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Recap of Week 4

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 19:38:44 GMT

Week 4 highlights:

I'm still convinced that Tennessee is looking at a 7 win season, at best. After the Vols downed Ohio U by 11, you could feel the uneasiness about this team. This wasn't the performance that Tennessee needed, especially after their showing against Florida. I just don't think that Jonathon Crompton can lead this team to victory in a close game, so the Vols will have to lean on their running game and their defense (without Nick Reveiz, sadly). I expect wins against Memphis, Vandy, and Kentucky, but outside of those opponents, I have no idea where the other wins will come from. The Vols have a pretty rough schedule in the next 4 weeks (Auburn, Georgia, at Alabama, South Carolina). Tennessee needs to win 2 of those 4 games.
Ohio State's defense is really stepping up. The defense racked up another shutout, this time against Illinois. Weaknesses exist (see Chimdi Chekwa), but this unit is anchored by a very deep and talented defensive line, which will continue to give their opponents fits. Let's hope that their performance against Navy is in the rear-view mirror.
Terrelle Pryor is still overrated and continues to look lost at times. I'm hoping that by the time November arrives, he'll have found his comfort zone because he's not there yet. TP still seems to be struggling with the zone-read and his willingness to either run or pass. Please, Terrelle, trust your first instinct.
After seeing more "major upsets," the AP poll and coaches poll should not be released until week 1 of the BCS rankings, period. These "preseason" rankings mean nothing until we can get a real feel for the teams who stand out week in and week out.
Florida and Alabama appear to be head and shoulders above everyone else right now. Texas is a close second. Beyond those three teams, it's a crap shoot. I do know one thing though - Boise State is NOT the #5 team in the country.
After watching Cal and Miami get destroyed in the afternoon, Penn State laid a golden egg against Iowa. After being torched by a beautiful 79-yard TD pass on Penn State's first offensive play, the Iowa defense completely shutdown the Penn State offense. Turnovers were definitely a factor, but Daryll Clark looked very uncomfortable, especially when the Hawkeyes put a little bit of pressure on him. Buckeye fans are hoping for a similar outcome in Happy Valley this November.
Did I mention that Notre Dame is still overrated? This team could easily be 1-3, if not for an overthrown Michigan State receiver in the end zone (the Spartans turned the ball over on the next play) and a timeout called by Purdue (which gave ND the opportunity to run an extra play inside the 5 - the Irish scored on that extra play).
The Pac-10 title race is going to be a total crap shoot, just like the annual ACC division race. Your early conference leader - Stanford (2-0). The only undefeated team left - UCLA (3-0, although they haven't played a conference game yet).
Sleepers - Cincinnati, South Carolina, Kansas, Iowa
Overrated - Notre Dame, LSU, Ole Miss, Boise State, Penn State
Wait-and-See - TCU, South Florida

Recap of Week 3

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 17:24:03 GMT

Monday morning quarterbacking after week 3:

Tennessee did exactly what I thought they would against Florida - lose while finding a way to not get humiliated. The Vols can definitely take something positive away from this game, but they still have a long way to go - 9 more games, to be exact. Unfortunately, Jonathon Crompton and the Tennessee wide receivers are not very good. Thankfully, the Vols have a solid defense and a good running game. Don't be surprised if opposing defenses load up to stop the run every week, forcing Crompton to make big plays. Both Tennessee and Florida need to avoid USC's annual post-big game letdown next week.
No one has admitted this yet, but Tim Tebow's 4th quarter fumble inside the 5 was a 14-point swing. Without that turnover, Florida would have taken a 30-6 lead. That's an ugly score that likely would have gotten uglier.
Florida will lose at least one game this season. You heard it here first.
Of the three Heisman front runners from last season, only Tebow seems to be in "good" (not great) form (Bradford is injured, McCoy looks very shaky).
Now that I've mentioned it, what is wrong with USC? After the Washington's performance against LSU and Matt Barkley's injury, I actually picked the Huskies to win this game (college pick 'em). How can you differentiate between the treatment of Jim Tressel, who can't seem to win the "big" game, and Pete Carroll, who continues to choke against a lesser opponent every year? Still, you have to give credit to the Huskies for coming up with the W.
Ohio State's defense took a major step forward in shutting out the high-scoring Toledo offense at Cleveland Browns Stadium. Terrelle Pryor had a career day also, but I'd like to see him have the same impact in a meaningful game.
Utah and BYU both went down, which opens a clear path for Boise State to go to a BCS game. I will be shocked if the Broncos lose a game this year. Want proof? Look at their schedule. Houston and TCU could be in the BCS mix, if Boise State falters.
The Big Ten continues to suck, but what else is new? Penn State and Ohio State are the clear front runners, but after that, it's a total crap shoot. Oddly enough, Michigan is positioning itself as the #3/4 team in the conference. The Buckeyes should be on notice.
Notre Dame is overrated, as usual. Michigan State blew a chance to win the game in the final minute, before throwing a costly interception in the red zone to end the game (Cousins also overthrew a wide-open receiver in the end zone on the previous play). The next three games could determine if Charlie Weis stays or goes at year's end.
Sleepers - Miami, Cincinnati, Michigan, Washington
Overrated - Notre Dame, LSU, Virginia Tech, Texas
Wait-and-See - Ole Miss, Penn State, TCU, North Carolina

Close, but once again, no cigar!

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 16:21:29 GMT

Kudos to Matt Barkley and the USC Trojans. They did what they had to do in order to win in the 'Shoe. It was a game that clearly could have gone either way, but great teams find a way to win in situations like those, and the USC Trojans proved that they are once again, among the elite in college football.

The Buckeyes did exactly what I thought they needed to do in order to win the game- slow down the USC running attack. Unfortunately, the one "given" that I assumed they had in their corner (Terrelle Pryor) played his worst game in a Buckeye uniform. Give credit to USC's defense for forcing him to make some strange decisions. However, a lot of his mistakes are on TP and no one else (3rd play from scrimmage, for example).

The play of the game had to be the 3rd-and-9 completion from Barkley to McKnight deep in OSU territory on the game winning drive. TP got sacked on 3rd down on the previous drive, which put Jim Tressel in a difficult position - let Aaron Pettrey line up for a 54-yard field goal (he has made from 50+ multiple times in his career), or pin the Trojans deep and make them drive the field for a go-ahead TD. True to his style, Tressel sent the punt team on, and Jon Thoma pinned the Trojans down at the 14 yard line. In hind-sight, it's easy to criticize Tressel's decision to punt. Obviously, had Pryor not gotten sacked, Pettrey would have kicked a 48-yard field goal, and USC would still be in the same position - score a touchdown or go home.

The OSU defense played a great ball game, and it's impossible for me to criticize them. They rarely got through the vaunted USC offensive line, but they did disrupt Barkley enough throughout the game to make a difference. McKnight and Stafon Johnson didn't have a lot of running room all night. However, McKnight's ability to make a nice move on Ross Homan shook him free on that 3rd-and-9 pass, and McKnight was wide open for an easy 20+ yard gain.

A few things stood out for me after Saturday night's game.

Ohio State hasn't been destroyed in the "big game" in the last 3 tries, which is a welcome change from the previous 3. That is a step in the right direction, but it still hurts to think that if one or 2 plays had gone a different way in these 3 games (Penn State, Texas, USC), the result would have been different. Could-a, would-a, should-a...
Ohio State's defense is a lot better than most thought they would be, especially after their performance against Navy. However, just like Navy, they couldn't stop USC in short yardage situations (with the exception of this play). Personally, I would love to see Jim Tressel pull a Pete Carroll, put 3-4 wide receivers on the field on 3rd and short, and either run a QB sneak or a dive play.
Ohio State's offensive line was great in pass protection most of the night, which was a welcome sight. Run blocking, not so much (give credit to USC's run defense).
Terrelle Pryor took a major step backwards in his development. Again, credit USC's defense for some of that, but TP still has a lot of work to do.
Matt Barkley looked poised on two drives, but I'm not buying into the hype just yet. On the final drive, the 3rd down catch by McKnight was a dink-and-dunk pass, which is designed to get a young QB (like Barkley) in a comfortable rhythm. I didn't see a lot of great throws or reads by Barkley, but again, he did what he needed to do to get the win (just like Penn State's Pat Devlin against OSU last year).
Special teams play was great as usual. With the exception of USC's opening drive starting at the OSU 2 (after the interception return), USC's best starting field position was their own 26. That's another great stat.
On USC's only other drive of the 4th quarter, with the Trojan punter standing on the goal line, Grant Schwartz whiffed on an "easy" punt block attempt (simply overran it) with OSU leading, 15-10. Fortunately, he did what he is trained to do - don't dive into the punter - which would have resulted in a first down due to the whiff. OSU failed to score on the ensuing drive (TP sacked on 3rd down).

Ohio State has a relatively easy schedule until their showdown in Happy Valley (November 7th). Illinois and Wisconsin are both at home before then, but neither the Illini nor the Badgers have looked very good so far this season. Ohio State must continue to take it one game at a time, but the final 3 games (Penn State, Iowa, Michigan) will be the real tests.

To those who are upset with Jim Tressel and his play calling - that philosophy won us a national title in 2002. Championship teams have to get a few bounces along the way, and we got our share in 2002. However, we haven't gotten a lot of those same bounces in big games as of late, and that has to catch up with a team at some point. It's just the law of averages. I still think Jim Tressel is a great coach. Yes, I would like to see him hire an offensive coordinator, but the worst thing we could do is lose him. He is a great coach, a great ambassador, and a great human being. To the few who are calling for his head, just remember that.

Redemption - Part IV

Wed, 09 Sep 2009 15:22:02 GMT

Once again, college football pundits are pointing to this weekend as Ohio State's lone chance to redeem both themselves and the Big Ten for their previous "choke" jobs in big game situations, not to mention the conference's recent inferiority.

Jim Tressel, who has had Michigan's number ever since he took the helm at Ohio State, has put himself in a John Cooper-like predicament (let's not forget, Coop would still be the head coach at Ohio State, if it weren't for his awful record against Michigan). After thrashing Notre Dame in the 2006 Fiesta Bowl, the Buckeyes have yet to defeat a ranked non-conference opponent since (losses to Florida, LSU, USC, and Texas). Last year's Fiesta Bowl loss to Texas was a step in the right direction for Ohio State, but Anderson Russell's missed tackle with 15 seconds to play gave the Longhorns a last-second victory.

Saturday night's matchup with USC doesn't appear to be a lot different from last year's, with 2 exceptions. Mark Sanchez is playing with the Jets, so true freshman Matt Barkley will be the starting QB for the Trojans. Barkley looked shaky at times during practice in August, but those who doubted his ability were silenced after putting up some solid numbers in a blowout win versus San Jose State last weekend.

Playing in Columbus on a Saturday night is probably the biggest difference from last year's game, and will definitely be the major X-factor. This will be the loudest/craziest atmosphere USC has ever played in under Pete Carroll (Eugene, Oregon and Seattle, Washington are a distant second). However, will that be enough to put the Buckeyes on top?

After leaving the OSU-Navy game on Saturday, I was almost as shocked as the majority of the fans in the stadium. Ohio State is not a top 10 team. They are a top 20 team, but definitely not a top 10 team. No one gave Navy a chance to beat Ohio State. USC was coming to town the following week. Combine that with the fact that Navy runs a triple option-flexbone offense, which the Buckeyes haven't seen in the Jim Tressel era, and you have a recipe for disaster. Navy played their asses off to the very end, and they deserve a lot of credit because Ohio State didn't just roll over and hand them 27 points. They deserved to win that game as much as Ohio State did. However, I don't think that Ohio State's performance on Saturday was completely indicative of what we will see against USC.

That is the danger of scheduling Navy for a season opener, the week before the USC game. Your defense has to prepare for a very unique Midshipmen offense, and none of that preparation will be useful against USC's pro-style offense. If there was some good that came out of that nail biter, it's the simple fact that the Ohio State players know they have to refocus this week and work that much harder, in order to beat the Trojans.

I just don't see how the Buckeyes can beat the Trojans. I expect Ohio State to score some points (Terrelle Pryor has definitelly matured versus last season and the running backs looked good last week), but the Buckeye defense is a big question mark. Ohio State has to slow down the powerful USC running game. They have a stable full of tailbacks, each of which could start for any team in division I college football. The Buckeyes have to make Matt Barkley beat them. That is the only realistic way to defeat USC.

I will be flat-out shocked if Ohio State finds a way to win this game. With that said, I think that USC wins 27-17. The Buckeye nation will continue to wonder what it's going to take to win another game of this caliber, and the rest of the college football nation will continue to laugh at us because we are a more convenient target than Oklahoma. This is also a huge recruiting weekend for Ohio State, and a double-digit loss would be the worst thing that could happen to Ohio State. The Buckeyes have to find a way to keep this game close, at worst.

The USC running game is the key for both teams. Matt Barkley has never seen or heard an environment quite like what we'll see on Saturday night. I don't expect Barkley to do anything spectacular, especially if they are able to run the football well. As good as USC's offensive line is, a lot of responsibility will fall on the green Ohio State linebacking corps, which really struggled at times against Navy.

We're Back!

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 19:07:54 GMT

After collecting dust for a year, John Cooper's Backyard is back! Look for new entries this week. Here's a teaser...

"We couldn't have been treated any better in Columbus. It was amazing how many times we were stopped and thanked for our service. Everywhere we went, people wanted to talk to us. Many of my friends were telling me that they now have to change their view of Ohio State. Many who didn't like them before will now root for them. It was a really cool experience." - Donald Jack, USNA ‘91

Thanks to all of the fans for making the Naval Academy and their fans feel welcome this past weekend. After hearing about the way Navy and their fans were treated at Wake Forest last September, I really hoped that Ohio State fans would go out of their way to show their appreciation for these service members, their friends, their families, and their fans. Go Bucks!

2008 Ohio State Offense

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 20:00:19 GMT

It's hard to believe that the first game of the 2008 college football season is less than 3 weeks away! With that in mind, I present you with my offensive preview of the 2008 Ohio State Buckeyes!

Offensive Depth Chart (returning starters are italicized)

Quarterback

Todd Boeckman (Sr)
Joe Bauserman (Fr)
Terelle Pryor (Fr)

Tailback

Chris 'Beanie' Wells (Jr)
Brandon Saine (So)
Maurice Wells (Sr)

Fullback

Curtis Terry (Sr)
Ryan Lukens (Sr)

Wide Recievers

Brian Robiskie (Sr)
Brian Hartline (Jr)
Ray Small (Jr)
Taurian Washington (So)
Dane Sanzenbacher (So)

Tight Ends

Rory Nichol (Sr)
Jake Ballard (Jr)
Brandon Smith (Sr)

Left Tackle

Alex Boone (Sr)
Andy Miller (So)

Right Tackle

Bryant Browning (So)
JB Shugarts (Fr)

Left Guard

Steve Rehring (Sr)
Kyle Mitchum (Sr)

Right Guard

Ben Person (Sr)
Connor Smith (So)

Center

Jim Cordle (Jr)
Andrew Moses (Jr)

This offense is very talented and experienced. The Buckeyes lost just 2 offensive starters (and only 3 offensive non-starters!) from a year ago (starting RT Kirk Barton and starting FB Dionte Johnson). Opponents can expect a steady diet of Beanie Wells this season. I don't know if he will break Eddie George's single season rushing record (1900+ yards), but he should come close, especially now that he's 100% healthy and because the NCAA has added an extra game to everyone's schedule. He'll also have one of the best offensive lines in the country blocking for him, which I think is the key to this team making another title run.

I expect Todd Boeckman to be a lot more mature when passing the football this season. Boeckman's biggest shortcoming last year was his inability to read deep coverage (2007 Illinois-OSU game!). If Boeckman can make better decisions down the field, he has the receivers that can and will make plays. The Buckeyes didn't lose a single tight end or receiver from a year ago, so as long as Boeckman can play that Krenzel-type role, the Buckeye offense will be tough to stop.

Former linebacker Curtis Terry has bulked up and was moved to fullback during the offseason. He now finds himself atop the depth chart, and has really turned some heads this spring/summer.

The depth at running back is very impressive, now that Brandon Saine's health is close to 100%. He and Maurice Wells will serve as Beanie's backup, and both will have the opportunity to catch some passes out of the backfield, particularly in 3rd down (and long) situations.

What about Terrelle Pryor, you ask? While he is listed at #3 on the depth chart at quarterback, there is still a lot of uncertainty regarding how he will be used this season. There has even been some talk of him being red-shirted. I expect that he will see some playing time, but not as much as a lot of fans are hoping for. Because he will likely be the starter next season (barring injury), he needs to get a little bit of playing time, which he should get.

While this offense may not be as good as the 2006 offense (thanks to Troy Smith), the 2008 offense is a close second. Stay tuned for my 2008 defensive preview of the Buckeyes!

Summer Updates!

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 18:36:34 GMT

Now that July is coming to an end, I plan to bring you plenty of new material. Here are some topics that will be covered in August:

Ohio State Buckeyes Football Preview
Tennessee Volunteers Football Preview
Preseason NCAA Football Rankings

Why are these polls even relevant?

Tennessee High School Football Previews

Updates on the TSSAA changes for 2009

State of Major League Baseball

When will the MLB shorten its season?

John McCain & Barack Obama's outlook on nuclear energy
Is Barack Obama a socialist?
Is global warming as serious as we've been forced to believe?

I'm going to attempt to keep up with local high school football news, notes, and scores during the fall. I will also provide news on Ohio State and Tennessee throughout the upcoming football season, in addition to any other news-worthy football notes.

Tennessee Football = Zero Integrity

Tue, 19 Feb 2008 16:11:54 GMT

That's pretty much the general feeling here in Knoxville regarding the University of Tennessee football program, particularly after Britton Colquitt's recent run-in with the law. Colquitt [Clone #4/Alcoholic/Sebastian Janikowski/Mike Vanderjagt/Starting Punter], the 6th different UT player to be charged by police since mid-January, decided to drive his Jeep Cherokee after getting sauced early Sunday morning (no surprise there). He then proceeded to hit a parked car and a tree stump while driving drunk, and to make matters worse, left the scene of the accident. He was pulled over a mile away from the accident and was visibly sloshed, smelling of alcohol and staggering as he attempted to complete a field sobriety test. This was his 5th alcohol-related arrest since his freshman year at UT. Let's not forget that he was dismissed from the university after his 3rd offense (3 in 12 days!) back in 2003, but was reinstated after making a plea deal and keeping his nose clean (aka. not getting caught).

Britton, I know you will never read these words, but it would be nice if you would actually take the following to heart. You are a f---ing moron! I understand that college students like to drink, and many times they drink way too much, but the least you could do is find a designated driver. Call a cab. Call a teammate. Call a coach. It's obvious that you enjoy alcohol more than anything, so we are beyond the idea of [gasp!] putting down the beer bottle. Did you not learn anything from your freshman year?? You've been caught 4 times drinking as a minor and twice charged with a DUI! You obviously have no remorse. You don't care about the innocent people around you, you don't care about your teammates, coaches, and friends, but most importantly, you clearly don't care about yourself. If you did, you would at least be smart enough to hand the keys over to a sober driver.

Some people try to make excuses for your behavior (oh, he's just a college student, he's targeting because he's a football player, Fulmer isn't a disciplinarian, etc.). I don't give a sh-t what your name is. I don't care if you are in college. I don't even care that you are an athlete. If you make a mistake, you must pay the price, but more importantly, you must learn from your mistake. If this was your first offense, I wouldn't be going on this tirade. Human beings make mistakes, but when they repeat those same mistakes over and over again, that's a problem. When you were dismissed as a freshman, I thought your punishment was pretty stiff, but I thought that would give you the ultimate wake-up call. I guess I was wrong. You didn't learn at all; in fact, you learned that you can get away with it because you are a starting football player, you have the Colquitt name, and you answer to Philip Fulmer.

I'll admit it, you obviously aren't afraid of the consequences. After your latest arrest, you should no longer be on this football team! There is no good reason (or justification) for a "simple" 5-game suspension/loss of scholarship. You are an adult, and you have to be held accountable for your actions. You are a repeat offender. Not twice. Not thrice. Not even four times, but five times! There is not one honest job on the planet that would offer you that kind of forgiveness.

I'll close with this. Some people say that Philip Fulmer is partly to blame for your behavior, and he is. Again, Britton Colquitt should no longer be on this football team. This was clearly a time when Fulmer needed to give him the ultimate kick in the pants, and he couldn't do it. There appear to be a plethora of reasons why, none of which are "good" reasons, like:

He's a starter
His last name is Colquitt
Fulmer is a soft disciplinarian
DUI doesn't warrant a dismissal

Could Philip Fulmer prevent the crap that has befallen his football program by ruling with an iron fist? Yes and no. Some of it could be prevented if Fulmer actually "disciplined" his players. He needs to put the fear of God in them. He can't have repeat offenders on this team. However, some of these dirtbags are going to screw up regardless of the consequences, and that is a recruiting issue. Ohio State learned the hard way with John Cooper. When Cooper was winning, the university looked the other way. However, the minute the team wasn't winning as much, everyone was quick to point out that the team was being run by the players/thugs and not the coaches. Maybe Fulmer should play it "safer" when it comes to recruiting. It's time for Philip Fulmer to step up and do what's right. In all honesty, it's not going to happen under his watch. The only solution is to get someone in here who can.

Terrelle Pryor is no Superstar

Fri, 08 Feb 2008 18:59:21 GMT

For those of you who've kept up with college football recruiting, I'm sure you've heard of a Pennsylvania quarterback named Terrelle Pryor, aka Vince Young 2.0. I'm not going to even begin trying to analyze Pryor's character, because I obviously don't know the guy. He's just another high-profile high school football recruit with a massive ego. Correct me if I'm wrong, but why does he give me this awful feeling in the pit of my stomach?

Pryor has been recruited by Jim Tressel and Ohio State since his sophomore year of high school. The 6-6, 235-pound QB has Vick-like scrambling ability, plus he has a better arm than Vince Young. After David Cutcliffe took the head coaching job at Duke, Pryor took Tennessee off his list and appeared to be favoring Ohio State for his services. However, Michigan's hiring of Rich Rodriguez suddenly put the Wolverines in the mix. Leading up to signing day, Pryor claimed that it was a two-horse race between the Buckeyes and that state up north.

This week, Pryor went back and forth on whether or not he would commit (he changed his mind publicly 4 or 5 different times). Sure enough, Pryor has postponed his decision and will visit Penn State before he makes his final choice. He is the only high-profile recruit remaining that hasn't signed a letter of intent to play college football.

As an Ohio State fan, I've been following Pryor news very closely. I'll admit it, I'd love to see this guy come to Ohio State, even if he leaves for the NFL early. All of the tools are in place for this guy - the Buckeyes are stacked with talent in 2008, they have a great offensive line, an excellent receiving corps, Beanie Wells, and a stout defense. But now, I'm not so sure what to think. I'm starting to get the feeling that Pryor's ego might cause trouble for the team he ends up on.

There is no way for us to know how good this kid (or any other kid) will be in college. Even with his frame and raw talent, it's still a crap shoot. However, Jim Tressel has been very cautious with his recruiting ever since Maurice Clarett showed up. The way I see it, Pryor has three options.

Sign with OSU - He will likely be redshirted in 2008. Boeckman will graduate, and he will battle Antonio Henton for the starting job. Will run the "Troy Smith" offense. Offense and defense has a lot of depth, particularly the offensive line and receiving corps.
Sign with Michigan - He will likely start in 2008. Rich Rodriguez offense will be implemented for the first time at UM. No proven running back, no proven wide receivers, young offensive line, and a porous defense.
Sign with PSU - He will likely start in 2008. Will run the "Michael Robinson" offense. No proven running back, experienced receiving corps, average offensive line, and an experienced defense.

If Pryor is looking to start immediately, he should avoid Ohio State. OSU might be willing to play him in '08, but I'd be surprised. He will get knocked around his first year at Michigan, since a new system will be implemented, plus there isn't a lot of talent on the offense. In 2 or 3 years, I'm sure the Wolverines will be back on their feet. Oddly enough, Penn State might be the best fit, except for the fact that JoePa didn't really rewrite the playbook for Michael Robinson in 2005.

No Surprise - Dems "trying" to lose again

Wed, 30 Jan 2008 20:16:58 GMT

I'll admit, I have never voted for a democrat; however, I'm a person that will vote for the candidate that I see"eye-to-eye" with, regardless of their political partisanship. After the presidential election debacles in 2000 and 2004, I was convinced that the democrats would not repeat the same mistakes in 2008. Fool me thrice, shame on me...

Back in 2000, the democrats were riding the momentum from the Clinton administration, and they chose Al Gore to "succeed" Clinton (mistake #1). I don't know if Bill Bradley was a better option, but the democrats needed a candidate who didn't stray too much from Clinton's ideals (Gore was probably the best option). Unfortunately, you know what you are in for when your candidate can't even win in his home state.

Leading up to 2004, George W. Bush looked unbeatable, until the moment that the media stopped praising the president and began to criticize his post-9/11 actions. Bush's sky-high approval rating tumbled, and the democrats were poised to swoop in and retake the White House. Unfortunately, they failed to nominate a "safe" candidate, and chose John "Waffle-Iron" Kerry, someone who couldn't even beat Geraldo Rivera, Rush Limbaugh, and Jesse Jackson in a popularity contest. Heck, a cigar-smoking chimp had a better chance to beat George W...

Yes, Geraldo would have beaten John Kerry...

...Kerry was no match for Rush...

...even Jesse Jackson would have beaten Kerry.

Enter the present. The democrats are sitting in the driver's seat once again, and, like the past 2 elections, seem to be pissing away another shot at redemption. John Edwards announced today that he would drop out of the democratic primary, narrowing the race down to two candidates - Hilary Clinton and Barack Obama. Edwards has also chosen not to endorse either frontrunner (in the hopes of becoming the democrat's VP choice). The democratic primary has been marred by a lot of name-calling and smearing by both Clinton and Obama. It is already a tough situation for the democrats, considering that one of their top candidates is a female (some won't vote for a woman) and the other is an African-American with an Islamic background (some won't vote for an African-American). What makes their task even more daunting is the fact that both candidates are running a smear campaign, and it isn't helping either one of them.

On the flip side, the republicans, who really had little to no shot coming into the election, have gained a considerable amount of momentum due to the democrat mess. John McCain just solidified his position as the republican favorite, which is good news for conservatives because he probably has the best chance of winning the general election on the republican side. Rudy Giuliani decided to end his campaign and endorse McCain, which will boost him even more. Fred Thompson is even rumored to be supporting McCain. Mike Huckabee seems to be running out of steam, which means that the republican primary will likely be a battle between McCain and Mitt Romney.

What amazes me is the sheer stupidity of the democrats. How can they let this happen for the third presidential election in a row?! I am enjoying the misery that the democrats are suffering through, but I still don't understand why they can't capitalize on this, especially with the extensive media/celebrity support that they usually have. Clinton and Obama are not "dream" candidates or even "safe" candidates. They are reaches, at best. My prediction - we will likely see four more republican years in the White House because the democrats won't suit up a primate.

Just give him a cigar and a suit, and he'll beat the republicans!