Something To "Mitch" About

 

 

Atlanta Falcons kicker Matt Bryant celebrates his 47 yard field goal while far, far away in Regina, this Seahawks fan could only hang his head and wonder what if as Atlanta moves on to the NFC Championship game against San Francisco. Don't get me wrong, Atlanta deserved the win in what turned out to be a classic football game, but for the next few days, weeks and months I will wonder if the better team actually won on this day.

I won't lie to you. At halftime, I thought it was over. Seattle looked bad, they looked real bad. However, they turned it on in the 3rd quarter and when Marshawn Lynch scored with 31 seconds left, there was a glimmer of hope that maybe just maybe the Seahawks were off to San Francisco. While I think Seattle was the better team, perhaps they didn't deserve it because they just made too many mistakes in the first half. The most glaring one coming at the end of the half when Russell Wilson was sacked when he could not afford to be thus preventing a last play field goal attempt by Ryan Longwell. The rookie quarterback was poised in there especially with the season hanging in the balance, but he just couldn't afford to be sacked in that situation when he was. Perhaps if Pete Carroll had run the two minute clock a little better, Wilson wouldn't have been put in that situation. The biggest play of the game though might have been in the first quarter. Matt Ryan had not had a lot of playoff success and on the game's 2nd drive when he threw a bad interception to Bobby Wagner, you know some doubt started creeping in. A few plays later, Lynch fumbled in Atlanta territory and it was all Falcons after that in the first half. If Lynch doesn't fumble and Seattle gets points which they likely do, I think the complexion of the game is different and I think the winner is too.

As I said, the Falcons deserved this one and I wish them the best of luck against San Francisco next week. I don't want to see a Harbaugh vs Harbaugh Super Bowl and I don't really want to see a rematch of the Sunday night game a few weeks ago when the Niners beat New England. I will gladly take a Falcons-Ravens or a Falcons-Patriots Super Bowl. I'm on that Atlanta bandwagon.

As for the Seahawks, I had them at the start of the year competing for a wild-card spot, but competing for a wild-card spot with Matt Flynn as their quarterback and not Russell Wilson. I don't know what the future holds for the Wisconsin grad, but a star was born in the Pacific Northwest this year and I see the Seahawks being right back in the playoff picture next year and beyond.

 

A poll for a Seattle newspaper asked if this is the most heartbreaking defeat in Seahawks history. I don't think it is, but its up there.

 

Other thoughts from the weekend:



Do they get any better than the game in Denver on Saturday? Was it just me or did the Jacoby Jones touchdown remind you somewhat of the Romby Bryant touchdown that killed the Riders in the Western semi-final.

Joe Flacco can look so good one week and so bad the next. I don’t know how the Ravens don’t keep their soon to be free agent quarterback, but if he should be the bad Flacco last weekend, do they make him an offer or let him walk?

Poor Peyton. His last real chance at a Super Bowl might have ended because of a ridiculous pass much like Brett Favre’s did when New Orleans beat the Vikings in the NFC Championship a few years back.

NFL analysts I hope do not return to the booth in 2013---Dan Dierdorf and Tony Siragusa. Of course, I have been saying I hope they don’t return for 2009, 10, 11, 12.
 

No one will be complaining about hockey now. I am guessing between CBC, TSN and Sportsnet that there will be a game on and perhaps two each and every night.

The Brian Burke dismissal is one of the reasons why I just can’t stand the Toronto Maple Leafs. If Brian Burke was the GM of any other Canadian team, the attention wouldn’t have been what it was, however when it’s the high and mighty Leafs, everything seemingly shut down. CBC Newsworld couldn’t stop talking about it when the bigger hockey story that day was the owners ratifying the lockout. Did the networks really need to bring us Burke’s farewell? It just gives credence to TSN being known as the Toronto Sports Network. Let the local affiliates handle it how they choose, but if you are going to bring us live coverage of Burke’s firing and his farewell address, please bring us live coverage of other events like when something major happens in another NHL city or a CFL coach gets hired or fired. I rue the day that the Leafs ever somehow win a Cup and what will be forced down our throats by TV stations. The womens network will probably have interviews with the wives about their hubbies winning.

How high will Jordan Eberle go in hockey drafts this year. I can’t see him being any lower than 15^th. That being said, Pats owner Brent Parker tweeted Saturday that he was somewhere where a draft was going on and Scott Hartnell was picked before Ebs. ?????

For his sake, I hope Morgan Rielly doesn’t start the season in Toronto. I just see another Luke Schenn scenario painting itself out if he does. Yes, I know Ron Wilson is gone, but that media glare isn’t.

I had a chat with Rider kicker Chris Milo for a story that will go up on Riderville soon. Milo and fellow Rider Keith Shologan got jobs with Farm Business Council through the work program the team has set up that is run by Weston Dressler. What a great program! Many a football player need something they can fall back on should their football days come to an end and we know that happen on any play. The fact these two and others are getting an opportunity to pad their resume is fantastic. I don’t know if other teams have such initiatives, but they should.

The U of R Cougars mens basketball team is certainly not the best team in Canada West, but they aren’t the worst either. They had two outstanding games against the University of Northern BC and Mount Royal on the weekend –games that went right down to the wire. I don’t know why more Reginans don’t check out the Cougar basketball teams because they provide solid entertainment. They are home again in two weeks to play Alberta---go check it out.

What’s the record for snowfall in Regina in one winter? We have got to be getting close and there’s still sadly a couple of more months to go.

I didn’t see any of the Continental Cup of Curling and I really wanted to see the mixed doubles format. In talking to people with the Sask Curling Association, this part of the sport is really starting to catch on, but its entirely different than what you and I are used to. I wanted to see a game in its entirety—which is only about an hour, but I failed.

Still with curling, you are only as good as your colour man when you are doing play-by-play because your analyst brings so much more to what you are saying. I am no expert in curling and it isn’t that difficult doing play-by-play compared to faster sports like hockey, football and basketball that I have done, but it is a helluva lot easier when you have someone the caliber of Mark Lang helping out. Mark and I did the provincial junior finals in Weyburn on Monday for Access and he was outstanding. We are paired together again for the Scotties at the end of the month in Balgonie and I know he will be just as good if not better. He did all the driving too which is a good thing. What is also a good thing is that we left Monday when it was over. With the weather being the way it was, we might still be stuck in Weyburn.

As much as we bitched, moaned and complained about the storm that blew through last week, it was nothing compared to Newfoundland where they had 80 centimetres of snow combined with winds at over 100 k an hour. That’s beyond insane!

Is the temperature really supposed to be zero on Tuesday?

Still with the weather, former Global Regina girl Kelsey McEwen had quite the experience in her new gig with the Weather Network. For whatever reason, Kelsey did a story about getting rescued in an avalanche by actually being buried in snow. NO THANKS!!! Obviously it was all controlled and she wasn’t buried for long, but again NO THANKS!!!! I hope she gets some danger pay in her next paycheque.

If Marc Trestman does become an NFL head coach and he succeeds, will teams look at other CFL head coaches? Could John Hufnagel, who has NFL experience on his resume, be considered a candidate, how about Scott Milanovich if he guides the Argos to two straight titles or Kent Austin if he comes back and takes the Tabbies to a title. What about Corey Chamblin? We all know he is friends with Mike Tomlin who I’m sure would not hesitate to add Chamblin to his staff if the timing was right and if Chamblin had put up the numbers in the CFL. I’m rooting for Trestman because I want to see how he would do.


Rider fans, how long does it take for the pain to go away! You should know. Never mind, I know the answer. SIGHHHHHHH!!!!