even slightly dry for the three block walk home, so I just kept the umbrella low and walked as quickly as I could. I could feel my shoes filling with water, which sucks if you've ever experienced it.

I got into the house and called for help: I wanted a change of pants and some towels to dry off. My pants soaked through to the point my underwear was wet. That's a new low for me. I just hope the suit isn't ruined - I like the suit.

On T.O.

Now that the general media blitz has subsided (and I have some free time), I offer my two cents on the whole "T.O. Thing". First, it's good that he had an awful game (see the NFL News article via ESPN).

As for the whole suicide attempt thing, I don't buy it. Suicide is generally quiet and private. Unless, of course, you happen to dive off of a building onto a busy street or something like that. And T.O. isn't a quiet person. No, he loves the spotlight. Suicide by O.D. would be too tame for him.

A few days ago at work, we were tossing around a few ideas before the start of a breakfast meeting. I suggested a shotgun between his legs while he did crunches in his driveway and then pulling the trigger at around 20 crunches. Then someone mentioned, "That would make one heck of a touchdown dance. T.O. scores, pulls a gun out of his sock, and blows his brains out." Either one of those options would be more suited to his personality.

But, alas, such messy and permanent events did not come to pass. Maybe next time. Remember T.O., if you want help killing yourself, I'm sure that there are plenty of folks here in Philly who'd be more than happy to help out.

Torre with Yankees for 2007

It looks like George Steinbrenner didn't completely lose his mind after all. He decided that Joe Torre would be the Yankees' manager for 2007. See the "official" article.

CBS cancels Smith

When trying to set the DVR for tonight, I noticed that Smith wasn't on - a CSI rerun was on instead. Thanks to the magic of Internet searching, I found out that Smith was canceled. But there weren't many articles; this article from the Baltimore Sun has only a few facts, namely, that the viewership was really low (about 8.4 million). But Karen and I liked it, not that it matters now. Oh well. I get 48 minutes a week back (DVR'ed minus the commercials).

Damn Yankees

Funny that I started typing "Damn Tankees," since that's a more appropriate description of their most recent October folding. Now, I've been a Yankees fan for 30 years (since I could understand baseball at age 6), so it's not easy for me to say.

But I'm older, perhaps wiser, and definitely more cynical now. And I don't accept piss-poor performances like A-Rod's (1 for 14 for the series) as a viable excuse. (Dammit, do you job!) At the same time, I don't think all the blame should fall on Torre either (see this article from ESPN about the possibility of Torre being replaced). I do think that Steinbrenner has lost his mind again. I can't think of another manager or coach in any sport who could manage the player egos and media scrutiny the way Torre can.

Though it would be an interesting proposition to see Don Mattingly managing the Yankees at some point in the future. Disclaimer: I am a huge Mattingly fan. I think he's the best baseball player to never make it to the World Series.

Jim Gardner scares me

Now, I've never met the Channel 6 (Philly's local ABC affiliate) anchor (see his bio), so I don't know if he's intimidating in person or not. I'm referring to this picture:

This is the billboard that's behind my house. I took this picture from the landing between the second and third floors; you can see part of my reflection in the lower right.

This is large and scary and brightly lit at night.

Nothing personal Jim, but it is kinda creepy.

A great idea, but I'm a little late to post it here

My friend Joe, over on his blog, had the really good idea of getting people involved in commenting on the other blogs they read, instead of just lurking. Which is perfectly fine in its own right. Anyway, the post is here: It's 10-4, Good Buddy: Leave Someone Else a Comment!